The LAtimes, miraculously, has some criticism of Cardinal Mahony:

In describing his response to sexual abuse allegations, Mahony has said he and other bishops initially believed molesting priests could be cured through therapy. He said that his approach changed over time, and that he established a zero-tolerance policy in 1992 for abusive clergy.

"It was very clear from ’92 on, there was only one course of action and that was, these guys had to go," Mahony told The Times in 2002.

But The Times’ analysis shows that the zero-tolerance policy was not always enforced, as the case of Father Joseph Pina illustrates. Pina is one of the seven priests left in ministry during Mahony’s tenure whose history was not detailed in the People of God report. Pina’s name appears in the report only on a list of 211 accused priests.

In 1990, the summary of his personnel file states, Pina told an archdiocesan official that he had "past sexual interest in a minor" and that he was seeing a therapist. In 1993, the brother of the girl who had aroused Pina’s sexual interest contacted the archdiocese, alleging abuse that began when his sister was 16.

In 1994, Pina was sent to a Pennsylvania hospital "for therapeutic treatment," the summary states. In 1998, Pina was promoted to pastor at St. Emydius Catholic Church in Lynwood. That same year, three women reported "boundary violations." Pina denied "any inappropriate conduct with two of the three women." At that point, he was placed on "sick leave" and never returned to ministry.

In 2001, as part of a legal settlement, the church agreed to remove any priest who had been the subject of a credible sexual abuse allegation. But in 1992, Mahony’s policy on accused priests "was still evolving," Tamberg said.

"What Cardinal Mahony meant at that time by ‘zero tolerance’ was that henceforward any priest with a contemporaneous, proven report of child sexual abuse would be removed," the archdiocese spokesman said. "In other words, zero tolerance for any new allegations of abuse arising in 1992 or after. This standard did not include boundary violations or decades-old allegations of abuse."