Another Priest in Fresno Suspended, SNAP Reacts
The alleged abuse apparently took place recently, and we applaud the person who found the courage to report to law enforcement. We hope that their willingness to stand up and speak out will help prevent other cases of abuse in the future and will inspire other survivors, witnesses and whistle blowers to come forward.
Rev. Diaz is the fifth priest from the Diocese of Fresno to be suspended from ministry recently. At least four of those priests – Rev. Diaz, Fr. Jean-Michael Lastiri, Fr. Gaspar Bautista, and Msgr. Craig Harrison – have been suspended due to allegations of abuse, a high number for a diocese as small as Fresno.
While police work to investigate the allegations against Rev. Diaz, we encourage Bishop Michael Brennan to personally visit every parish where Rev. Diaz and these other men worked and urge anyone with information on these cases to share it with law enforcement.
We also hope that Bishop Brennan will again encourage his flock to refrain from holding vigils or other public shows of support for the accused priests. While we have no firsthand knowledge in any of these cases, we know from studies that false allegations of child sexual abuse are extremely rare. Such demonstrations only serve to intimidate victims, witnesses and whistle blowers into hiding and can impede investigations, especially if the survivor is still a minor. We were grateful when Bishop Brennan counseled his flock on how to react to allegations of abuse previously and hope he will do so again.
As many of the communities that fall within the Diocese of Fresno are home to large populations of Latino folks, we encourage the district attorneys who serve those counties to establish hotlines in both English and Spanish where survivors can make a report about clergy abuse. In announcing these hotlines, investigators should also make special mention of the fact that California is a sanctuary status, and so any undocumented witnesses or survivors should know that they can come forward without fear of reprisal from the government. Everyone should be encouraged to make a report of the abuse they saw or suffered, regardless of immigration status.
CONTACT: Dan McNevin, SNAP Board Member ([email protected], 415-341-6417), Joey Piscitelli, SNAP California ([email protected], 925-262-3699) Melanie Sakoda, SNAP Survivor Support Coordinator, ([email protected], 925-708-6175), Esther Hatfield Miller, SNAP Los Angeles (562-673-9442, [email protected]), Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director ([email protected], 517-974-9009)
(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director