HOUSTON (TX)
KUHF
Members of a child abuse victim support group gathered outside a mega church in Houston today to highlight recent abuse cases involving ministers. The group urges victims of sexual abuse at churches to come forward.
SNAP, or Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, held a news conference in front of Second Baptist Church in west Houston to denounce the abuses by at least one former minister.
Chad Foster, who was a youth pastor at Second Baptist in Cypress, was convicted last year of sexual assault of a 16-year-old church member.
Amy Smith with SNAP urges potential additional victims to come forward.
“We think there’s more victims because research has shown that perpetrators rarely have only one victim… And so we know they’re out there and we hopefully like to send a message to them wherever they are that it’s never too late to come forward and seek justice.”
The group says Second Baptist as well as other churches whose clergy have been accused of child sexual abuse are not doing enough to address the problem. Smith says she used to be a member of Second Baptist herself.
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