Former Bishop of Buffalo and Nashville Accused of Covering Up Abuse in New York Lawsuit
A former bishop from Nashville and Buffalo has been accused of actively covering up abuse by more than twenty plaintiffs who just filed a lawsuit in New York. We hope that this lawsuit will encourage others who may have seen, suspected, or suffered abuse to come forward to authorities and make a report.
The lawsuit, centered on Bishop Edward Kmiec’s time as Bishop of Buffalo from 2004 until his retirement in 2012, alleges that the bishop actively engaged in a “conspiracy of ‘harassing, threatening, extorting, and misleading victims of sexual abuse committed by priests’ and of ‘misleading priests’ victims and the media to prevent reporting or disclosure of sexual misconduct.’” Given what seems to be an ongoing culture of abuse and cover-up in Buffalo, we are not shocked by the allegations in this lawsuit. We hope that parishioners and the public – in both Buffalo and Nashville – will demand answers from their current church officials considering these new allegations.
Bishop Kmiec was also the former Bishop of Nashville and worked in Tennessee from 1992 to 2004 before becoming the Bishop of Buffalo in 2004.
In New York, Attorney General Letitia James is already investigating clergy abuse and we hope anyone with knowledge of cover ups in New York will contact her today. We hope that this news will also encourage Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III to follow in the footsteps AG James and nineteen other contemporaries and open an independent investigation into clergy abuse in his state.
CONTACT: Zach Hiner, 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