Media Statements

For immediate release, October 19 2018

Yesterday we learned about a sweeping investigation by the Department of Justice into Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania. Today we have learned that the investigation is wider than we thought.

A former Maryland priest, convicted on child sex charges, has been sued for allegedly molesting a child in Hawaii.

For immediate release, October 19 2018

Even when stressing the importance of reporting abuse, Pope Francis manages to miss the mark.

Last weekend, while addressing seminarians who were visiting The Vatican, the Pope told the visitors to report any suspicions of abuse to their bishops instead of local law enforcement.

For immediate release, October 19 2018

SNAP Philadelphia Leader Michael McDonnell has called on the Pennsylvania State Senate  to add additional legislative days to this years calendar and revive their work on statutes of limitations reform. On Wed. Oct. 17th, Senate GOP leaders pushed a bill that would have allowed victims of childhood sexual abuse by the clergy to file a civil suit but only on their perpetrator, leaving institutions like the Catholic church without fault. We believe that this proposal is unacceptable because the institutions who enabled the years of cover-up must be also held accountable alongside the abusers themselves. 

For immediate release, October 18 2018

The U.S. Department of Justice has opened a much-needed investigation into the clergy sex abuse crisis.

With today’s announcement, the Department of Justice has given hope to survivors and advocates across the country. Too often institutions are able to escape accountability through a mix of archaic laws like statutes of limitations, strong-armed agreements to silence survivors who have come forward, or by advancing a culture that keeps survivors fearful, ashamed, and afraid to tell others what had happened to them. Fortunately for survivors and others who value accountability, the Department of Justice is able to investigate despite Pennsylvania’s statute of limitations. This is certainly a welcome development.

For immediate release, October 18 2018

Last night, the Pennsylvania State Senate had a chance to make a real difference for survivors of sexual abuse. Instead, they kicked the can down the road and out of sight.

For immediate release, October 16 2018

For almost a year, Brooklyn Catholic officials refused to tell their flock about a credibly accused predator priest.

According to the Gothamist, the Diocese of Brooklyn “bypassed its own safety protocols” to hire Fr. Roberto Cadavid in 2012. Fr. Cadavid worked in Brooklyn from 2012 through 2017 until he abruptly left the country to return to his native Colombia. But the Diocese waited ten months after Fr. Cadavid’s departure to tell the truth about his absence to their parishioners: the Diocese of Medellin had come forward in June, 2017 to share “Cadavid’s long history of alleged abuse.”

Today, the Archdiocese of Washington D.C. released the names of 28 priests that have been credibly accused of abuse from 1948 onward.

It cannot be overlooked that this announcement comes immediately on the heels of the resignation of Cardinal Donald Wuerl, almost as if the announcement were meant to distract from the fact that the Archdiocese’s leader had just resigned his position due to his role in sexual abuse cover-ups.

On Friday, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Cardinal Donald Wuerl. Today, we believe that Pope Francis should finish what he began last week and move quickly to both name Cardinal Wuerl’s successor and to immediately remove him from the Congregation of Bishops, the powerful committee that selects new hierarchs. Given the Cardinal’s connection to the ongoing church sexual abuse scandal, we believe he has no business helping to select any church official for any job.