PA--Judge: Trial vs. Catholic officials will go forward; Victims respond

By David Clohessy
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
April 27, 2016

http://www.snapnetwork.org/pa_judge_trial_vs_catholic_officials_will_go_forward_victims_respond

We’re grateful that the trial of three Pennsylvania Catholic officials who repeatedly ignored and hid child sex abuse reports against a cleric will go forward.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/latest-lawyers-argue-judge-friars-case-38711199

http://www.pennlive.com/news/2016/04/principal_franciscans_didnt_me.html

Church officials claimed they did nothing wrong because they sent Brother Stephen Baker to a doctor who essentially cleared him to stay on the job. We’re not buying it. We’re glad the judge didn’t either.

Catholic bureaucrats have made this claim about thousands of predators: “A doctor said he was ok.” But in most cases, bishops carefully pick devout Catholic doctors who will provide the “diagnosis” bishops seek. Or they give doctors inaccurate and inadequate information about the predator. Or they pick general practitioners who know little or nothing about sexual deviants. So it’s “garbage in, garbage out.”

Church officials often use these carefully-chosen professionals for “cover” to keep sexually troubled priests, nuns, brothers and seminarians in parishes and schools, and later feign shock when abuse reports surface.

We are saddened but not surprised that Franciscan officials didn’t tell principal William Rushin about Brother Baker’s crimes. And we hope that anyone with knowledge or suspicions of wrongdoing by Franciscans, especially Anthony Criscitelli, Giles Schinelli and Robert D’Aversa will speak up now.

No matter what lawmakers or church officials do or don’t do, we urge every single person who saw, suspected or suffered child sex crimes and cover ups in Catholic churches or institutions – especially in the Altoona area - to protect kids by calling police, get help by calling therapists, expose wrongdoers by calling law enforcement, get justice 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.