I believe that you may be thinking of the following threads, and two in particular:
In 1922, the Vatican promulgated an instruction to do with what it called crimen solicitationis (the crime of solicitation within the confessional) and what it called the ‘‘worst crime’’ - the sexual abuse of children. The document was issued in Latin. No authoritative version was produced in English. The document was circulated only to bishops and under terms of strict secrecy....Other threads that discuss crimen solicitationis:
....The 1922 and 1962 Vatican instructions on dealing with allegations of clerical child sex abuse demanded absolute secrecy in the conduct of investigations. The secrecy was so pervasive that, to some, it seemed to demand that the complaint also be kept secret from the state authorities. Canon 1341 states that the bishop is to ‘‘start a judicial administrative procedure, for the imposition or the declaration of penalties, only when he perceives that neither by fraternal correction nor reproof, nor by any methods of pastoral care, can the scandal be sufficiently repaired, justice restored, and the offender reformed’’.
-- from the thread Vatican guilty of unholy compassion for paedophilesThe report by the independent Commission of Investigation, headed by Judge Yvonne Murphy, looked specifically at the handling of some 325 abuse claims in the Archdiocese of Dublin during the period from January 1975 to May 2004.
"The Dublin Archdiocese's preoccupations in dealing with cases of child sexual abuse, at least until the mid-1990s, were the maintenance of secrecy, the avoidance of scandal, the protection of the reputation of the church and the preservation of its assets," said the report. "All other considerations, including the welfare of children and justice for victims, were subordinated to these priorities. The archdiocese did not implement its own canon law rules and did its best to avoid any application of the law of the state"....
-- from the thread Pope calls Irish church leaders to Vatican to discuss abuse report
....The 1922 and 1962 Vatican instructions on dealing with allegations of clerical child sex abuse demanded absolute secrecy in the conduct of investigations. The secrecy was so pervasive that, to some, it seemed to demand that the complaint also be kept secret from the state authorities. Canon 1341 states that the bishop is to ‘‘start a judicial administrative procedure, for the imposition or the declaration of penalties, only when he perceives that neither by fraternal correction nor reproof, nor by any methods of pastoral care, can the scandal be sufficiently repaired, justice restored, and the offender reformed’’.To reverse the language, if the bishop perceives that the scandal can be "sufficiently repaired, justice restored, and the offender reformed" by "fraternal correction, reproof, or methods of pastoral care", then the bishop is prevented by canonical obligation to start a "judicial administrative procedure".
Now that you've read that, add this to it:
For all his commentary on the crisis, Father Groeschel has revealed few details about his role as a player in it: He has been a key figure for 30 years in the loose-knit nationwide network of therapists who have helped troubled priests keep working. The Franciscan friar's base is a mansion on Long Island Sound, where he runs the Archdiocese of New York's spiritual development office and Trinity Retreat Center for clergy. There, according to his own written account, he has counseled hundreds of his brethren and "happily, 85 priests have returned to the active ministry"....Why bring that up? Because Groeschel was offering the bishops a "method of pastoral care" that advertised success, and thus they had no reason to begin a "judicial administrative procedure" against the offending priests. They were reformed! Justice had been restored, without bringing the judicial system into play!
-- from the thread Priest (Fr. Benedict Groeschel) plays down abuse crisis; helps clergy keep jobs
For another example of "pastoral care" interfering with the judicial system, take the case of the infamous the "naked jogging priest", Father Whipkey of Frederick, Colorado. He was arrested, booked, released on bail to the archdiocese, and then he disappeared for four months - delaying the start of his jury trial - because the archdiocese forgot to inform the courts ahead of time that they had sent him out-of-state for "treatment". "Pastoral care" supersedes the courts.