MANCHESTER (NH)
Telegram & Gazette
By BEVERLEY WANG
Associated Press Writer
MANCHESTER, N.H.— A national support group for victims of sexual abuse by Roman Catholic clergy is demanding that church leaders post the names of known and suspected molesters on the Internet.
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, also want bishops to encourage more victims to come forward by visiting communities where abusive priests served.
On Monday, the group presented its demands - including that bishops also lobby to eliminate the statute of limitations on reporting abuse - to the Rev. Edward Arsenault, a Diocese of Manchester spokesman.
The group is focused on New Hampshire Bishop John McCormack and four other former deputies of Boston Cardinal Bernard Law, who resigned two years ago.
The national abuse crisis exploded in Boston in early 2002 and quickly spread to dioceses around the country. Boston's Catholic church was rocked by allegations that church leaders ignored reports that clergymen for years had preyed on children. The archdiocese spent $85 million settling accusations brought forward by 552 people.