For immediate release: Tuesday, Dec. 8
For
more information: David Clohessy (1) 314 566 9790
- Sex abuse victims want Catholic staffer fired
-
Twice, church employee has interfered with police
-
He's unrepentant and will likely do so again, group says
-
US-based organization says "If bishop doesn't act, he's endangering
children"
A
US-based support group for clergy sex abuse victims is urging Melbourne's
Catholic archbishop to fire one of his employees who has twice tipped off
suspected child molesting priests that they were being investigated by police
and who essentially says he'd do it again.
Leaders
of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, calls the staffer's
actions "extraordinarily hurtful to innocent children, wounded adults and
the church as a whole."
He
is Peter O'Callaghan and he works on clergy sex cases for Melbourne Archbishop
Denis Hart.
"Hart's
choice is simple – either keep O'Callaghan and show he cares more about
criminals or fire O'Callaghan and show he cares more about kids' safety,"
said David Clohessy, SNAP's national director.
According
to a Dec. 3 article in The Age, O'Callaghan acknowledges alerting two accused
predator priests that they were under investigation by civil authorities for
suspected child sex crimes.
"We
track cases all across the world, and this is one of the clearest and most
egregious examples of on-going recklessness and callousness we've seen
anywhere," said Barbara Dorris, SNAP's outreach director.
It's
very hard to get clergy sex abuse victims to contact law enforcement, SNAP
says, and often hard for police and prosecutors to build strong cases against
shrewd, well-educated child molesters. So it's crucial, the group says, that
the independent, experienced professionals in law enforcement are given the
opportunity to do investigations without suspects being warned in advance.
"Kids
are safest when predators are jailed, and that can only happen when police are
given a chance to do their jobs without being undermined by biased
amateurs," said Dorris.
"Giving
unauthorized and premature notice to suspected criminals gives them time to
destroy evidence, threaten witnesses, intimidate victims, fabricate alibis, and
even flee the country," said Clohessy. "It's irresponsible and
arrogant to assume that as a church employee, you know better than the police
how to handle criminal matters."
It's
bad enough that O'Callaghan has twice tipped off suspected sex offenders, SNAP
says. But it's worse that he basically admits he'd do it again.
''I
would not (keep a police probe secret if asked) because of my duty to keep both
parties (the priest and the complainant) apprised," O'Callaghan told The
Age.
"The
only thing worse than twice engaging in misconduct is essentially pledging to
do it again," said Clohessy. "O'Callaghan is arrogantly thumbing his
nose at the police and prosecutors because he feels some 'duty' to bend over
backwards for accused child molesters."
If
kids are to be safer, SNAP says, victims must feel safe and confident enough to
speak up. Given the allegations against him and O'Callaghan's admissions, some
victims will be skeptical about the
"If
there's doubt about the objectivity and motives of the church's point person on
abuse, fewer victims will step forward, fewer predators will be exposed, and
more kids will be at risk of horrific crimes," Dorris said. "In and
of itself, this is sufficient reason to replace O'Callaghan with a person whose
reputation is less tainted and who carries less baggage that might keep a
victim trapped in silence, shame and self-blame."
SNAP is
"Tip-off" related
articles:
http://www.theage.com.au/national/second-priest-in-sex-claim-tipoff-20091202-k6b6.html
http://www.theage.com.au/national/archbishop-to-contact-police-over-abuse-tipoffs-20091203-k8th.html