Clergy Sex Abuse Victims List 'America's Worst Cardinals'

16 Apr 2008 10:00 Africa/Lagos


SNAP: Clergy Sex Abuse Victims List 'America's Worst Cardinals'

Group cites 5 prelates who are mishandling child molestation

SNAP wants Pope to 'show he means business' by censuring 'at least one of them'

The cases show that 'church cover ups and recklessness continue,' self help group says

Heads of Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston and Boston archdioceses are criticized

WASHINGTON, April 16 /PRNewswire/ -- WHAT


At sidewalk news conferences, while holding signs and childhood photos, clergy sex abuse victims will


-- disclose a list of what they call 'America's five worst Cardinals' (in
terms of the sex abuse & cover-up scandal),
-- outline recent incidents by each that show their continuing
recklessness, secrecy and duplicity, and
-- publicly urge the Pope to chastise just one of them for the recent
misdeeds.


WHEN
Wednesday, April 16, from 1:00 p.m. until 2:30 p.m.

WHERE

Outside the Guy Mason Recreation Center & Park (202-282-2180), 3600 Calvert NW (corner of Observatory Circle) in Washington DC


WHO


A handful of women and men who were molested as kids by Catholic clergy and who head a nationwide support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)


WHY


Today, at 1:00 p.m., Pope Benedict meets with roughly 16 US Cardinals. A few blocks away, victims will hold 5 large signs, with color photos of (and fact sheets about) the five current US Cardinals who, they feel, have mishandled or are severely mishandling recent child sex abuse cases.


SNAP's focus is less on the cardinals' overall track record on child molestation and cover ups, but rather highlights the prelates' misdeeds since 2002, when the US bishops adopted an allegedly binding national sex abuse policy.


The list includes Cardinal Francis George of Chicago, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Houston, Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles, and Cardinal Sean O'Malley of Boston.


George is cited for ignoring the 2005 advice of his lay review board to suspend a young accused pedophile priest, Fr. Daniel McCormack, who'd been recently arrested because of abuse allegations. George kept McCormack in active parish ministry despite repeated reports of McCormack's suspected abuse (going back to his seminary days). Months later, prosecutors say he molested several boys, one "on an almost daily basis" until he was arrested again in 2006.


O'Malley is cited because last month, church officials disclosed that his archdiocese (the epicenter of the US abuse crisis) is in serious violation of the national sex abuse policy for the second year in a row. One in five Boston Catholic kids are not getting the sex abuse prevention training that was promised for each child by O'Malley and his peers six years ago.


The Pope/Cardinals meeting is at the Vatican Embassy on Massachusetts Avenue (in the residence across from the US Naval Observatory).


CONTACT
David Clohessy of St. Louis, SNAP national director 314 566 9790 cell
Peter Isely of Milwaukee, SNAP board chair emeritus 414 429 7259 cell
Barbara Blaine of Chicago, SNAP president 312 399 4747 cell
Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, SNAP 314 503 0003 cell

Source: SNAP

CONTACT: David Clohessy, national director, +1-314-566-9790, cell, or
Peter Isely, board chair emeritus, +1-414-429-7259, cell, or Barbara Blaine,
president, +1-312-399-4747, cell, or Barbara Dorris, +1-314-503-0003, cell,
all of SNAP


Web site: