Media Statements

For immediate release: April 19, 2022

A defrocked Catholic priest was arrested Saturday night and charged with drunk driving and vehicular manslaughter for killing a resident of Rossmoor. Our hearts go out to the victim's widow, while at the same time we cannot help but remember that her husband is only the latest person to have their life destroyed by this former Diocese of Oakland cleric.

Stephen Kiesle, a registered sex offender as well as a 12+ year resident of Rossmoor himself, was behind the wheel of the car that jumped the curb and killed Curtis Gunn. The defrocked Catholic priest has a long history of sexually abusing boys and girls, including two criminal convictions and numerous lawsuits. The former clergyman is on the Diocese of Oakland's list of abusers. Mr. Kiesle not only killed Mr. Gunn and left Mrs.Gunn mourning, he also destroyed the lives of all of the children he abused and caused untold grief to their loved ones.

A Methodist Preacher from Mississippi has been convicted of sexually abusing a then 10-year-old girl in Iuka, MS. This prosecution never would have happened if were not for the brave victim coming forward and for the exhaustive advocacy and journalism by advocates from The Wartburg Watch. The Mississippi Methodist community owes these women a debt of gratitude for their tireless efforts to get a dangerous abuser out of his position where he could groom and abuse other children.

A Franciscan brother, Paul West, 62, who was the subject of a major AP News investigation for his abuse of three young boys in Mississippi has been convicted of the 1990s abuse of La Jarvis Love. On Wednesday, April 13, 2022, a jury found him guilty of sexually abusing a student at St. Francis of Assisi School in the 1990s.

The Leflore County jury spent less than an hour deciding West’s fate. The verdict was loud and clear, guilty of one count of sexual battery and one count of gratification of lust, the Greenwood Commonwealth reported. West was accused of sexually abusing La Jarvis Love, now 39. Circuit Judge Ashley Hines sentenced West to 30 years on the first count and 15 years on the second count, to be served consecutively. Love began crying when the verdict was read.

Our hearts go out to La Jarvis Love and his family members Joshua Love, and brother Raphael, for their courage and conviction in holding those responsible for the horrific abuse they endured. These men grew up together and encountered West in the 1990s, when West was a teacher and principal at St. Francis School in Greenwood, Mississippi from July 1993 until October 1998.

An inquiry in yet another country is revealing shocking details about the abuse and depravity that children were subjected to at a place that was supposed to educate, love, and care for them. As horrifying as these preliminary details are, we are not surprised and only expect more victims and cases to be brought forward.

According to the commission of experts investigating child sexual abuse allegations against the Portuguese Catholic Church, 290 witness statements from victims have emerged in the first three months since the probe started. The testimonies could be "just the tip of the iceberg," according to the commission.

Portugal is one of the "most Catholic" countries in the world; 9 out of 10 residents are of the Catholic faith and the Church employs twenty-one bishops who have enormous influence over many national issues that affect the lives of all Portuguese people. It is not hard to imagine that this influence extends to police departments and policymakers, so it is conceivable that ugly truths about the cover-up of abuse will be forthcoming. We have seen this very pattern in every other country in which independent inquiries have been launched regarding clergy abuse. 

 This effort to understand abuse in Portugal is a monumental step because, at least on its surface, the commission reviewing the issues and providing a hotline tip line is independent. That independence is the only way victims can feel safe that their reports are being heard and taken seriously. That independence is also the only way Portuguese society can begin to design national systems that make children safe from clerical abuse.

 Central to each of these inquiries is an unrestrained clergy and a society that trusted them to "do the right thing." But that sad fact is that, around the globe, Catholic priests and bishops have instead consistently done the wrong thing. Despite the rhetoric of three popes, countless cardinals, and hundreds of bishops, we see that the sexual abuse of children and adults within Church institutions continues into the present day.

(FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 7, 2022)

Father Bernie Etienne, who worked at Holy Rosary Catholic Church, has been removed from public ministry after the Diocese of Evansville received an accusation of sexual misconduct against the clergyman stemming from 20 years ago. Father Etienne is on administrative leave and is not able to act as a priest while the complaint is investigated. 

The Diocese did not expand on the nature of the accusation -- where it occurred or the gender and age of the victim. The Director of Communications for the Diocese simply said, "Civil authorities and the Diocesan Review Board have been notified. Father Bernie strongly denies the claim and, as with all accused, he is accorded the presumption of innocence during the investigation of this allegation."

However, we know that false allegations of sexual abuse are extremely rare. While it is not entirely clear whether the accusation involves a child or an adult, the fact that it was reported to law enforcement leads us to suspect that the victim was below the age of consent. We applaud the survivor for coming forward, and we observe that victims who were abused in the 1990s or early 2000s are now beginning to speak out.

The Catholic Church likes to claim that clergy sexual abuse is a thing of the past. However, we know that it often takes survivors decades to work up the courage to share what happened to them. Reports of abuse by trusted clergy are very likely to continue into the future.

Father Etienne worked in the following parishes: St. Joseph, Jasper; St. Joseph, Princeton; Blessed Sacrament, Oakland City; Holy Rosary, Evansville; and Nativity, Evansville. He was also the diocesan chaplain for Southwestern Indiana Teens Encounter Christ, diocesan director of vocations, diocesan vicar general, and diocesan administrator.

We encourage anyone who may have experienced, witnessed, or suspected any harm or impropriety in the Catholic Church in Indiana to report directly to law enforcement.

SNAP resources for survivors are available at www.snapnetwork.org/resources_for_survivors. We have information as well as weekly support groups specifically for those who suffered clergy abuse as a child or as an adult.

