SNAP Media Events

Young abuse victim files unusual suit vs. sheriff’s department

He charges staffers 'committed & concealed' crimes against kids

The victim, now 23, was assaulted in 2015 & speaks for the 1st time

And a criminal trial vs. Christian school's co-founder starts next month

Missouri’s 'most prolific female predator' faces dozens of charges & civil suits

In last minute plea, SNAP says 'victims, witnesses & whistleblowers must speak now'

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, a 23 year old abuse victim will speak publicly for the first time and will announce his unusual new lawsuit. It charges that a southern Missouri sheriff’s department repeatedly ignored, concealed and committed abuses at a Christian facility for 'troubled' children and seeks four unprecedented reforms that will help prevent similar crimes.

Separately, next month, a long-awaited criminal trial against Missouri’s most notorious serial boarding school abuser begins. So abuse victims are making 'a last-ditch plea' to 'anyone who saw, suspected or suffered wrongdoing' by the female defendant to 'help prosecutors lock her up by coming forward to law enforcement now.'

And they will beg anyone with information or suspicions about crimes at Christian boarding schools to 'come forward, protect others and get healing.'

WHEN

TOMORROW, Friday, Sept. 6 at 1:15 p.m.

WHERE

On the sidewalk just south of the Charles E. Whittaker US Federal Courthouse, 400 E. 9th St., corner of Oak, (in Ilus Davis Park) in Kansas City, MO

WHO

The 23 year old plaintiff and victim who is suing, two other survivors/advocates and a St. Louis man who was abused as a boy and is the volunteer Missouri director of a support group called SNAP (the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)

New horrific abuse suit filed vs. Christian boarding school

As a 13 year old, the victim suffered ‘torture’ in 2019 & 2020

She’s now just 18, making her the youngest to take legal action

Prominent local pastor reportedly ‘hid children’ from state authorities

He’s named as a defendant and SNAP says he should be fired or resign

A high profile criminal trial against school’s co-founder starts next month

She faces dozens of charges & civil suits; case will be heard in Stockton

In last minute plea, SNAP says ‘victims, witnesses & whistleblowers must speak up now’

WHAT

At a sidewalk news conference, holding signs and childhood photos, abuse survivors will

-- announce the filing of a “horrific” new abuse and cover up lawsuit against a controversial Christian boarding school for girls in southwest Missouri,

-- call for a prominent local pastor, named as a defendant in the suit, to resign or be fired, and

-- urge others to help prosecutors convict a female serial abuser by contacting law enforcement before her trial next month if they “saw, suspected or suffered her crimes.”

WHEN
Wednesday, Sept. 4, at 1:15 p.m.

WHERE

On the sidewalk outside the federal courthouse at 222 S. John Q. Hammons Pkwy (between Broadway and Washington) in Springfield MO

WHO

Two-three victims and anti-abuse advocates, including a Drury University graduate and child sex abuse survivor who for 30 years headed SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)

WHY

--1) The suit is being filed by girl who - as a 13 year old in 2019 and 2020 - was repeatedly subjected to “torture” and “physical, sexualized and mental abuse” at Circle of Hope Girls Ranch in Humansville (in Polk County, 40 minutes north of Springfield.) Now 18, she’s the youngest victim to sue the facility.

Among the offenses alleged in the suit: trafficking, involuntary servitude, brainwashing children, defrauding parents, child sexual abuse, and negligently hiring staff, negligently supervising staff and kids and intentionally inflicting emotional distress.

One of the defendants is Rev. Jeff Ables of Berean Baptist in Springfield (507 East Norton Rd, [email protected], 417.833.1529). He allegedly “hid children” from DCFS,” according to the suit, and refused to report abuses to authorities even though he’d been told of the crimes as far back as 2008.

Some of the abuses were sadistic and bizarre, the suit says, such as withholding food as punishment and force-feeding kids until they threw up and then forcing them to eat their vomit.

Staffers shoved the victim’s face into manure, put Wasabi sauce in her mouth and forced her to watch as other girls were “punched in the face, choked, beaten and whipped.”

The victim, identified only as Jane Doe, will NOT be at the news conference. She lives in Kansas City and is represented by KC attorney Rebecca Randles (816 931 9901).

