MARYLAND
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
For immediate release: Friday, Dec. 9, 2016
Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314-503-0003 cell, bdorris@SNAPnetwork.org)
A Catholic church volunteer has been arrested on child sexual abuse. Now Baltimore Archbishop William Lori must act. If he doesn’t other church staff and members should.
[ABC 2]
Terrence Shondry Smalls is charged this week with sex abuse of a minor, second degree assault, child abuse, second-degree custodian and second-degree sex offense, crimes he allegedly committed at Church of the Nativity in Lutherville. He also worked or volunteered at a Girl Scout troop, Epworth church and at Pot Spring Elementary School.
Lori should personally visit Nativity this weekend. He should beg anyone with information or suspicions about Smalls to call police. He should use church bulletins, parish websites and pulpit announcements across the archdiocese to do the same.
Why? Because that’s what a caring shepherd would do. Because that’s what will help police and prosecutors resolve this case. Because that’s what will help keep Smalls behind bars longer if he’s convicted. Because that might help avoid Smalls exploiting technicalities and going free. And because that’s how Catholic officials will start to break the centuries-long culture of secrecy in the church about sexual crimes, misdeeds and cover-ups.
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.