CONTACT: Mike McDonnell, SNAP Communications Manager (267-261-0578, [email protected]) Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director (517-974-9009, [email protected]), Jim Brigl, SNAP Leader Indiana (260-302-4003, [email protected] )

(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for more than 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is www.snapnetwork.org)

(For Immediate Release April 7, 2022) 

Rev. Martin H. Demek was preaching again at Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Bolton Hill, one year after he was placed on leave following an accusation of child sexual abuse. SNAP is worried that the Archdiocese of Baltimore is putting children at risk by returning Fr. Demek to ministry.

SNAP believes the brave survivor who came forward because we know that false allegations of child sexual abuse are extremely rare. While we understand that law enforcement did not file any charges against Fr. Demek, we strongly suspect that this was because the accusations were beyond the statute of limitations, nothing more.

Countless times in the past, Catholic officials have "cleared' clerics and put them back into parishes, only later having to remove them again when additional accusations are reported. We are concerned that this history could repeat itself in the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

We beg anyone who may have suffered, seen, or suspected child sex crimes in the Baltimore Archdiocese to summon the strength to speak up. Today's children are safer when adults are courageous enough to call police, prosecutors, therapists, or support groups like ours with information or suspicions about the sexual abuse of boys and girls.

CONTACTS: David Lorenz, SNAP Maryland ([email protected], 301-906-9161), Mike McDonnell, SNAP Communications Manager ([email protected], 267-261-0578), Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director ([email protected], 517-974-9009)

(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for more than 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)

(For Immediate Release April 7, 2022) 

On April 4th, the Catholic Diocese of Sacramento once again quietly announced on its website the removal of a cleric for “inappropriate conduct.” Bishop Jaime Soto said that Deacon James Burkett was found to have “violated diocesan policy regarding clergy conduct” with an adult woman.  The Deacon no longer has an assignment nor does he have faculties in the Diocese.

 We applaud the Diocese for removing Deacon Burkett, for posting this information on their website, and for alerting parishioners at Our Divine Savior parish in Chico where Deacon Burkett was assigned. However, we notice that the Deacon’s name does not appear on Sacramento’s list of accused clerics.  We believe that Deacon Burkett, along with Fr. Renerio Sabuga, Jr. (Fr. Jong), Fr. Percy Singco, and any other cleric who sexually abused adults over the age of 25 should be added to the Diocesan list.

 Sacramento area SNAP Leader and survivor Dorothy Small observed, “My abuser, Fr. Sabuga returned to ministry in his country. It isn’t an ‘inappropriate relationship’ with an adult but the abuse of spiritual power and authority where there isn’t equal power.” 

 Dorothy continued, “The Vatican took a position to criminalize the abuse of adults, but the names of those ‘credibly accused’ of abusing men and women over age 25 still haven’t made it to Bishop Soto’s list.” 

 We again recommend that the Bishop include those clerics who abuse older adults to his list of accused. We believe that any prelate who truly wants to help survivors heal and to protect all of his spiritual children would do nothing less.

 Deacon Burkett brings the number of accused clerics on SNAP’s List for the Diocese of Sacramento to 103, although only 65 of those names are on the Diocesan List. Among the missing names are some, like Deacon Burkett, Fr. Sabuga, and Fr. Singco, whom the Diocese acknowledges as “credibly accused.”

 CONTACT: Dorothy Small, SNAP Sacramento Area Leader, ([email protected], 530-908-3676 ), Melanie Sakoda, SNAP Survivor Support Coordinator ([email protected], 925-708-6175), Mike McDonnell, SNAP Communications Manager ([email protected], 267-261-0578), Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director ([email protected], 517-974-9009)

(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for more than 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)

(For Immediate Release April 1, 2022) 

Pope Francis apologizes to Indigenous delegates; SNAP reacts

We are happy our indigenous brothers and sisters across North America received an apology from Pope Francis and hope that meeting with him this week was fruitful. It took a lot of courage for the delegates to carry the pain and suffering all the way to the Vatican. We commend them and truly believe they have made a mark in history.

We honor the abuse survivors, the innocent lives lost, and their families in Canada and everywhere for continuing to speak truth to power against such great odds and in the face of such powerful denial. It is important to note that the Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Commission had previously asked for an apology from the Pope, a request that fell on deaf ears. Sadly, it took the discovery of mass graves, and the realization of murder, rape, and enslavement to trigger a response from the Vatican.  

(For Immediate Release March 31, 2022) 

A defrocked Catholic priest from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, Robert Brennan, was sentenced today in federal court to four counts of making false statements to the FBI. The 84-year-old former cleric now lives in Maryland. Brennan was arrested on these charges in September 2019. Brennan received a sentence of 5 years probation with the first two on house arrest.

SNAP’s Board President Shaun Dougherty and SNAP advocate Sheamus Bonner were present in the courtroom in support of the McIlmail family. The McIlmail’s lost their son Sean just days before Brennan's preliminary hearing on charges that he sexually abused Sean as a child.

(For Immediate Release March 31, 2022) 

According to a news report from WGN Chicago, convicted former priest Daniel McCormack’s legal problems are not over as he and the Archdiocese of Chicago face multiple civil lawsuits. We are grateful to the victims and attorneys who continue to press for justice and hope that their efforts will result in more victims feeling encouraged to come forward, make a report, and seek help.

McCormack is one of Illinois’ most prolific sexual offenders. In 2018, a judge ruled Fr. McCormack was “sexually violent” and confined him to the detention facility for sex offenders indefinitely, but despite that decision, McCormack was released in November 2021. We are distressed that someone with a violent history as McCormack was allowed to be released, especially since predators do not ever stop offending.