Victims angry about five "hidden" Catholic sex offenders

A settlement was reached Monday with 150+ victims of one predator

A second pedophile was ‘outed’ just two weeks ago due to a local settlement

A third cleric was sued again on Monday and now lives by a parochial school

And at least two other alleged Irish predator priests worked in the archdiocese

With all five cases, top local Catholic officials keep silent about credible allegations

SNAP asks Cardinal George: "How many more child-molesting clerics are you hiding?"

WHAT
Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims will disclose and discuss five credibly accused child-molesting Catholic clerics with Chicago ties. They include
-one, a Chicago native, who faces 150 accusers but has never been mentioned by Illinois media,
-one, who lives here now and who was ‘outed’ for the first time two weeks ago,
-one who lives near a local school now and faces six accusers, and
-two foreign-born pedophile priests who have gotten very little attention in the Chicago area.

The victims will also
-- blast archdiocesan staff for essentially keeping silent about the accused predators, and
-- try to hand-deliver a letter to Cardinal George demanding action and explanations.

WHERE
On the sidewalk in front of the Chicago Archdiocese headquarters, 835 N. Rush Street

WHEN
Thursday, Jan. 28 at 1:00 pm

WHO
Three – four adults who were molested as kids and who belong to a self help group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)

WHY
On Monday, over 250 men and women who were sexually assaulted as kids by Alaska Catholic employees settled with the Fairbanks diocese. Some 150+ of them report having been molested by Brother Joseph C. Lundowski, a Chicago native who returned here during the 1980s and worked roughly 15 years at the Pacific Garden Mission, (1458 S. Canal, 312 492 9410, http://www.pgm.org/).

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-na-alaska20051119,0,4208133,print.story

Despite the dozens of allegations, Lundowski's name has never appeared in Chicago news media, as best SNAP can determine.

On Jan 22, Beaumont TX Bishop Curtis J. Guillory admitted that Fr. Frank Paduch was defrocked because of allegations of child sexual abuse. Earlier this month, Paduch was suspended from his job with Berwyn after SNAP urged the suburb's mayor to oust Paduch because of his troubling history. SNAP

also revealed that in 1997 a civil child sex abuse and cover up lawsuit was filed in Cook County alleging Paduch abused a boy at St Rita High School in Chicago in 1980-81. Two years later, that lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed amount by the Chicago Archdiocese and Paduch's Olympia Fields, IL -based religious order, the Augustinians (708 748 9500.)

On Jan 26 another child sex crimes and coverup lawsuit was filed in North Dakota against a current Chicago resident, Brother Raimond Rose, and his church supervisors. Rose lives down the block from DeLaSalle High School on Chicago's south side. http://www.wday.com/event/article/id/29248/group/home/

In each case, SNAP believes Chicago Catholic officials should have disclosed the allegations against the clerics and should now be reaching out to others who saw, suspected or suffered their crimes.

Lundowski worked for the church in Alaska from 1959-1975, presenting himself as a Jesuit. Paduch worked for the church in Beaumont, TX from 1988 until 2000. Rose claimed to have worked at DeLaSalle in Chicago on an alumni website but school officials deny this. Rose worked for Catholic institutions in WI, MN, ND and CA.

Two Irish priests who molested kids also worked in Chicago but have barely received any local attention. One, Fr. Andrew Ronan, is the subject of a pending lawsuit against the Vatican, because he admitted molesting Irish youngsters, was moved to Chicago, allegedly molested again, and was then sent to Oregon where he molested yet again. The other, Fr. Patrick O'Leary was ousted by Chicago officials in the 1990s.

(Last month, an Irish government report documented widespread clergy sex crimes and cover ups there. It prompted a disclosure this week that three Irish predator priests also worked in the Boston archdiocese.)

Paduch and Rose still live in the Chicago area. O'Leary's whereabouts are unknown. Lundowski and Ronan are deceased.

The defendants in the Paduch suit were represented by Chicago lawyer James Geoly (312 840 7000). Lundowski's Alaska victims are represented by Anchorage attorney Ken Roosa (907 276 2744). Rose’s victims are represented by Minnesota attorney Pat Noaker (651 227 9990, 612 961 1307 cell).

http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news/2002_04_04_Falsani_SuitsSay.htm
http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news/1993_09_05_Sloan_FlockSeeks.htm

CONTACT:
Barbara Blaine-SNAP President 312 399 4747
David Clohessy-SNAP National Director 314 566 9790
Therese Albrecht-SNAP Chicago Spokesperson 708 263 3050