MO--SNAP to new church head: "Stop exploiting legal technicalities"

By David Clohessy
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
October 10, 2015

http://www.snapnetwork.org/mo_snap_to_new_church_head_stop_exploiting_legal_technicalities

New settlement involves convicted priest

Two victims of notorious predator resolve case

But Catholic officials are fighting against a third victim

SNAP to new church head: "Stop exploiting legal technicalities"

Church lawyers still minimize young girl “up skirt” photos, group says

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims will disclose that two more cases against KC’s most notorious predator priest have settled.

They will also urge KC’s new bishop to drop “hurtful technical defenses” in a third case involving that cleric which goes to court later this month.

WHEN

Saturday, Oct. 10, 2015 at 1:00 pm

WHERE

Outside the chancery, the KC MO Catholic diocesan headquarters, 20 West 9^th, in downtown KC

WHO

Two-four members of a self-help group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org) including a St. Louis man who is the organization's long time director

WHY

Two more civil cases against the KC MO Catholic diocese have been resolved. They center on child sex crimes by a now-imprisoned, high-profile ex-priest, Shawn Ratigan. Two girls and their mother will split $200,000.

But a third similar suit is pending and faces a court hearing on October 27. Lawyers for new KC Bishop James Johnston want that case thrown out for a variety of reasons.

First, Catholic officials claim that “up skirt” photos of young girls are not “obscene” if they do not clearly show actual “sexual conduct.”

Second, while being questioned in police custody, Ratigan was caught on film smashing a chip that some believe contained illegal and inappropriate photos of young girls from his parish. Because of that, lawyers for Bishop Johnston claim that the civil suit should be rejected, claiming there’s no evidence showing that this particular girl had been photographed.

Her parents, however, actually saw Ratigan take inappropriate photos of their daughter. And SNAP says that neither Ratigan nor his church supervisors should benefit from his successful effort to destroy evidence. Bishop Johnston, SNAP contends, “can’t claim to want ‘healing’ while he exploits the same kinds of legal technicalities that Bishop Robert Finn used time and time again against victims in court.”

The hearing is set for Oct. 27 in the Western District Court of Appeals in Kansas City.

http://www.courts.mo.gov/file.jsp?id=91233

The victims are represented by KC MO attorneys Rebecca Randles (816 510 2704 cell, Rebecca@rmblawyers.com) and Sarah Brown(816 269 6226 cell). The diocese is represented by Spencer Brown and Mimi Doherty (816 421 4000)