"Red flags were consistently missed," the author of an independent review into the way Delaware authorities investigated a pediatrician who stands accused of sexually abusing more than 100 young children just reported.

Linda Ammons, dean of the Widener University School of Law, is now briefing the news media about her review, which is posted online here. Her review concludes, in part that:

"It is clear that on at least several occasions, state and non-state agencies and entities missed opportunities to communicate and/or share vital information that in combination could have lead to the successful prosecution of Dr. Bradley, or at the very least, lead to the loss of his license to practice medicine."

Dr. Earl Bradley, who practiced in Lewes, Del., was arrested in December. As The New Journal says, he is accused of "raping or abusing more than 103 children dating back to 1998."

Ammons also concluded that:

"It is clear that since at least 1994, some allegations of sexual abuse and/or physician misconduct by Dr. Bradley have been known to state agencies, law enforcement, regulatory bodies, hospitals and/or licensed medical professionals. In some instances, provisions of current law and policies designed to trigger the appropriate legal or regulatory remedies were in place, but those provisions were not followed to the letter of the law. In other instances, human and mechanical error allegedly prevented the appropriate actions from being taken."

There is a "strong tendency to not believe children" when they talk about being sexually abused, Ammons just said. Authorities, she adds, need to "push past" that tendency and be "more vigilant and alert" about potential sexual crimes committed against the young.