HAWAII
The Worthy Adversary
February 14, 2016 Joelle Casteix
The first step to transparency is being, well … transparent. And when your former bishop is a three-time-accused (that we know of) predator, that makes transparency even more important.
Victims to Hawai’i Bishop: Make all predators’ names public
Thirty other dioceses have exposed accused clerics
Seattle list included abuser in hiding in Honolulu
Former bishop should also be on list, group says
Releasing names is public safety imperative, SNAP says
Victims of sex abuse are demanding that the Catholic Bishop of Hawai’i publicly release the names of all clerics, employees, and volunteers who have been credibly accused of child sexual abuse.
In a letter to Honolulu Bishop Larry Silva, members of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPNetwork.org), say that releasing the list is an “important step for transparency, healing, and child protection.”
More than 30 other dioceses have released the names of accused clerics, and a recent list released by the Archdiocese of Seattle exposed a 50-time accused former Irish Christian Brother who is living “under the radar” in Hawai’i.
The group fears that Hawai’i’s credibly accused predator clerics could be living in local neighbors where they have unfettered access to children.
“How many credibly accused predators are living ‘under the radar’ here and elsewhere, where they can continue to prey on children?” the letter said. “Releasing these names is a public safety imperative.”
The letter also stresses the importance of releasing names of all of the accused, living and deceased. For example, former Honolulu Bishop Joseph Ferrario has been publicly accused of sexual abuse by at least three men. The first came forward in the 1980s.
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