OR--Second alleged sex offender surfaces at Catholic school

For immediate release: Wednesday, Dec. 17

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, [email protected], [email protected])

A second staff member at a Portland Catholic school is accused of inappropriate sexual misconduct with a student. We beg Archbishop Alexander Sample to break his silence and discipline Central Catholic school officials for their reckless actions.

http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-23694-personnel-foul.html

http://www.katu.com/news/local/Another-Central-Catholic-HIgh-School-football-coach-was-investigated-by-police-286053521.html   

Last month, Sample and his staff stayed silent and did nothing when serious allegations arose against Patrick Jay Wallace. Now Sample and his staff are again staying silent and doing nothing when serious allegations are surfacing against Coach Jon Taylor.

Though Taylor denies any wrongdoing, his claims ring false. (See the detailed Willamette Week story.) But the issue here is the continued complicity of the Portland Catholic hierarchy – not just at Central Catholic, but at the archdiocesan headquarters too – in this troubling situation.

A once-fired, twice-charged alleged child molester, Wallace, now gets to keep working for at least six more months around kids at a school, thanks to Portland Archbishop Alexander Sample. And another man, Taylor, who admitted to police that he sent sexually explicit photos to a student, now apparently gets to keep working around kids at the same school, thanks again to Sample.

http://www.snapnetwork.org/or

And some wonder why child sex crimes and cover ups continue in Catholic institutions. . .

Let’s be clear:

It was wrong for Portland Catholic officials to hire Wallace.

It was wrong for Portland Catholic officials to do no real victims’ outreach when his reckless hiring was exposed.

It was wrong for Portland Catholic officials to discipline no one when his reckless hiring was exposed.

And it was wrong for Portland Catholic officials to hire Taylor.

It was wrong for Portland Catholic officials to do no real victims’ outreach as his reckless hiring is being exposed.

And now, it is wrong for Portland Catholic officials to discipline no one over his reckless hiring too.

This isn’t rocket science. Sample should hold a news conference. He should beg anyone who may have seen, suspected or suffered crimes or misdeeds at Central Catholic – by these two coaches or other staff – to call police. He should demote or discipline school officials who obviously are acting irresponsibly – through careless or callous hiring decisions, through secretive or deceitful public relations moves, through refusals to oust credibly accused wrongdoers and through refusals to aggressively seek out anyone else who may have been hurt by current or former school employees.  

As we said last month: This is not a school matter. It’s an archdiocesan matter. According to church law, custom and practice, Sample is responsible for the safety and well-bring of every Catholic in the Portland archdiocese. And Central Catholic is a Portland archdiocesan school. Students and staff there have been put in harm’s way on Sample’s watch. And they’re continuing to be put in harm’s way with Sample’s approval. How can he be so callous and reckless? He should be ashamed and his flock should be outraged.

Finally, we plead with every single person who may have seen, suspected or suffered child sex crimes or cover ups – by Wallace, Taylor, Harrington or other Catholic officials – to call police and prosecutors. Known or suspected child sex crimes or cover ups should be reported to the independent professionals in law enforcement, not to biased, secretive Catholic bureaucrats.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We were founded in 1988 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)

Contact - David Clohessy, 314-566-9790, [email protected], Barbara Dorris 314-503-0003, [email protected], Barbara Blaine 312-399-4747, [email protected]