BishopAccountability.org
	Clergy Sex Victims Blast Catholic Officials SNAP July 25, 2011 http://www.snapnetwork.org/snap_statements/2011_statements/072511_clergy_sex_victims_blast_catholic_officials.htm Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314-503-0003, snapdorris@gmail.com) Once again, in a case involving the safety of kids, top Catholic officials are defending themselves on technicalities, not on the merits. Again, they’re exploiting every possible legal maneuver to prevent having to face tough questions before jurors in open court about how they deal with sexual misdeeds by clergy. Catholic bishops can believe anything they want. They can’t, however, do anything they want, especially when their callous self-serving actions endanger kids. When will Catholic officials stop claiming that children’s safety is “an internal matter?” We applaud Ms. Dayner and hope that she will continue to speak out about the wrongdoing by Hartford Catholic officials. (SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 23 years and have more than 10,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org) Contact - David Clohessy (+1-314-566-9790 cell, SNAPclohessy@aol.com), Barbara Blaine (+1-312-399-4747, SNAPblaine@gmail.com), Peter Isely (+1-414-429-7259, peterisely@yahoo.com), Barbara Dorris (+1-314-862-7688 home, +1-314-503-0003 cell, SNAPdorris@gmail.com) http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Conn-court-church-can-t-be-sued-by-ex-principal-1583972.php Conn. court: church can't be sued by ex-principal DAVE COLLINS, Associated Press - Updated 10:46 a.m., Monday, July 25, 2011 HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — The Connecticut Supreme Court has ruled that a former Catholic school principal cannot sue the Archdiocese of Hartford on claims she was wrongly fired for not retaliating against a student who complained about sexual remarks allegedly made by a priest. The high court unanimously overturned a lower court ruling on Monday, saying state courts cannot intrude on religious institutions' right to decide internal matters. The plaintiff is Patricia Dayner, former principal of St. Hedwig's School in Naugatuck. She said her contract was not renewed for the 2005-06 school year because she refused to retaliate against an eighth-grader who complained that the Rev. Stephen Bzdyra (BIZ'-der-ah) used sexually explicit language in a classroom. Bzdyra is currently on administrative leave because of allegations of child sex abuse, which he denies. Read more: http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Conn-court-church-can-t-be-sued-by-ex-principal-1583972.php#ixzz1T9HGxvmj
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