Priest begins jail sentence for child sex crimes
Tomorrow, a serial predator priest, Fr. Alejandro “Alex” Castillo will be taken in to custody in order to serve his prison time for pleading guilty to child sexual abuse. A year ago, he was removed from Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Ontario when allegations surfaced that he abused two brothers within last two years.
He was arrested last October and initially pled “not guilty.” But in Apri1, he changed his plea to “guilty.”: He’s expected to spend a year in jail be forced to register as sex offender.
The hearing will be at 8:30am in Rancho Cucamonga Superior Court, Dept. R18, 8303 N. Haven Ave. in Rancho Cucamonga (909) 350-9764
Castillo’s victims are represented by Newport Beach attorneys Rebecca L. Rhoades (949 252 9990, cell 562 760 5743) and John Manly (949 252 990, cell 949 689 7895). Castillo’s photo is at BishopAccountability.org
We applaud the brave victims who spoke up and helped police and prosecutor pursue this criminal. We hope tomorrow’s court hearing will bring the victims and their families some healing. They should be proud that their courage has helped keep a child molester away from innocent kids.
And we urge every single person who saw, suspected or suffered Castillo’s crimes to come forward, get help, call police, protect others and start healing.
(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 23 years and have more than 10,000 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 Blaine (312-399-4747, [email protected]), Peter Isely (414-429-7259, [email protected]), Barbara Dorris (314-862-7688 home, 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
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