Media Statements

A former priest from the Diocese of Marquette is headed to prison after reaching a plea deal with the Michigan Attorney General's Office. We are grateful for this development and hope that this agreement will bring healing to his victims and encourage others who were hurt in the state to come forward and make a report to their attorney general.

The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception will host a recitation of the rosary on May 17 as part of Pope Francis' call for a worldwide marathon of prayer to end the COVID-19 pandemic. We, along with the rest of the world, would like to see the coronavirus in our rearview mirrors. However, we would also like to see an end to the pandemic of sexual abuse of children and targeted adults by clergy and others within the Catholic Church.

In recent years the media has begun reporting on survivors of child sex abuse in Plain faith communities such as the Amish and Mennonite. Two days ago a former member of the New Order Amish community and the mother of three young daughters watched her ex-husband make his plea in criminal court. The man had sexually assaulted their girls and pleaded no contest to charges of statutory sexual assault, unlawful contact with a minor (sexual offenses), indecent assault, and endangering the welfare of children. The man acknowledged through his attorney that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania had sufficient evidence to prove the counts.

At the end of a Vatican-led investigation into alleged negligence in handling cases of child sexual abuse, Bishop Jan Tyrawa of Poland submitted his resignation to the Pope. Today, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of the 72-year-old prelate.

We applaud the Catholic Church for looking into the accusations against Bishop Tyrawa, which ultimately led to his resignation. However, we remain concerned about the lack of transparency on the findings of this investigation. In our view, the results of the inquiry are even more crucial than the fact that a probe was launched. Accountability, responsibility, and openness merge to expose the truth. Only by knowing what went wrong in the past can we protect today's children.

Poland, like other countries around the world, has been plagued by the scandal of child sex abuse within the Church. We commend the brave survivors who came forward to authorities to shed light on this darkness. In addition, we again call for the mandatory inclusion of lay-people in all such probes. Finally, we believe that unless the results of this and every other Vos Estis investigation are made public, solutions to the Catholic crisis will remain elusive.

CONTACT:  Mike McDonnell, SNAP Communications Manager (267-261-0578, [email protected]), Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director (517-974-9009, [email protected])

On Monday, May 10^th, SNAP hosted a press conference on the steps of the Capitol building in Harrisburg. Survivors and advocates were again present, waiting for HB 951 to run on the floor of the Senate for a full vote. The bill will provide victims of child sex abuse in Pennsylvania with the opportunity to seek justice in the civil courts.

At the press conference, many survivors and advocates took to the podium, calling on Senate majority leader Kim Ward to bring this bill for a vote. The proposed legislation has now been listed four times on the Senate calendar. SNAP was well represented at the press conference. Reading leader Mary McHale cited the numerous times she and her fellow victims and advocates have stood on the Capitol steps and asked for justice. SNAP Communication Manager Michael McDonnell and SNAP board member Shaun Dougherty were also present, as well as many other members of the victims' group. Mary, Michael and Shaun are all survivors of Catholic clergy abuse in the state. Child USA and PCAR (Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape), and two of the Fortney sisters participated in the rally as well. 

In a disturbing but not surprising allegation, a New Jersey diocese has been accused of “massively underreporting” its assets in order to protect them from lawsuits brought by men and women who were sexually abused as children. Once again, Catholic officials have demonstrated that they care more about protecting their money than they do providing justice for survivors and preventing future cases of abuse.