It certainly depends on the diocese. From my understanding and observation in San Antonio, one report is enough to spur a serious investigation. That being said, every witness can help create a case of credibility.
From what I've experienced (I've lived and served in a couple different dioceses in different parts of the country) it's better to err on the side of caution and assume that multiple reports may be needed. Even if a diocese has a good track record with one or two cases, people fall in and out of favor with diocesan politics enough (though I hope and assume that this is also different in different dioceses) that the staff in charge may be different or have been forced to adopt different techniques in investigating cases.
A lot may also depend on if the person being accused/investigated is politically powerful in the diocese as well.
Theres enough possible variables at play that if you see something, you should pretty much always say something.
It certainly depends on the diocese. From my understanding and observation in San Antonio, one report is enough to spur a serious investigation. That being said, every witness can help create a case of credibility.
From what I've experienced (I've lived and served in a couple different dioceses in different parts of the country) it's better to err on the side of caution and assume that multiple reports may be needed. Even if a diocese has a good track record with one or two cases, people fall in and out of favor with diocesan politics enough (though I hope and assume that this is also different in different dioceses) that the staff in charge may be different or have been forced to adopt different techniques in investigating cases.
A lot may also depend on if the person being accused/investigated is politically powerful in the diocese as well.
Theres enough possible variables at play that if you see something, you should pretty much always say something.
"if you see something, you should pretty much always say something." -- Agreed!
Thank you for writing this.