Sex abuse victim urges bishop to do outreach

He should ‘aggressively’ try to find and help others hurt by predator

Catholic music minister just arrested for alleged recent child sex crimes

Group wants proven, admitted & credibly accused molesters on church website

Anyone who “saw, suspected or suffered abuse should come forward,” SNAP says

WHAT
At a sidewalk news conference, a child sex abuse victim will discuss the recent arrest of an Ashville Catholic music minister on child sex charges. He will urge
--- Asheville Catholic parishioners to ask everyone they know to call police with any information about the alleged crimes and
--- Charlotte’s bishop to
    -- personally visit the parishes where the accused predator worked, prodding victims and witnesses to come forward,
    -- put similar announcements in his website, newspaper, parish bulletins and pulpit announcements,
    -- permanently post on his website the names, photos and whereabouts of predator priests & ex-priests, &
    -- beg victims to come forward, get help and contact law enforcement.

WHEN
TODAY, Wednesday, May 20, 2:00 p.m.

WHERE
Outside St. Eugene Catholic Church, 72 Culvern Street in Asheville NC

WHO
An Asheville man who was molested as a child by an Asheville priest and who belongs to a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)

WHY
On Monday, Asheville police charged Paul Lawrence Berrell, 29, with one felony count of indecent liberties with a student. Berrell, an Atlanta native, was until yesterday the music minister at St. Eugene’s (which is part of the Charlotte Catholic Diocese, headed by Bishop Peter Jugis).

It’s rumored to be the second time a St. Eugene’s staffer has faced such accusations in recent years (the other being Chuck Tate).

SNAP members believe that Jugis has an affirmative moral duty to help resolve these allegations by aggressively reaching out to any one who may have seen, suspected or suffered crimes or misdeeds by Berrell (instead of passively sitting back and doing nothing, as Catholic bishops almost always do in child sex crime situations). The self help group wants Charlotte to come to Asheville.

Similarly, the organization wants current and former members and staff at St. Eugene’s to ask everyone they know if they have any information about Berrell’s misdeeds, and to share that information immediately with police officials, not church officials.

For more information about Evans of SNAP, see http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2007/01_02/2007_02_24_Cooperman_AbuseVictims.htm and http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news13/2002_04_23_Neal_PriestSex_William_Kuder_1.htm

Berrell lives on North Ridge Drive home, “just on the Woodfin side of the Woodfin-Asheville municipal line,” according ot media reports. That’s where the alleged crimes happened.

http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090520/NEWS01/905200317

CONTACT

Neal Evans 828 242-0059 cell or 828 299-3972 home, David Clohessy 314 566 9790