Child abuse victims to leaflet outside church

New secret church records show NV bishop knew of predator

Still, he let cleric move here and work at local Catholic parish

Group releases list of 7 pedophile priests who moved to Las Vegas

Support group to bishop: “Reach out to anyone who may have been hurt here”

WHAT
As Catholic parishioners leave mass, clergy sex abuse victims will hand out fliers that
-- list 7 predator priests who molested elsewhere and then came to Las Vegas,
-- urge Las Vegas’ bishop to warn his flock and his employees about these dangerous men, and
-- use his considerable resources to reach out to anyone who may have been molested by any of them

They will also release previously-secret church records showing that local Catholic officials knew or strongly suspected that one of the priests (who faces a pending child sex abuse lawsuit here) had assaulted kids before they let him come to Las Vegas and work.

Finally, they will beg anyone who saw, suspected or suffered crimes by these predators (or others) to come forward.

WHEN:
Sunday, Oct, 11 at 11:30 a.m.

WHERE:
Outside St Francis de Sales church, 1111 Michael Way, Las Vegas, NV 89108

WHO
One-two members of a support group for clergy molestation victims called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org) including an Illinois woman who is a social worker, an attorney, and the organization’s founder and long time president

VISUALS
Ten pages of never-before-released church documents will be provided, including
-- several pages of hand-written notes taken by Las Vegas' then-bishop and
-- a two page typed 1986 letter from the predator priest to Las Vegas' Catholic bishop in which he admits the bishop 'chided him' for 'touching youngsters' after having been warned not to do so. (It also describe allegations that Feeney smuggled liquor, drugs and women's underwear into a prison.)

WHY
In 2004, Fr. John Patrick Feeney was convicted of sexually abusing two brothers in Wisconsin where he remains incarcerated. Last year, he was sued in Clark County court for molesting a boy at this parish, St Francis de Sales, where Feeney worked in the 1980s. That suit is still pending.

That lawsuit argues that church officials were repeatedly warned that Feeney had abused kids yet continued to shuffle him to unsuspecting parishes for roughly 30 years. Now, newly-released church records show Las Vegas church officials knew or suspected, much sooner than they have admitted, that Feeney had assaulted kids.

SNAP will also hand out today a list of 7 pedophile priests from out-of-state who have lived and/or worked in Las Vegas. Several of them have apparently never been “outed” in Nevada before, including Fr. Gus Krumm of California’s Orange Diocese, who was just sued this summer for molesting a child in the early 1990s. (In the 1980s, Krumm worked at St. James the Apostle Church in Las Vegas.)

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/diocese-school-krumm-2459723-lawsuit-abuse

Others include: Fr. Theodore Anthony Geerts of Davenport IA (who worked at St. Bridget in Las Vegas in 1991-92), Fr. Edmund Boyle of Seattle WA (who moved to Nevada in 1984 and pled guilty in 1987 to exposing himself to a mentally retarded 12 year old at a Nevada hospital where he was a chaplain), and Fr. Theodore Meisner (who worked at St. Christopher’s parish in Las Vegas in 1984), Fr. Robert A. Bowling, who worked at Our Lady of Las Vegas from 1970-1972). The latter two (Meisner and Bowling) were originally from the Louisville Kentucky archdiocese and were sued there for child molestation.

At least one other accused out-of-state predator priest has moved to Las Vegas and has been “outed” in Nevada media in recent years. He is James Beine (a.k.a. Mar James) from St. Louis. In Missouri, he was convicted on criminal charges and his church supervisors have settled several civil child sex crime lawsuits against him.

Two of the priests (Boyle and Feeney) are accused of hurting Nevada kids. In 1987, Boyle pled guilty to exposing himself to a mentally retarded 12 year old at a Nevada hospital where he was a chaplain.

Beine, whose Missouri teaching license was revoked several years ago, was believed to be in Nevada in recent years but not working at a Catholic church. The other six DID work in Nevada as priests.

SNAP’s information comes from litigation, news accounts in other states and a website called BishopAccountability.org. The whereabouts of six of the priests is not known. Boyle is deceased.

Because Las Vegas is a rapidly growing area, SNAP suspects that other pedophile priests from out of state are or have been here. The group wants Bishop Joseph Pepe to disclose the identities and whereabouts of any such priests and prod victims and witnesses to call police and independent sources for help.

CONTACT
Barbara Blaine, SNAP President, (312) 399 4747
David Clohessy, SNAP Director, (314) 566 9790