December 8th 2016
By Connie Leonard, Anchor/Reporter
KENTUCKY
WAVE
LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) – A week after a now suspended Louisville priest and former Trinity High School teacher is found guilty of inappropriately touching a child, S.N.A.P., Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests is asking the Archdiocese of Louisville not to push for a light sentence for Father Joseph Hemmerle.
S.N.A.P. took their written concerns to the Office of the Archdiocese on Thursday. While S.N.A.P. representatives feel the archdiocese has improved education about abuse when it comes to adults around children in churches and schools, they still believe when it comes to priests, there’s an instinct to protect at all costs.
“Here in Louisville, we’ve had over 30 some-odd priests who have been credibly accused, we’ve got around four in jail at this time,” said S.N.A.P. member Cal Pfeiffer.
Now, that Father Joseph Hemmerle has been convicted, they want the Archdiocese to be proactive and find out if other victims could be out there.
“Very seldom does an abusive priest only abuse one or two children,” Pfeiffer said. “There were hundreds and hundreds of children at Camp Tall Trees.”
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