ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests
April 26, 2019
We are grateful that the Archdiocese of New York is finally taking the step of list accused priests publicly, belated though it may be. While it’s likely this list was only released in response to growing public pressure, we hope that the publicizing of this information will lead to more informed communities and will encourage survivors who may be suffering in silence to come forward and make a report to police and the attorney general.
The list released today by the Archdiocese of New York only includes names, years of ordination, and the current status; information that is good but not enough for a complete list. Cardinal Timothy Dolan should update his list to include, at a minimum, the work histories of each accused priest so that communities where abusers served know to look for survivors in their midst. Similarly, he should include information about when the archdiocese first received the allegations and what they did in response. Only by knowing what went wrong to enable abusers in the past can we best know how to prevent similar situations in the future.
Finally, while we are grateful for the bit of transparency shown by the Archdiocese of New York today, we will be looking to the conclusion of the ongoing investigation by Attorney General Letitia James for the full transparency that the public deserves and needs. If Cardinal Dolan is confident in the veracity of his list, we believe he should aid AG James in her investigation by turning over all of his files related to clergy abuse to her office and demonstrate true transparency and openness that way.
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