IL- More clergy sex cases settled vs. archdiocese; SNAP responds

For immediate release: Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314-566-9790 cell, [email protected])

Another settlement has been reached in a clergy sex abuse and cover up lawsuit involving the now-defrocked Fr. Daniel McCormack and the Chicago Catholic archdiocese. 

http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/1812032

It's time for Cardinal Francis George to show real leadership and disclose all his files about the McCormack case. It's time for George to settle these cases quickly so that all of those who were hurt by McCormack can begin moving forward. And it's time for every single person who saw, suspected or suffered crimes by McCormack or cover ups by church officials to step forward, expose wrongdoers, and deter more cover ups.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 25 years and have more than 15,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)

Contact - David Clohessy (314-566-9790 cell, [email protected]), Barbara Dorris (314-862-7688 home, 314-503-0003 cell, [email protected]), Barbara Blaine (312-399-4747, [email protected])


Showing 6 comments

  • James LeBoeuf
    commented 2014-03-27 18:53:42 -0500
    I would also like to see that day. I have a few things in mind to do myself, as far as educating the population. The biggest problem of course is the denial of good people: it is all just too unimaginable for good people to contemplate – priests of God raping little children? – good people feel pain when they see suffering – which is why most live with their eyes closed. And it goes deeper then that also. Sort of like The Matrix, except with sadists instead of computers. Keep praying, it can’t hurt.
  • Lani Halter
    commented 2014-03-27 12:20:13 -0500
    You’re welcome, Jim Leboeuf. I would like to see the day when victims like yourself could be able to publicly tell the pope and all the living catholic, pedophile priests, that they are indeed lucky that the non-offending public of the earth, have not yet rendered to these offending criminals, the justice that Christ advocates on behalf of the children, in Matthew 18:6, and Mark 9:42 and Luke 17:2.
    I do believe, that someday lay-catholics and “now-quit-being-catholic” people and just decent people FROM ALL OVER the earth, will MANAGE to STOP THE SCOURGE of catholic PEDOPHILE priests, catholic PEDOPHILE laity, catholic PEDOPHILE employees and THE PEDOPHILE ENABLING ABETTORS in the CATHOLIC HIERARCHY, INCLUDING THE CATHOLIC POPE, be STOPPED.
  • James LeBoeuf
    commented 2014-03-27 03:57:42 -0500
    Thank you Lani Halter – I hope to do what little I can in the near future.
  • Lani Halter
    commented 2014-03-26 13:05:52 -0500
    I am asking a rhetorical question here:
    How could thousands of boys and girls endure ritual childhood sexual abuse committed by catholic priest pedophiles, while those who didn’t endure such ritual abuse but who have in fact, since learned that it was occuring, NEVER be able to successfully put an END to such heinous crimes happening in the catholic church. Why is it, that to date, not enough of the victims or reporters of such crime have been able to make known these crimes and then come together with the proper authorities to ORCHESTRATE AN END to SUCH CRIME in the catholic church? And, then be more able to fully respond to the dire need of those who were thus abused? Has it always been a matter of the catholic abusers literally ATTACKING their accusers in one way or another? Were the priest pedophile criminals always able to deflect attention from themselves? HOW CAN THIS HORRIBLE STATE OF AFFAIRS, KEEP GOING? We must DEMAND from any catholic pope, that it BE STOPPED.
  • James LeBoeuf
    commented 2014-03-26 10:33:15 -0500
    It is always encouraging to hear about justice in these cases. I am 60, and was ritually abused – drugged. raped and tortured, forced to vivicize live animals and fetuses, and so forth. Thousands have endured ritual abuse at the hands of catholic clergy, and so far not one has gotten justice for this class of rape. I hope SNAP and others will someday be able to break through THAT taboo, and bring this most agonizing form of rape into the light of day. I am on SSD because of the severity of PTSD; it seems to me the caholic church owes the US government compensation for all the millions it pays to the churches’ victims who are still incapacitated.
  • @ tweeted this page. 2014-03-26 10:19:49 -0500

SNAP Network is a GuideStar Gold Participant