OH--PA--Cleric who worked in Dayton and Pittsburgh abused girl with turkey baster
For immediate release: Thursday, July 9
For more information: David Clohessy (314-566-9790 cell, S[email protected]), Barbara Dorris (314-503-0003 cell, [email protected]), Barbara Blaine (312-399-4747, [email protected])
Cleric who worked in Dayton abused girl with turkey baster
He pled guilty and now his sentencing hearing is being held
A Catholic cleric who spent time in the Cincinnati archdiocese abused a girl with a turkey baster and was “a sadist,” a court in Australia was told this week.
Brother Bernard Joseph Hartman was working near Chaminade-Julienne High School in Dayton when child sex abuse allegations against him surfaced in late 2011. Earlier this year, he pled guilty to molesting kids at a Melbourne school.
http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2013/09_10/2013_09_12_Beyerlein_FormerDayton.htm
He is believed to be the first Catholic clergy member was extradited from the US to Australia, according to several sources. He belongs to a St. Louis-based religious order known as the Marianists.
http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2014/09_10/2014_09_06_Bill_Tribune-Review_Marianist_to.htm
A hearing is now being held in Australia to determine his sentence.
After abusing the Australian kids, Hartman, now 75, returned to the United States in the 1980s and continued working with Marianists in the Cincinnati area, according to the Melbourne Herald Sun.
He also worked at a school in Pittsburgh.
“It’s very likely others who were hurt by these priests are still suffering in shame, silence and self-blame,” said David Clohessy of St. Louis. He heads an international support group called the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. “Cincinnati and Pittsburgh clerics and lay Catholics should do everything possible to find and console these wounded victims.”
SNAP is also begging anyone who was hurt by Hartman or other clerics to “speak up and get help, and call police.” And SNAP wants Catholic officials in the Cincinnati and Pittsburgh areas to “permanently post, on church websites, the names, photos and whereabouts of all proven, admitted and credibly accused child molesting clerics so that kids can be safer and so that victims can be healed.”
“Over the years, Hartman was given easy access to literally thousands of girls and boys in Catholic parishes and schools,” said Barbara Dorris, outreach director for SNAP. “There could be dozens of adults mired in pain in Ohio, Pennsylvania and wherever else Hartman has worked because of his crimes. Archbishop Dennis Schnurr and Pittsburgh Bishop David Zubik should use parish bulletins, church websites and pulpit announcements” to aggressively seek out and offer help to these wounded victims.”
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
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