Not that I want to make any excuses for this priest, but could this perhaps be a mitigating factor? It is incomprensible that one priest could minister to 10,000 parishoners, let alone do background checks. It boggles the mind just to think of the number of baptisms, weddings and funerals, to say nothing of sick calls, confessions and counseling. How is it possible?
Hint: let lay people do some of the work. Steve's old school and probably doesn't any laymen handle parish money either (though I don't know that for sure).
And, while he's the only resident priest, he has help on Sundays for Mass and confessions.
From the looks of things, he didn't realize how serious the bishops of Dallas are about avoiding even the hint of sexual scandal after paying out $31 million to victims of Rudy Kos in 1997.
Don't think he has to do background checks on the parishioners, just the staff, and he probably has or should have hired the staff to do that. With a congregation of 10,000 they are probably flush with funds unless they have transferred it to President Clinton and the Catholic Priest legal defense (of sexual abuse) funds.