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The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests SNAP Press Statement For immediate release: Friday, December 3, 2010 DC Catholic officials should do more to monitor predator priests Statement by David Clohessy, executive director 314 566 9790 SNAPclohessy@aol.com (NOTE: Today’s Washington Post has a story about the whereabouts & status of DC area predator priests) Catholic officials can and should do more to supervise the pedophile priests they recruit, educate, ordain, hire, and often protect and quietly transfer. When clergy sex crimes and cover ups are uncovered, it’s immoral for bishops to suddenly ‘cut and run,’ and feign powerlessness. For starters, for the safety of children, bishops in the DC area should do what 24 of their colleagues across the US have done: post on church websites the names of all proven, admitted and credibly accused child molesting clerics. Parents, parishioners and the public can’t protect their kids from predators unless we know who those predators are. This is the bare minimum moral obligation of every Catholic prelate. Remember that priests have pledged to obey their bishops. In return, bishops provide priests – even most predator priests – with salaries, health insurance and a host of other benefits. Bishops can therefore order pedophile priests to live in supervised settings, like professionally-run treatment facilities for sex offenders. But virtually no bishop does this, preferring to instead take the cheap and easy way out, despite the obvious public safety risk involved. Kids are safest when child predators are imprisoned. So bishops can and should also do much more to urge victims and witnesses and whistleblowers to call police and prosecutors. Instead, they do the absolute bare minimum, and merely suspend child molesting clerics from active ministry. That’s a dereliction of duty. DC bishops should personally go to each parish where pedophile priests have worked and emphatically beg anyone with information about the crimes to contact law enforcement. Those kinds of clear, direct pleas can make a difference. But we rarely see bishops taking this simple step to protecting the vulnerable . Bishops are powerful monarchs. They have massive resources. They have church newspapers and radio stations and websites. They have hundreds of employees and dozens of parish bulletins and websites. If they choose to act responsibly, bishops can help ensure that more predator priests are charged, convicted and jailed. But it takes courage and compassion to do this. And sadly, courage and compassion are sorely lacking in many bishops/ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/02/AR2010120206646.html NOTE: More information about this situation can be found at BishopAccountability.org (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 22 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, SNAPclohessy@aol.com), Barbara Blaine (312-399-4747, SNAPblaine@gmail.com), Peter Isely (414-429-7259, peterisely@yahoo.com), Barbara Dorris (314-862-7688 home, 314-503-0003 cell, SNAPdorris@gmail.com) |
Dear Bishop Campbell,
We are writing for two simple but compelling reasons: to prod you to do more to
find and help victims of two Columbus-area priests who face credible child sex
abuse allegations or charges, and to prod you to do more to protect other
children from them.
They are Fr. Aaron (A.J.)
We urge you to chart a new, responsible course. We respectfully but
emphatically urge you to use your considerable resources (diocesan website,
diocesan newspaper, dozens of parish bulletins, and pulpit announcements) to
announce Cotes upcoming trial and beg victims and witnesses to call law
enforcement immediately so that he can be effectively prosecuted, convicted and
locked up. Your prompt action would make a real difference, Bishop.
You know that kids are safest when predators are jailed. You can help make that
happen. Or, you can emulate the timid, passive and irresponsible actions of
your colleagues and do nothing.
Regarding Loyd, were disturbed by several parts of this situation. For the sake
of public safety, parents need and Catholics deserve clear information and more
action from you.
In November, you evidently suspended Loyd because of a credible allegation of
sexual abuse of a minor in 1985. But it was disclosed on your website on Dec.
18th.
Since weeks elapsed between when you received the abuse report and when you
disclosed it, Loyd had weeks to fabricate alibis, destroy evidence,
intimidate witnesses and molest more kids. We believe you should publicly
explain and apologize for this inexcusable delay.
In addition, were troubled by your vague claim that this is the first time the
Diocese of Columbus has received a specific allegation of this nature against
Father Loyd. The obvious implication is
that you have, in fact, had other reports of sexual abuse or misconduct by
Loyd, though not perhaps this specific. Again, your flock and Columbus citizens
deserve the truth, not carefully-crafted public relations spin.
For the safety of kids, we urge you to put Loyd in a secure, remote,
professionally run treatment center so that kids will be safe and so that hell
get help.
If you wont do that, make public where Fr. Loyd is located now. He could still
be a danger to kids.
Finally, we urge you to more aggressively and effectively reach out to other
victims who might be too afraid to speak up about Fr. Loyd. We urge you to let
your parishioners know that SNAP, "Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests"
is available to anyone who has been harmed by this priest.
Please do your pastoral duty. Please personally visit each parish where these
two predators worked. Look your flock in the eye. Tell them its their moral and
civic duty to come forward, get help and call the police with any information
they may have (no matter how small or old or second hand or irrelevant it may
seem) about their misdeeds. That 's what a man of integrity would do.
We await your response.
Judy Jones
SNAP director
636-433-2511
Carol Zamonski
SNAP leader
614-447-2084
David Clohessy
National Director of SNAP SNAPclohessy@aol.com
314-566-9790