UT--Victims urge Mormon to “avoid delays” in abuse case
For immediate release: Thursday, Nov. 17, 2016
Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, 314 645 5915 home, [email protected])
A Utah judge is letting an alleged abuse victim have his day in court in a Mormon-related child sex abuse and cover up case. We are relieved and thrilled. Now, we hope church officials will now cooperate fully and quickly so the full truth can be revealed about a troubling church program which involved tens of thousands of kids over more than a half century. http://www.sltrib.com/news/4596141-155/abuse-case-against-mormon-church-to
For the safety of kids and the healing of victims, they must resist the temptation to delay justice by trying to evade discovery, block depositions and exploit legal technicalities to keep the truth concealed while discouraging other victims from coming forward and exposing those who commit and conceal sexual violence.
We especially hope Thomas S. Monson, the high-ranking Mormon official, won’t fight his deposition. Monson is old and victims are hurting. Moving quickly to shed light on the Indian Student Placement Program may embarrass some Mormon staff. But it will also go far to deter future wrongdoing and console suffering victims.
We applaud Judge U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby for this common sense ruling. We especially applaud the four wounded individuals who have found the strength to hopefully turn something horrific into something positive. They are working to use their suffering to expose crimes and cover ups so that more crimes and cover ups can be prevented. For that, they deserve the gratitude of police, prosecutors, parents and the public in both Utah and Arizona.
Lawyers for Mormon officials tried in their effort to move the lawsuit from Arizona into Utah, where the powerful church hierarchy has considerable political clout and tight personal connections. Fortunately, they failed. But this initial legal move is discouraging and suggests these Mormon officials will do what other officials in other denominations usually do – fight very hard and use every possible tactic to delay the case, hoping victims who have come forward will eventually tire and give up and hoping victims who have yet to come forward will be deterred from doing so. This is a ‘penny-wise, pound foolish’ approach that will only hurt the Mormon church more in the long term, causing employees and members to be demoralized and disgusted with such expensive, drawn-own and selfish maneuvers.
No matter what church officials do or don’t do, we urge every single person who saw, suspected or suffered child sex crimes and cover ups in churches or institutions to protect kids by calling police, get help by calling therapists, expose wrongdoers by calling attorneys, and be comforted by calling support groups like ours. This is how kids will be safer, adults will recover, criminals will be prosecuted, cover ups will be deterred and the truth will surface.
(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. SNAP was founded in 1988 and has more than 20,000 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 Dorris (314-503-0003 cell,[email protected])
Abuse case against Mormon church to continue in Navajo court; attorneys want LDS leader Monson to testify
By TOM HARVEY | The Salt Lake Tribune - Nov 16 2016
Attorneys for four Navajos suing the LDS Church over alleged sexual abuse said Wednesday they intend to subpoena the faith's president, Thomas S. Monson, to testify about the former program that placed children in Mormon homes off the reservation during the school year.
The remarks came after a federal judge in Salt Lake City rejected a church argument that Navajo tribal courts do not have jurisdiction over three lawsuits alleging that . . .
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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