MO--STL priest removed for abuse
Statement by Barbara Dorris of SNAP 314-503-0003 cell, SNAPdorris@gmail.com)
Another credibly accused St. Louis predator priest has been “outed” but Archbishop Robert Carlson is providing only the sketchiest of details about him.
He’s Fr. John J. Ghio. Carlson will only say the accusations against him are “recently reported.”
http://archstl.org/node/4334559
But we suspect that allegations against Fr. Ghio surfaced months or even years ago.
We applaud the brave person who was strong enough to step forward, get help, expose Fr. Ghio and warn the public about him. We hope this disclosure will help that individual in his or her healing. And we are confident that this move will make children safer.
We urge victims, and whistleblowers to contact secular authorities, not church officials. And we beg anyone who may have seen, suspected, or suffered clergy crimes - by this cleric or others - to come forward, call police, expose wrongdoing, protect kids and start healing.
Carlson should personally visit every parish where Fr. Ghio worked and beg anyone with information or suspicions about him to call law enforcement immediately. And he should put Fr. Ghio in a remote, secure, independent treatment center so that kids are safer. Until this happens, Carlson should disclose where Fr. Ghio is now, again, so that kids will be safer.
(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 25 years and have more than 20,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)
Barbara Blaine, founder of SNAP, passed away on Sunday, September 24th, 2017. Her dying was sudden and completely unexpected. Words cannot express our sorrow nor are there words to express our gratitude for her relentless advocacy. She truly was a hero. There is an old saying, “well behaved women seldom make history”. Barbara made history and the world is a better place.
We have put together a tribute for Barbara Blaine to honor her memory. If you would like to contribute a memory, please send your favorite memory of Barbara to admin@snapnetwork.org
50 State AG Call for Grand Jury
Write a letter to the attorney general of your state. Demand, request, and beg them to impanel a grand jury.
Any investigation must be:
- independent of and separate from the church
- must have subpoena powers and ability to compel testimony under oath
Anything short of these criteria is a sham and whitewash.
In addition, write letters to the editor, make phone calls to politicians as they can apply pressure to keep them responsive to our demand. We need to make efforts to ensure that they follow up on what the state is doing to investigate these crimes.
The Attorneys General of forty states have inquired about the grand jury process in Pennsylvania. Let's get statewide investigations going in fifty states.
Note to Letter Writers
Use your own words and style of writing. Cut and paste from the templates as you wish. Include your experiences, whether as a survivor or as a member of the community. And relate your letter to the state you were abused in or state now living in.
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