COLUMBIA (MO)
Associated Press
Sept. 9, 2019
An advocacy group for people sexually abused by Roman Catholic priests is criticizing the bishop of the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese for not naming more people on a list of clerics who have been credibly accused of sexually abusing children.
Bishop James Johnston Jr. released a list Friday of 19 clerics from the diocese who he said had substantiated allegations of sexual abuse of children against them. Another 11 former clerics were named in different categories.
On Monday, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests said at a news conference that the bishop’s list was incomplete because it didn’t include priests who at some point lived or worked in the Kansas City area but who were accused of sexual abuse in other dioceses.
David Clohessy, Missouri director for SNAP, argued the diocese should do all it can to publicize the names of any cleric accused of abuse, even if that person was not assigned to the diocese, even if they have already been publicly named by other dioceses.
“The bishop has a simple choice,” Clohessy said. “If you want to safeguard the vulnerable, there’s absolutely no reason why you wouldn’t put these names on your list and warn the flock of every single child molester, nun, bishop, monk, seminarian, priest or even lay teachers who they should be concerned about … Bishop Johnson has had more than enough time to look at the work of his fellow bishops and say ‘I can do better’ and he hasn’t.”
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