POSTED BY BARBARA BLAINE ON MAY 10, 2013
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
When will Catholic officials stop trying to play ‘gatekeeper’ and ‘screen’ child sex abuse reports? Why don’t they just tell people ‘if you see, suspect or suffer clergy child sex crimes, call law enforcement directly?’
The answer is clear: they want victims and witnesses to come to church officials first, giving them the chance to destroy evidence, fabricate alibis, intimidate victims, threaten witnesses, discredit whistleblowers, and start their extensive and expensive damage control and public relations maneuvers.
Some may feel comfort in the short, vague announcement on the Trenton diocesan website about Fr. Fugee. We don’t. It’s more about looking good than doing good.
These two bishops should name the parishes Fr. Fugee was in. They should personally visit those parishes. They should beg church members and staff “Please, ask everyone you know, ‘Did Fr. Fugee hurt you?’” They should instruct them to seek out former church members and staff who may have quit or moved or stopped coming because Fr. Fugee hurt one of them.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.