UNITED STATES
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
For immediate release: Wednesday, Oct. 14
Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those abused by Priests (314 566 9790, davidgclohessy@gmail.com)
A Florida bishop is putting a credibly accused abusive cleric back in a parish. We are deeply worried about the safety of the priest’s colleagues, neighbors and flock.
Diocese of Venice Bishop Frank Dewane is acting recklessly and callously. If he insists on putting Fr. Leo Riley back on the job, we would hope it would be in prison ministry or a desk job, not in a parish. We’re disturbed that Dewane is putting Fr. Riley back St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church on Rattlesnake Hammock Road in Naples.
Dewane also claims Fr. Riley took a lie detector test. We challenge him to make those test results public. If he doesn’t, we can’t put much validity in this claim.
Our hearts ache for Jeff Buchheit and anyone else who has been hurt by Fr. Riley. We beg anyone who may have seen, suspected or suffered wrongdoing or crimes by this priest to call police, expose wrongdoers, protect kids and start healing.
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.