New St. Louis "predator" priests outed; SNAP prods MO AG Hawley

Nine new "predator" priests are "outed"

All were sent here after being accused in Pennsylvania

Group pushes AG Hawley to delay and expand  his abuse inquiry

"Make no announcement until after election day," victims urge

Otherwise, probe will be "politicized" and "hurtful," they argue

WHAT 

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters will 

--disclose the names of nine priests named in a recent Pennsylvania grand jury report who were sent to St. Louis after having been accused of child sex crimes, and

--hand deliver a letter urging Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley to both delay and expand his clergy sex abuse inquiry.

WHEN

Thursday, Sept. 20 at 1:00 p.m. 

WHERE

On the sidewalk outside the "new cathedral" on Lindell near Taylor in the Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis

WHO 

Three or four victims and advocates who belong to a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org), including a St. Louis man who is the group's former longtime director and a local attorney who has handled nearly 100 clergy sex abuse cases in Missouri

WHY

At least nine accused clerics from Pennsylvania were sent to the St. Louis area. However, their names have never been made public here. They were publicly identified in Pennsylvania last month when a grand jury there issued a scathing 1,356 page report "outing" 301 "predator" priests.

https://www.attorneygeneral.gov/report/

The clerics lived primarily at three church-run facilities here for troubled priests: House of Affirmation in Webster Groves, St. John Vianney in Dittmer, and St. Michael's Center in St. Louis.

However, SNAP suspects that some of them may worked temporarily at local parishes and church institutions. The group also notes that none of these facilities are "locked down" and often let clerics come and go with little or no supervision. SNAP fears some of the priests may represent a danger to kids even now.

The accused Pennsylvania priests are Fr. Joseph D. Hulko, Fr. Samuel B. Slocum, Fr. James R. Adams, Fr. Charles J. Chatt, Fr. Edward G. Huff, Fr. John William Wellinger, Fr. Robert J. Gibson, Fr. William Presley and Fr. James L. Armstrong.

SNAP is increasingly skeptical of the Church sex abuse inquiry Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley announced on Aug. 23. The group wants to make sure the probe is thorough, inclusive and beneficial. While highly suspicious of the AG's plans, SNAP is suggesting several of specific ways he can ensure the success of the effort. 

The survivors group wants AG Hawley to:

~ avoid rushing the inquiry for political purposes and team up with a local prosecutor or two so subpoenas can be used and sworn testimony of church officials can be secured.   ~expand the inquiry to include all the proven, admitted, or credibly accused clerics who have quietly been sent, over decades, into this Archdiocese to live, work and/or be "treated" at Church facilities and to include religious order priests (like Jesuits and Marianists) who comprise roughly 1/3 of the clerics working here.

~devise "accountability mechanisms" to enforce any reforms that may be adopted and do "aggressive, repeated outreach to victims" in several ways, including a dedicated new abuse reporting hotline.

At least nine accused “predator priests” from Pennsylvania were sent to the St. Louis area.

Their names have never been made public locally. They were publicly identified in Pennsylvania a few weeks ago when a grand jury there issued a scathing 900 page report "outing" 301 child molesting clerics.

The clerics lived primarily at three church-run facilities here for troubled priests: House of Affirmation in Webster Groves, St. John Vianney in Dittmer and St. Michael's Center in St. Louis.

SNAP suspects, however, that at least some of them worked temporarily at local parishes and church institutions. The group notes that none of these facilities are "locked down" and often let clerics come and go with little or no supervision, so SNAP fears some of the priests may represent a danger to kids even now.

The accused Pennsylvania priests are Fr. Joseph D. Hulko, Fr. Samuel B. Slocum, Fr. James R. Adams,  Fr. Charles J. Chatt, Fr. Edward G. Huff, Fr. John William Wellinger, Fr. Robert J. Gibson, Fr. William Presley and Fr. James L. Armstrong.

www.BishopAccountability.org

CONTACT

David Clohessy, St. Louis volunteer SNAP director, 314 566 9790, [email protected], Attorney Ken Chackes 314 872 8420, 314 369 3902 cell