Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

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‘Grossly insensitive and disrespectful’ – Top US cardinal goes ahead with Armagh mass despite protests by survivors of clerical abuse

August 28, 2023

Sarah Mac Donald Yesterday at 21:31 American prelate, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, ignored calls from Irish survivors of clerical abuse to step back from a mass yesterday to mark the 150th anniversary of St Patrick’s Cathedral in Armagh. Cardinal Dolan, who is the Catholic archbishop of New York, was the chief celebrant at the mass in Armagh. However, survivors of clerical abuse in the diocese of Dromore, including victims of Fr Malachy Finegan, wrote to Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh ahead of the liturgy, describing themselves as “appalled” by the decision to invite the 73-year-old American prelate to the mass and “the role afforded to him as chief celebrant”. The American cardinal has been criticised for his role in transferring $57m into a special trust, when he was Archbishop of Milwaukee, in order to protect it from legal claims by clerical abuse victims. Other criticisms centre on a leaked 2017 transcript which suggested he sought to block the Child Victims Act, which extended the statute of limitations on victims of abuse in New York to pursue perpetrators in court The Dromore survivors group expressed solidarity with US abuse survivor Chris O’Leary, who alleges he was abused by American priest Fr LeRoy Valentine at Immacolata parish in Missouri, in St Louis archdiocese in the mid-1970s. Cardinal Dolan served in the same parish at the same time as Fr Valentine. Mr O’Leary expressed anger that the cardinal was being “feted” in Ireland. Speaking to Independent.ie, he accused the American prelate of brushing off his concerns in 2002 when he approached him as a bishop in St Louis to convey his concerns about Fr Valentine. Full Story Here >>>

SNAP Admires Mother Pursuing Justice For Her Son- Priest Evading Justice

September 28, 2023

(For Immediate Release September 28, 2023) For anyone to say the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests is in the past, the Sac Bee article about Fr. Michael Kelly is evidence it is not. Kelly, despite his crimes and flight from justice, remains a priest in good standing. He is a dangerous man. https://news.yahoo.com/pedophile-priest-fled-u-fbi-120000779.html He is not the only Catholic priest who is a fugitive. Fr. Alex Castillo fled an investigation in Oakland and is living someplace. The police say they know where he is. Fr. George Alengaden fled his arraignment, accused of assaulting five different Catholic parishioners. There are fugitive priests that litter the list of the diocese of Sacramento. We can name dozens nationwide. These men flow like an underground river from place to place, finding victims and using their collars for access and money. This article points to the ongoing power of Catholic bishops to control the actions of regional and federal law enforcers. How is it possible the FBI is still stiff-arming survivors? How is it possible a professional law enforcement agency, the district attorney’s office of Calaveras County, has lost grand jury reports, evidence, and any other information about this, or any, case?

San Antonio Catholic priest arrested; SNAP worried about his frequent assignment changes

September 28, 2023

For immediate release: September 27, 2023 On Tuesday in Texas, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar reported the arrest of a Catholic priest who had worked in numerous parishes in the San Antonio Archdiocese since 2017. The clergyman has been accused of raping a woman in her seventies on multiple occasions. SNAP is grateful for this prosecution, but believes that the cleric's frequent transfers are a major red flag. Fr. George Mbugua Ndungu, also known as Fr. Wanjiru, has been charged with aggravated sexual assault. According to the Sheriff, an accusation of improper behavior by the priest was first brought to the attention of the Archdiocese by a church employee. In the subsequent Archdiocesan investigation, the elderly parishioner came forward. While it is encouraging to see law enforcement pursue Catholic clerics who are accused of sexually assaulting adults, we take issue with Sheriff Salazar’s comment that “it is common for priests like Ndungu to be transferred to different churches every so often.” To us, frequent transfers, especially in the short time frame since 2017, are a red flag. We fear the frequent moves may signal other abuse and we encourage law enforcement to visit each of the parishes where Fr. Ndungu was assigned to urge other victims to come forward. Secular investigations in Maryland, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Michigan showed that Church officials used expedited transfers of known abusers as a way to prevent scandal. In reality, these transfers enabled abusers to gain access to additional victims.

SNAP joins ECA and many others calling for Zero Tolerance in Rome this week

September 27, 2023

(For Immediate Release September 27, 2023) As survivors from across the world converge on Italy to push for widespread reform in how the Catholic hierarchy deals with abuse and cover-up, we are humbled and grateful to be a part of this potentially historic effort. SNAP Board President, Shaun Dougherty will be among those ‘Voices of Justice’ joining our allies at ECA (End Clergy Abuse) in the week-long events. It is alarming to us that this papal synod will evidently not address the church's most serious ongoing crisis: child-molesting clergy and their enabling superiors. Every time Catholic officials convene without addressing this ongoing crisis explicitly, they embolden clergy who deny, minimize, neglect, and conceal this devastating scandal. Too frequently, church officials miss out on crucial chances to make the church and society safer and healthier. In doing so, they perpetuate the harmful myth that most of the wrongdoing has occurred in the past. This results in irresponsible and insensitive complacency, which places at risk innocent children and vulnerable adults. Pope Francis said he wants an 'authentic' synod, not just a meeting 'to project a good image of ourselves.' As we see it, how can any church event, especially one of this magnitude, be truly 'authentic' without addressing the enormous elephant in the room: the sexual violation of the vulnerable and the cover-up of these violations by the church hierarchy?

The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) Will speak about the upcoming activation of the Child Victim’s Act (CVA) and the possible bankruptcy declaration by the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

September 27, 2023

For Immediate Release September 27, 2023 https://catholicreview.org/compensating-all-claims-of-abuse-archdiocese-considers-chapter-11-reorganization/ WHAT: A sidewalk news conference, abuse survivors and advocates who are part of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, will encourage survivors to come forward and seek help while updating them on the upcoming change in Maryland law on 10/1/23. The CVA will take effect. WHEN: Thursday 9/28/23 11:00 am WHERE: In front of the Baltimore Basilica, 409 Cathedral St. Baltimore, MD 21201 WHO: 7-10 abuse survivors and advocates, including the Maryland SNAP Leader David Lorenz, who wants to reach out to adult survivors of sexual abuse and make them aware of the changes in Maryland law known as the Child Victim’s Act that will take effect on Sunday. They will also call attention to the fact that the Archdiocese of Baltimore is floating the idea of declaring bankruptcy even before the first case is filed

The Parents of Ohioans for Child Protection and local, national survivors of SNAP Network call on Ohio AG for a full investigation

August 14, 2023

For Immediate Release August 15, 2023 Northern District of Ohio | Northeast Ohio Priest Sentenced to Life in Prison for Sex Trafficking Minors, Exploitation and Child Pornography | United States Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs | Jury Convicts Priest of Sex Trafficking Three Victims in Northern Ohio | United States Department of Justice Rev. David Morrier sentenced to probation for sexual battery | News, Sports, Jobs - The Herald Star (heraldstaronline.com) Cincinnati priest pleads guilty to raping altar boy, gets 7 years in deal with prosecutors (fox19.com) Glouster priest sentenced to 12 years in prison for unlawful sex with minor parishioner | Local News | athensnews.com WHAT The parents of Ohioans for Child Protection and local, national survivors of SNAP Network and other concerned members of the community will be holding a press conference to publicly ask Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost to conduct a statewide investigation of the history and scope of child sexual abuse, trafficking, child sex abuse enabling and cover up in Ohio’s 6 Dioceses.

Victims push for new abuse probe; D.C. Presser 8/13 1:30pm

August 14, 2023

Victims push for new abuse probe They ask DC AG to open investigation SNAP: 'Dozens of abusers are/were here but remain hidden' And they prod DC’s archbishop to reveal more predators WHAT Holding signs and childhood photos, clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters will hold a sidewalk news conference revealing the names of the "DC's Most Dangerous Dozen Child Molesting Clerics" - 12 proven, admitted &/or credibly accused predator priests who --are still alive and presumably a threat to children now, --are or were working and or living in the District of Columbia BUT --are NOT on the official DC Catholic archdiocesan 'credibly accused' list. They will also release copies of two letters they're sending: --one to DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb, urging him to launch a 'thorough, full-scale investigation, like 25 other AGs across the US have done, into Catholic clergy sex crimes and cover-ups in the Washington DC archdiocese,’ and --one to DC Cardinal Wilton Gregory, urging him to add those names, and dozens of others, to his “woefully inaccurate and inadequate” list of 'credibly accused' abusive clerics on the archdiocesan website.

Take Action and Stop Child Sexual Abuse

If you see child sexual abuse, or have a reasonable suspicion of sexual abuse or your child has been sexually abused, call 911 or your local police immediately.

If you suspect abuse, call the National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or visit the Child Help Hotline. Trained crisis operators staff the lines 24/7 to answer your questions. If necessary, they will show you how to report in your local area.

Child pornography is a federal crime. If you see or suspect images that may be child pornography, report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children CyberTip Line.

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Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

SNAP News

‘Grossly insensitive and disrespectful’ – Top US cardinal goes ahead with Armagh mass despite protests by survivors of clerical abuse

SNAP Admires Mother Pursuing Justice For Her Son- Priest Evading Justice

San Antonio Catholic priest arrested; SNAP worried about his frequent assignment changes

SNAP joins ECA and many others calling for Zero Tolerance in Rome this week

The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) Will speak about the upcoming activation of the Child Victim’s Act (CVA) and the possible bankruptcy declaration by the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

The Parents of Ohioans for Child Protection and local, national survivors of SNAP Network call on Ohio AG for a full investigation

Victims push for new abuse probe; D.C. Presser 8/13 1:30pm

Take Action and Stop Child Sexual Abuse

CHILD USA, in partnership with SNAP, has developed Survivor Toolkits to help survivors understand their rights and guide them through the empowering but challenging process of filing a civil lawsuit.

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