BishopAccountability.org
	Victims of Abuse by Clergy Get Support By Jay Tokasz Buffalo News August 20, 2008 http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/418807.html A national support and advocacy group for victims of clergy sexual abuse is starting a chapter in Western New York. The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP, held its first meeting last week in Amherst. The meeting was organized and led by Mark Lyman, volunteer director of a SNAP chapter in Albany. Five people attended, although organizers expect the number to grow with increased awareness of the group. “We’ve got quite a few people in the area who are not able to resolve their issues with the diocese [of Buffalo],” said Lyman, who travels regularly to Western New York as part of his full-time job. “My hope is that what we can do is expose the truth.” SNAP has chapters in Albany, Syracuse, Rochester, New York City, Long Island and Suffolk County. National members of the organization have maintained that the clergy abuse problem here is more widespread than has been revealed — based on their communications with victims. Members of SNAP said they hope to provide support for people who have been abused and have few places to turn. “It takes awhile for survivors to trust a group,” said Barbara Dorris, national outreach director for SNAP. Many victims are either afraid to talk with the diocese or have had discouraging discussions with representatives from the diocese, said Dorris. “Survivors tend to suffer in silence and in shame, and they tend to blame themselves,” she said. “Like any other support group, one of the most healing things is to find out you’re not the only one.” The Buffalo Diocese and others across the state have been able to avoid the large lawsuits and legal settlements reached with victims of clergy sexual abuse in other states. Advocacy groups, including SNAP, argue that victims across New York have been unable to get their day in court because of the state’s restrictive statute of limitations on sex abuse cases. Victims of sexual abuse typically don’t report abuse until years, often decades, afterward, well beyond the legal time frame to pursue court action, said Dorris. Some states briefly suspended their statute of limitations, creating “window” legislation in which victims could file lawsuits within a specified time period, even if the alleged abuse occurred years ago. The legislation ultimately resulted in several dioceses settling cases of alleged abuse from decades earlier for hundreds of millions of dollars. Similar window legislation passed the Assembly last year but has been stalled in the State Senate. The local SNAP group plans to be politically active, especially with regard to the proposed window legislation, which is being strongly opposed by the New York Conference of Catholic Bishops. The state’s bishops have expressed concern that such a law would end up crippling the church’s charitable efforts. “It doesn’t help any children today, and it doesn’t prevent sexual abuse,” said Dennis Poust, spokesman for the conference. “It’s really designed to bankrupt the church by allowing claims that are 60 or 70 years old and impossible to prove or disprove.” SNAP plans to target State Sen. Dale M. Volker, R-Depew. Volker has refused to release the window legislation from the Senate Codes Committee, where he serves as chairman, for a vote by the full Senate, Lyman said. Contact: jtokasz@buffnews.com
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