MA- New revelation regarding infamous Fall River molester
For immediate release: Wednesday, July 16, 2014
Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, [email protected])
Catholic officials issued a “clearly false and deceptive statement” about the marriage of one of America's most notorious predator priest, Fr. James Porter of the Fall River diocese, according to a stunning 107 page affidavit filed in a Minnesota court yesterday.
The affidavit is from Jennifer Haselberger, the former chancellor and canon lawyer for the St. Paul Catholic archdiocese. In April of 2013, she resigned in protest after repeated cases in which she felt that top Catholic staffers endangered kids, hid evidence of crimes and deceived parishioners and the public.
In an exhibit attached to her affidavit, Haselberger wrote last year to her boss, St. Paul Archbishop John Nienstedt:
“I discovered four 'restricted' files on Father James Porter, which included a 1974 'Stipulation to the Execution of Rescript' which required Porter to receive the permission of the Archbishop in order to enter into marriage because of 'past problems in sexual orientation' that 'might jeopardize a possible future marriage', and a statement from the Archdiocese in the 1990s indicating that 'there was no information trail that led from Porter's abusive past to the decisions made about his marriage' (a clearly false and deceptive statement).”
“This, in combination with other issues. . .have led me to conclude that it is impossible for me to continue in my position given my personal ethics, religious convictions, and sense of integrity.”
Porter molested hundreds of children, mostly in the Fall River area in the 1960s, but also in Minnesota, Texas and New Mexico.
(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 20,000 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 (314-503-0003 cell, [email protected])
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
Showing 1 comment