Four more accused priests were here

Four more accused priests were here

But they’ve attracted no public attention

Two did two stints in the Toledo diocese

One faced 16 Native American accusers

New disclosure by Jesuits spans 60+ years

SNAP: “Bishop & order should do outreach”

Group also wants accused cleric list expanded

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters will disclose that four recently ‘outed’ Jesuits with "established allegations of sexual abuse of minors" worked in Toledo.

They will also push Toledo’s bishop to

--add the four names to his ‘accused’ priests list,

-- explain his omission, and

--expand that list to include photos, whereabouts and full work histories of all the named clerics

WHEN

Tuesday, March 12 at 4:00 p.m.

WHERE

On the sidewalk outside the Toledo Catholic diocese HQ”chancery office”), 1933 Spielbusch (near Cherry St.) in Toledo

WHO

Three members of a support group called SNAP (the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests), including the organization’s former long time Toledo volunteer director and the organization’s former long time national director

WHY

In December, most of the Jesuit regions in the US released the names of child molesting clerics. The Midwest Jesuit Province released a list of priests with "established allegations of sexual abuse of minors."

The names of four Jesuit offenders who spent time in the Toledo diocese were included on that list, but those men are not named on the diocese’s list of accused priests, and they’ve attracted little or no public attention in Ohio. SNAP feels they should be added to the Toledo diocesan list and wants diocesan officials to “agressively reach out to anyone who may have seen, suspected or suffered any wrongdoing by them.”

http://image.jesuits.org/MIDWESTPROV/media/All_Pastoral_Assignments_of_Jesuits_on_Midwest_Jesuits-12-17-18_List_posted_21_Dec_2018.pdf

https://toledodiocese.org/page/protecting-youth-victim-assistance#_clergy_accused_of_abuse

SNAP also wants that diocesan list to also include photos, whereabouts and full work assignments.

Of the four new names, two worked in Toledo: Fr. Patrick L. McLaughlin from 1933-1935 at St. John’s High School and from 1960-1961 at Gesu Church. Fr. Charles E. Sullivan was, from 1969-1976, at St. Mary’s Church and from 1977-1996 atGesu Church.

One worked in the diocese but not in Toledo: Fr. Thomas J. Powers, from 1995 –1999, at the Ohio Veterans' Home & Ohio State Police in Sandusky.

One worked in Toledo itself and elsewhere in the diocese: Fr. James F. Gates, from 1978-1980 at St. John's High School 1980–1983 and Toledo Diocese in Fostoria. (In civil lawsuits, one man and 15 woman accused Gates of molesting them.)

McLaughlin and Sullivan are deceased. Powers was ‘dismissed’ in 2001 and Gates was ‘dismissed’ in 2012. SNAP suspects that the latter two are living on their own, neither supervised nor monitored, likely among unsuspecting neighbors.

There are 34 publicly accused child molesting clerics on BishopAccountability's list for the Toledo Diocese: Thomas J. Beauregard, Nelson Beaver, Michael Doyle, Philip S. Feltman, Robert Fisher, John J. Gallen, Frederick Garand, William Geiger, Dennis Gray, John Hemstreet, Bernard Kokocinski, Richard Liston, C. Neil Lucas, John McCullen, Michael McLaughlin, Thomas Meiring, Fr. Miller, Alexander Pinter, Joseph Pucci, Samuel Punnoor, Herbert Richey, Jr., Gerald J. Robinson, Stephen G. Rogers, James H. Roth, Lawrence C. Scharf, Joseph Schmelzer, John C. Shiffler, Glen Shrimplin, Robert R. Thomas, J. Michael Tynan, Lawrence F. Varney, Chester John "Chet" Warren, Leo Welch and Robert J. Yaeger.

http://bishop-accountability.org/priestdb/PriestDBbydiocese.html#OH

The Toledo diocese list, indicates that there are 46 clergy in the diocese who have been accused, but includes names for less than half of them.

http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2008/01_02/2008_01_04_Stucke_JesuitsSettle.htm

https://toledodiocese.org/page/protecting-youth-victim-assistance#_clergy_accused_of_abuse

CONTACT

Claudia Vercellotti 419-345-9291. David Clohessy 314-645-5915, 314-566-9790, [email protected], Zach Hiner 517-974-9009, [email protected]