Victim advocates: Missouri attorney general not doing enough in Catholic church investigation

By Hris Oberholtz And Angie Ricono
KCTV 5
November 28, 2018

https://bit.ly/2Q4EOf5

The Catholic church is under the microscope according to Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley, but some key people say that is not true.

A new opinion column in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch blasts Hawley’s office and their investigation of the Catholic church. Hawley has blasted back.

“I think a lot more needs to be done,” said Kansas City attorney Rebecca Randles.

She has spent more than a decade investigating the Catholic church and trying to hold predators priests and the church itself accountable.

“We’ve spoken to over 400 witnesses concerning childhood sexual abuse in the Kansas City Diocese … not in any of the other diocese, just Kansas City,” Randles said.

KCTV5 News spoke with Randles months ago, and at that time she was concerned about how the investigation was unfolding.

“There needs to be an outreach to victims. None of our clients have received any outreach,” she said.

It's a point Randles is now driving home in black and white in a newspaper option piece.

“We’ve essentially gotten silence from the Attorney General’s Office,” Randles said.

Randles has represented more than 200 alleged victims. St. Louis attorney Ken Chackes has represented more than 100. David Clohessy is the former director the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP). His is also SNAP’s current St. Louis director.

None of these key people have been contacted.

“We think the attorney general’s refusal to respond or reach out to us speaks volumes about his intentions,” Randles said.

Hawley responded in a tweet:

“This is false. We have spoken with the current president and executive director of snap multiple times, as well as former leadership of snap. We have spoken with other victims groups, those representing victims, and dozens and dozens of victims and witnesses,” Hawley said.

Hawley also says he is seeking court orders for more information

KCTV5 reached out to SNAP, and they say what little has been done is appreciated but so much more effort needs to go into this investigation if we really want the truth about the catholic church in our area.

To date, the Catholic church in just the Kansas City area has paid out more than $25 million in settlement and legal fees.