2)) Next month, Missouri’s most notorious Christian boarding school abuser goes on trial facing 22 counts of child abuse and neglect. She is Stephanie Householder who, for years, along with her husband, ran two Christian boarding schools for ‘troubled kids’ in southern Missouri. (Before he died in June, her spouse Boyd was charged with 79 similar counts.)

https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article289535052.html

SNAP is begging other victims, witnesses and whistleblowers to contact the FBI or the Missouri attorney general’s office before the widely-anticipated trial begins next month in Stockton.

“Over decades, hundreds of kids suffered because of the Householders,” said David Clohessy of SNAP. “So please, don’t sit back and be silent. If you saw, suspected or suffered abuse at these schools, help prosecutors get her locked up by coming forward now to the attorney general’s office, local law enforcement or SNAP.”

Dozens of ex-students accuse the Householders of using “brutal restraints, excessive workouts in extreme temperatures, psychological and sexual abuse” and withholding food and water as punishment. According to the AP, 16 former residents said they were handcuffed, whipped with belts, had their mouths taped shut and were punched for minor offenses such as singing.

https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/midwest/2024/05/15/774285.htm

https://www.bishop-accountability.org/2024/06/after-ex-mo-boarding-school-owner-accused/

In recent years, criminal charges, civil lawsuits, and media reports have exposed shocking and severe abuse of kids in at least three similar facilities in Missouri (Agape School in Stockton, Kanakuk Kamp near Branson and ABM Ministries, a.k.a. Lighthouse Christian Academy, in Piedmont.)

https://www.davidclohessy.com/blog/2nd-letter-to-mo-ag-bailey-re-boarding-schools

CONTACT

David Clohessy 314 566 9790, [email protected] (davidclohessy.com)

Press Conference: 

Wyndham Hotel NRG Houston, Texas.

2 pm Friday, August 16^th.

Ballroom Lobby

SNAP, www.snapnetwork.org, is proud to host our annual conference this weekend at Wyndham Hotel NRG Houston, TX. The conference runs from August 16th to 18th. This event allows us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We are so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and hear powerful messages from keynote speakers such as Cindy Clemshire.

Cindy is the courageous Baptist survivor who last month told The Wartburg Watch that Dallas megachurch founder and pastor, Robert Morris, began sexually abusing her on Christmas Day, 1982, when she was only 12 years old. Cindy said that the assaults continued for four-and-a-half years. Although this was not the first time Cindy had spoken out, the blog piece launched a media storm that ultimately resulted in Pastor Morris stepping down from his pulpit.

Cindy has transformed her experiences into a powerful mission to educate others about grooming and the prevention of sexual abuse. She is a passionate advocate for changing laws to eliminate the statute of limitations for sexual abuse victims, making these changes retroactive to ensure justice for all.

Through the great work to make our conference and network a success, we are continuing our mission for survivor voices. Our work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors continues as we gather this weekend.

CONTACT: Eduardo Lopez de Casa, SNAP Board of Directors, SNAP Houston ([email protected], 832-641-6319); Mike McDonnell, SNAP Communications Director ([email protected], 267-261-0578), Shaun Dougherty, SNAP Board of Directors President, Interim Executive Director  ([email protected], 814- 341-8386) 

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Victims beg bishop: ‘Warn your flock!’

Three Catholic clerics have just been sued

One, a deacon, allegedly molested a child

The other 2 clerics are sued for fraud in counseling a couple

SNAP: “Johnston must investigate quickly & announce results”

One of the suits targets a controversial ‘breakaway’ church group

On sidewalk, victims will write names of priests who may still be ‘threats’

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, child abuse victims will use chalk to write on the sidewalk the names of roughly a dozen “proven, admitted or credibly accused” KC MO abusive clerics who are still alive and “may still be a dangerous around kids.”

The will also disclose

--that a Catholic deacon who’s being sued for alleged child sex crimes is likely working now in a Kansas City MO parish, and

--that two Catholic priests and their controversial KC MO-based religious order are being sued NOT FOR  SEXUAL ABUSE but for ‘ fraud’ and ‘privacy invasion’ in counseling sessions that allegedly devastated a parishioner’s family. (It also charges his supervisors with fraud, privacy invasion and intentional infliction of emotional distress.)

