Thank goodness the Church has acted responsibly.
Did you read the stuff I bolded? Apparently, he didn't do ANY background checks. If he did, there was no evidence of them, anywhere.
St. Thomas is a wealthy parish, and there are no doubt lawyers in the parish. Arch McColl lives in Dallas, so he's likely one of them.
Why did he lie? Why does anybody lie? Who knows?
My impression is that he just didn't feel like these background checks were all that important. Like Fr. Efren Ortega, who was transferred for not checking the backgrounds of some nuns in his parish, Steve may feel that the diocese should just trust his judgement.