The legal fight will continue behind closed doors about whether a Baltimore judge should release a 456-page investigation into child sexual abuse within the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

Baltimore Circuit Judge Anthony Vittoria ordered the case sealed on Friday. His order means all hearings will be closed to the public and all legal motions will be confidential.

“No party is permitted to share any filing or communication,” Vittoria wrote.

He went further and directed the attorneys to deliver their filings to his chambers and not submit them to the clerk’s office.

The ruling marks a win for attorneys Gregg Bernstein and William Murphy, who wanted the proceedings to be secret. The two attorneys represent some people named in the report, but not accused of sexual abuse. These people have not been publicly identified.

The Maryland Attorney General’s Office tried to keep the continued litigation open to the public.

“This case involves the sexual abuse of children and an institution’s attempt to cover-up that abuse. Baldly claiming an interest in keeping these proceedings secret is insufficient,” Assistant Attorney General Carrie Williams wrote the judge last month.

...This story continues. Read the rest at The Baltimore Banner: Baltimore judge seals case as attorneys fight over release of Catholic church sex abuse report

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