IL- Joliet predator priest deported; What about his enablers?
For immediate release: Wednesday, Aug. 7
Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 862 7688 home, 314 503 0003 cell, [email protected])
Fr. Alejandro Flores, a convicted Joliet predator priest, has been deported to Bolivia. Those who enabled him to hurt kids, however, are escaping scot-free.
(We believe he has not been defrocked. So he should be referred to as “Fr. Flores.” He is NOT, we believe, “a former Catholic priest.” We believe he’s still being paid.)
Top Catholic officials in Joliet, we are convinced, ignored warning signs about Fr. Flores. In fact, prosecutors disclosed that, according to one newspaper, “Catholic officials had some warning signs about Flores.” The Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office said that “Flores was caught with gay porn on his computer by Catholic officials in the spring of 2009. Though the website posted a disclaimer saying the people involved in the sex acts were not minors, [prosecutors] said some of the images appeared to be those of young boys.”
Yet these church officials let Fr. Flores be around kids, and even now they are cleverly managing to avoid being exposed as corrupt and complicit.
We worry about the safety of Bolivian kids. We urge Bolivia’s bishops to warn their flock about Fr. Flores. And we urge Joliet’s Bishop Daniel Conlon to write to his Bolivian colleagues urging them to take this simple public safety step.
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director
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Bishop Sartain, who is now investigating the nuns, showed poor judgment by ordaining Flores, since the bishop knew Flores had sexual problems. Flores went on to sexually abuse one or more little boys in his new parish. As soon as Flores was jailed for being a sexual predator, the Vatican whisked Sartain out of Joliet and elevated him to be the archbishop of Seattle, Washington. So, Sartain has elevated a child abuser to the priesthood, and the Vatican has not defrocked Flores, even after Flores went to jail for child sexual abuse. Now Flores is home in Bolivia as a priest and free to sexually abuse more children as a priest. Where is the accountability of the Vatican? I do not think the Vatican cares about anything that they can get away with, in regard to the sexual abuse of children.
Sincerely, Dr Rosemary Eileen McHugh, Chicago, Illinois