SNAP Hopes WV Attorney General’s Lawsuit Will Go Forward
West Virginia’s attorney general is fighting to keep his creative lawsuit against church officials alive. We support his efforts and hope that his lawsuit will not be dismissed.
We applaud West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey who is fighting back against Catholic officials who want to continue concealing clergy sex crimes and cover ups. We hope his creative approach of using consumer protections in order to force church staff into greater transparency will encourage others in law enforcement to take similar steps and think outside the box for ways to get to the bottom of cases of clergy sex abuse and cover-ups.
There are far too many secrets within West Virginia that are still not being exposed. For example, church officials from the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston are still not turning over the results of their internal investigation into now-disgraced Bishop Michael Bransfield to the AG's office, despite AG Morrisey’s request.
We hope the new Bishop Mark Brennan will stop spending his flock's hard-earned dollars and donations to fight AG Morrisey’s lawsuit and will instead work with his office to expose and root out the very secrecy that has enabled so many priests to hurt so many innocents.
CONTACT: Judy Jones, SNAP Midwest ([email protected], 636-433-2511) Zach Hiner, Executive Director ([email protected], 517-974-9009)
(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)
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