BishopAccountability.org
	Letter to Fairfax, Va, Commonwealth Attorney Morrogh about Father Fernando Cristancho SNAP November 8, 2008 http://snap-national.blogspot.com/2008/11/letter-to-fairfax-va-commonwealth.html 1) Mr. Raymond F. Morrogh Commonwealth Attorney, Fairfax County 4110 Chain Bridge Road, Room 123 Fairfax, VA 22030 Dear Mr. Morrogh: We are deeply concerned about Fr. Fernando Cristancho and the credible child sex abuse allegations against him. As you can see from the enclosed articles, a social service agency and a judge have determined that he recently molested two of his three children. We are concerned that he may have abused other children during his tvime as a priest at Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Fairfax County (1995-1998). He was fired from that parish following accusations of sexual misconduct with a young woman (though reportedly not a minor). Subsequently, he worked in a Maryland parish where he fathered three children through a surrogate mother. Fr. Cristancho is a native of Colombia, South America. You can read the findings of the Maryland Court of Special Appeals which recently denied him custody of his children. http://www.bishop-accountability.org/opinions/2008_10_27_Cristancho_v_Redacted_R.pdf. We are concerned because - Fr. Cristancho walks free today, - Catholic officials have a dismal record of supervising abusive clergy, - Statutes often allow predators to escape criminal charges, - Predator priests tend to be well-educated, shrewd and manipulative, - Dozens of predator priests have escaped justice by fleeing overseas, and - As you know, rarely does a child molester strike only once. We are not police or prosecutors. But we are citizens concerned about the continuing risk to innocent children as well as to other possible victims that Fr. Cristancho sexually abused while he lived and worked in No. Virginia. We believe that authorities can deal with child sex crimes in two ways: passively or aggressively. One can passively sit back and wait until a victim walks in the door. Or one can aggressively use one's bully pulpitand investigative tools to search out victims and witnesses and pursue predators vigorously. We want the office of the Commonwealth Attorney, along with the Catholic Diocese of Arlington, to take steps to preclude Fr. Cristancho's access to children and to seek out other possible victims of sexual abuse by him in No. Virginia. As a start, last weekend the diocese arranged an announcement about Fr. Cristancho at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, and this weekend a notice will be in theparish bulletin. As a Catholic priest in a local parish, however, Fr. Cristancho had access to many people and families in No. Virginia, particulary among the Hispanic population to whom he specifically ministered. Specifically, we ask that you - do everything in your power to probe Cristancho's past, - try to get his passport revoked or suspended, so he can't move elsewhere and molest again, and - make a strong public appeal to anyone with information about his crimes or misdeeds to come forward, get help, and contact law enforcement right away. When the time comes for discovery and subpoenas and other legal moves, we will be glad to put you in touch with legal experts who understand the church structure, terminology, and hierarchy, so that prosecutioncan proceed as quickly and effectively as possible. Thank you. We look forward to hearing from you. Please let us know how we can help. Sincerely David Clohessy Executive Director SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) 314.566.9790; snapclohessy@aol.com Contacts in No. Virginia Becky Ianni (SNAP) 703.801.6044; BIanni@cox.net Bill Casey (VOTF, Voice of the Faithful) 703.568.3438; b13909@comcast.net
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.