ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests
July 10, 2019
A North Dakota priest was just named publicly as an alleged abuser. He was ordained in a religious order based out of Corpus Christi, TX and apparently sent back there after the abuse was reported to church officials in Fargo. Despite this, he has not been named on any list of accused priests nor was the local community alerted to his presence. We are calling on church officials in Texas to explain why.
According to the West Fargo Pioneer, Fr. Michael Wright is alleged to have assaulted a vulnerable adult at St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Belcourt, ND. According to the woman’s attorneys, following the receipt of the allegations church officials in the Diocese of Fargo sent Fr. Wright back to Corpus Christi, TX for “counseling,” although they apparently did so without notifying communities in either Belcourt or Corpus Christi why the reassignment occurred.
We cannot help but consider that church officials in this case failed in their responsibility and promise to be “open and honest” in cases of clergy abuse.The lack of public disclosure from the Diocese of Corpus Christi is especially egregious given that their list of “credibly” accused priests was released earlier this year, and the society into which Fr. Wright was ordained is also headquartered in the Diocese of Corpus Christi.
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