The group will hand deliver a letter urging the KC MO bishop to

--immediately investigate the deacon,

--announce the results publicly and promptly, and if need be,

--suspend him and warn parishioners and the public about him, and  

--"aggressively reach out” to anyone who may have “seen, suspected or suffered any wrongdoing” by the man and “urge them to call police, prosecutor or police or a support group so they can protect others and start healing.”

Victims prod archbishop to resign

He was sued for child sex abuse last week

SNAP: “And he’s protecting at least 3 molesters”

They aren’t on Omaha church’s ‘credibly accused’ list

Two of them are publicly named as offenders by other dioceses

Group begs anyone who "saw, suspected or suffered" abuse to speak up

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims will

--urge Catholic officials to suspend Omaha’s archbishop and/or

--urge the archbishop to voluntarily step down.

(The archbishop was accused of sexually abusing a child in a lawsuit filed last week in St. Louis.)

To “protect the vulnerable and heal the wounded,” the group will also

--disclose the names of three clerics who 1) are or were in the Omaha area, 2) are publicly listed as ‘credibly accused’ abusers by church officials elsewhere, but 3) are NOT on the Omaha archdiocese’s ‘credibly accused’ list,

--urge the archbishop to update and expand his public list of credibly accused predator priests, and

--beg anyone who may have seen, suspected or suffered clergy sex crimes to call police, not priests.

WHEN

Wednesday, July 31 at 1:15 p.m.

Dozens more local priests sued for abusing kids

The head of Omaha archdiocese is one of them

Among the accused: Archbishop, nuns & others

At least ten have never been publicly ‘outed’ before

One person says he was assaulted just 9 years ago on the Hill

Another says he was hurt by three previously-unnamed priests

Some crimes reportedly as recent as 2004, 2011 and 2015

SNAP: "Victims, witnesses & whistleblowers come forward!”

Victims beg archbishop to “help fill in victims’ memory gaps”

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters will
---discuss unprecedented, just-filed lawsuits against dozens of local allegedly abusive Catholic clerics (including nuns, priests and an archbishop), and

---reveal which of the accused are still alive and which are being publicly accused for the first time.

They will also urge St. Louis’ archbishop to

---‘help victims’ fill in their memory gaps’ by disclosing more information about known, admitted and credibly accused child molesting clerics and

---“aggressively” spread the word about the 10+ alleged predators who are being ‘outed’ for the first time and the 10+ whose full names are not yet publicly known.

And they will beg other victims, witnesses and whistleblowers to ‘protect kids, help victims and start healing by talking with police, prosecutors, therapists, friends, family or support groups.

WHEN
Thursday, July 25 at 1:15 p.m.

WHERE
On the sidewalk outside the “new” cathedral, 4431 Lindell Blvd, (corner of Newstead) in the Central West End in St. Louis

WHO
Three-four adults who were sexually abused as kids and belong to a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)

VISUALS

Three posters will group the accused will be named on three posters:

--Clerics who are still alive,

--Clerics who have never been publicly accused before, and

--Clerics who HAVE been publicly accused before.

WHY
In five lawsuits filed yesterday, dozens of anonymous victims charge that they were sexually abused as kids by local priests, nuns and other Catholic personnel (including Archbishop George Lucas, who is now the head of the Omaha Archdiocese).

Lawsuit accuses St. Louis Archdiocese of allowing sex abuse (stltoday.com)

(NOTE: Five lawsuits, each involving multiple accusers and accused abusers, have been filed in St. Charles County, Franklin County, Jefferson County, St. Louis County and St. Louis city. The initial Post-Dispatch story covered just one of them.)

Several of the accused are identified only by partial names: Fr. Hart, Fr. Riker, Fr. Kennedy, Fr. Lyons, Fr. Bermann, Fr. Joe and Brother Anthoneous. SNAP is asking St. Louis Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski to "show compassion, foster healing and speed up the legal process" by voluntarily and quickly providing more information about these alleged predators.

