One of the first things I want to write about is why I wrote "Sin, Shame and Secrets."
But before I get into that, I want to say that I feel privileged to have met and spent time with hundreds of clergy men and women in my years as religion editor of The Blade and that I have the highest respect for those who serve as spiritual leaders of their community.

That includes many, many Roman Catholic priests. Day in and day out, these unselfish priests help guide, encourage, inspire, console, and celebrate with their flocks, providing spiritual and moral support for both the good times, such as weddings and baptisms, and the tragedies, like death and divorce.

I admire and applaud these wonderful men of God.

But there are a few wolves hiding among the sheep. A tiny minority of priests hide behind their clerical collars and use their position to prey on the innocent. The fact that these criminals are supposed to represent Jesus Christ to the world makes their heinous deeds even more despicable than if anyone else had committed such sins These perpetrators destroy people's souls as well as their minds and bodies.

"Sin, Shame and Secrets" is about a few despicable priests, and about the bad judgments some church leaders made, sometimes with good but misguided intentions, in trying to protect the offenders and/or protect the reputation of the church.

It is my hope that the church changes its ways and becomes more accountable and transparent, as it has pledged. It is time to confront and treat problems rather than ignore them. As with suffering a serious illness, the problem only gets worse when ignored. Treatment can be painful or unpleasant, but the failure to take proper actions can only worsen the problem.

That said,, the reasons why I decided to write this book are pretty simple.
I know a powerful story when I see one. This is such a bizarre and compelling human-interest story that it was inevitable somebody would write about it. As a matter of fact, I know of three or four other books either planned or in progress on the Father Robinson case.

I have been a journalist in Toledo for 25 years. I am a member of this community. I know the players in this story. I covered the trial from the start of jury selection to the post-verdict analyses. A number of people whose advice I highly value said to me: "Somebody's going to write the book, so why not you?"

Why not me, indeed.

Unlike the professional true-crime writers from the coasts who are now digging into the story, I will be here in Toledo long after the book is published, God willing. I will be accountable to my community, as well as to readers around the world, for every word that I write. Some of those words were difficult ones, but they are all true. I did not enjoy delving into some of the dark topics discussed in "Sin, Shame and Secrets." There are some harrowing portions of the book that will take people where they've never been before.

But I I have always taken pride in being fair, objective and thorough in my reporting, and as difficult as it was to write some of these chapters, they are all accurate accounts of the events that unfolded.

The story is so bizarre that it is stranger than fiction. I am sure that if I were to submit this book as a novel, no respectable publisher would print it. They would say it's too far-fetched for readers to believe.

But "Sin, Shame and Secrets" is not fiction. It's real. Even after spending so much time and energy investigating the story, reviewing thousands of documents, interviewing dozens of people, sitting through weeks of courtroom drama, writing daily accounts for The Blade and then writing the book, I still find this story to be fascinating and compelling. And I believe you will share those same feelings when you read "Sin, Shame and Secrets."

Thank you for visiting my "blog" and I look forward to hearing your thoughts and feedback.

Sylvania, Ohio. Aug. 2, 2006. (My birthday!)