Several are being publicly accused of child sexual abuse for the first time. They include Fr. Bernard Suellentrop, Fr. James McLain, Fr. Edmund J. Fitzgibbons, Msgr. Fenton Joseph Runge, and Br. Ralph Wehner.

At least ten of the accused are still alive. They include Fr. Kevin Hederman, Fr. James Patrick Grady, Fr. Michael McGrath and Fr. Michael Toohey.

Several are nuns. They include Sister Annette (Holy Innocents Catholic Parish, 1992-2002), Sister Mary David Joseph (St. Edwards Catholic Church, 1961) and Sister Eileen (Blessed Sacrament School, 1977-1981).

Some have been found guilty in civil or criminal cases. They include Fr. Thomas Graham, Fr. James Beine and Fr. Donald Heck.

A few have been ‘outed’ as ‘credibly accused’ by local church officials on one or more diocesan or archdiocesan websites but have not, as best SNAP can tell, ever been sued before. They include Fr. Vincent Heier, Fr. John Rausch and Fr. Willliam F. Vatterott.

At least one was a parochial teacher, Gary Goehm, who once worked at DeSmet High School. Another was an employee of St. Joseph’s Boys Home in south St. Louis city.

One victim was reportedly abused by three priests.

CONTACT
David Clohessy 314 566 9790, [email protected], Doug Lay 314 646 9316

Victims want to meet with statewide school group

They ask Pettis Co. sheriff to consider investigating facility

Self-help group warns parents about boarding schools for 'troubled' kids

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims will harshly criticize a local man who runs both a

--a boarding school for 'troubled' kids in Pettis County and

--a statewide industry group for owners and operators of similar facilities, at least five of which have generated headlines in recent years because of repeated prosecutions, lawsuits and news reports about the sexual, physical and emotional abuse of children at the schools.

A few months ago, the local man also spearheaded an effort to eviscerate "the few and new bare bones protections" Missouri legislators set up for these facilities, many of which are for-profit, privately-owned and 'under the radar' in rural counties across the state.

The victims will also ask

--the Pettis County sheriff to consider investigating the nearby facility, particularly if the sheriff is aware of any complaints,

--the school owners' group to meet with them, and

--prod anyone who has 'seen, suspected or suffered' crimes in any Christian or private boarding school in Missouri to 'come forward as soon as possible to trusted sources of help, like friends, family, therapists, police, prosecutors or support groups.'

WHEN

Thursday, June 27 at 1:00 p.m.

WHERE

On the sidewalk outside the Pettis County Sheriff’s office, 319 S. Lamine Ave. in Sedalia, MO

WHO

Two-three people including

--a Sedalia woman whose sibling was molested by a clergyman and

--a Missouri man who was sexually abused as a child by a cleric and who for 30 years headed a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)

Shocking child abuse lawsuit filed vs. shuttered facility

It’s 1 of 5 recently troubled MO 'Christian' boarding schools

SNAP to AG: 'Where there’s smoke, there’s fire! Do SOMETHING!'

Victims also blast AG Bailey for 'ducking & dodging' on their requests

They again ask for 'a new, voluntary, unannounced inspection system'

Using chalk, they’ll write criminally charged abusers’ names on sidewalk

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, abuse survivors will:

--announce the filing of a shocking new child abuse and cover up lawsuit against a now-shuttered southwest Missouri 'Christian' boarding school where several ex-staffers have recently been arrested and face criminal charges, and

They will also try to hand deliver a letter to Missouri’s attorney general 

1. urging him to ask school owners to allow voluntary but unannounced inspections of their facilities by independent children’s groups and law enforcement personnel (including the Highway Patrol), and
2. blasting him for 'repeatedly ignoring' requests they’ve made of him that they believe will 'help protect the vulnerable and heal the wounded.'

Afterwards, using chalk, they will write the names of at least ten ex-staffers from Christian boarding schools across Missouri who have been arrested or convicted in recent years (four of whom were charged just this year). 

WHEN

Wednesday, June 26 at 1:15 p.m. 

WHERE

In Kansas City MO, on the sidewalk outside the Missouri attorney general’s office, 615 E. 13th Street, (between Cherry and Holmes) (816-889-5000) 

WHO

Three-four child sex abuse victims including a Missouri man who for 30 years headed a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)