I am so flattered and overwhelmed to be honored with the Susan Laufer Award for Outstanding Contribution to Support Group Awareness for “tireless work in spreading the word about support groups for those abused by priests.” If you would like to come, PLEASE let me know. We want you there to join us. You can also…Continue reading An honor I am overwhelmed to receive …
Part One: Young Children and the Sixth Commandment It’s the juicy one: Thou shall not commit adultery. How do you teach the term adultery to young children? There are two ways: There is a guilt and sin-laden method that shames child victims of abuse into a lifetime of silence and self-loathing. It also silences witnesses and whistleblowers…Continue reading We can’t waste this teachable moment: How the teaching of one commandment silenced generations of sex abuse victims and what we can do to change it
When California Governor Jerry Brown vetoed SB 131 —an extension to California’s 2003 civil window that would have allowed victims of child sex abuse to come forward, no matter when they were abused—he cited an age-old (and VERY STALE) argument that we hear often from Catholic bishops: “window laws are unfair.” Tell that to the…Continue reading More proof that Jerry Brown got it all wrong: Love Serve Surrender
He was Gary Winnick. He was Wandering Eagle. He was Jay Ram. But through it all, he was a predator who used sex as power and destroyed dozens of children in his wake. I’ve been a part of numerous documentaries about the cover-up of the sexual abuse of children, but no saga has touched…Continue reading Documentary: The twisted tale of Jay Ram
Vice News has released a trailer for their upcoming documentary LOVE SERVE SURRENDER. The film tells the story of Jay Ram, a former Hilo-area farmer who fostered and adopted boys in California and Hawaii … and then sexually abused them. Because of Hawaii’s civil window, these boys—now men— have been able to expose Jay and…Continue reading Trailer: Documentary exposes Big Island abuser
The bankruptcy judge presiding over the Diocese of Gallup bankruptcy has set an August 11 deadline for victims of abuse in the diocese to come forward and file claims. The Diocese of Gallup filed for bankruptcy protection last year. Why? Well, there were some pretty embarrassing and ugly civil child sex abuse trials coming…Continue reading Gallup judge sets bar date for victims
Bankruptcy, that is. Diocesan bankruptcy is back in the news—this time, it’s the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. According to victims’ attorneys, yesterday’s four-hour deposition of St. Paul Archbishop John Nienstedt ended “abruptly and heatedly,” and Nienstedt refused to turn over some court-ordered documents and answer many questions about the cover-up of sex abuse in…Continue reading “It saves them a fortune”
Relax, Archbishop Gregory. You need to stop apologizing for that cherry $2.2 million house you just built in Atlanta. Sure, Georgia’s Catholics are rightfully angry. Of course it’s an ostentatious show of wealth that goes against the spirit and the words of the New Testament and the teachings of Jesus Christ. We understand: You had to…Continue reading Where would Jesus live?
A RetroReport/NYT short historical documentary on SNAP and the US victims’ rights movement. Even I got a lot of perspective:
From the editorial in today’s Honolulu Star-Advertiser: Children who are raped, sodomized and otherwise sexually abused must cope with the emotional and physical pain of these heinous acts for the rest of their lives. Just as there is no statute of limitations on the trauma they suffer, there should be no statute of limitations on…Continue reading Star Advertiser: Toughen laws against child-sex predators
The words from panicky parents ring far and wide: “I went to slumber parties all of the time and, you know, nothing bad ever happened. But things are so different now!” “I’ve never let my child spend a night away from me. But she’s nine now, and all of her friends have slumber parties. I…Continue reading My kid has been invited to a slumber party! What do I do?
Just when I thought things couldn’t get stranger, this happened: The leading hench(wo)man in the cover-up of sexual abuse in the Diocese of Orange may be a judicial nominee. When I first got word that California Governor Jerry Brown had thrown Maria Rullo Schinderle’s name in the hat of potential nominees for superior court judge,…Continue reading Why Maria Rullo Schinderle should never be a judge
From today’s Hawaii Star-Advertiser: Bills seek more time to file suit Expanding the current two-year window, which expires next month, is unfair to the accused entities, critics argue By Derrick DePledge POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Mar 23, 2014 “Did you know these men?” The question appeared in an ad in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser last Sunday…Continue reading Hawaii: Bills may give more victims chance for justice
A breaking story today has kept my phone ringing off the hook: A southern California third grader has been accused of sexually assaulting a classmate numerous times during the past year. School administrators only found out about it when other students at an after-school program reported what they saw. (Kudos to those kids!) Tragic? Yes.…Continue reading When children abuse: A preventable tragedy
Book Review: The Vatican Diaries: A Behind the Scenes Look at the Power, Personalities, and Politics at the Heart of the Catholic Church; by John Thavis. Penguin Books A year after the hardcover publication of The Vatican Diaries (a book whose hardcover release date coincided with the resignation of Pope Benedict XXIII XVI and the election…Continue reading Review: A Diary of Disconnect
Attorney Jeff Anderson and I discuss Hawaii’s civil window for victims and its upcoming April 24 deadline. Hawaii News Now – KGMB and KHNL
TODAY IN HONOLULU: Sex abuse lawsuits call for release of accused offenders Six more victims come forward under new law “Window for Victims” closes April 24 WHAT: At a news conference on Wednesday in Honolulu, sexual abuse survivors and their attorneys Mark Gallagher and Jeff Anderson will: · Discuss the novel use of nuisance…Continue reading Honolulu Diocese creates “Public Nuisance”, Victims say
Tune in to Hawaii’s KGMB (CBS) Tuesday at 7:20am (Hawaii Standard Time). I’ll be live on Hawaii News Now Sunrise, talking about Hawaii’s civil window for victims of abuse and abuse prevention. You can watch the livestream here. (FYI – Hawaii does not have Daylight Savings Time)
If someone had told me two years ago that a man like Pope Francis would be elected in 2013, I would have been skeptical. After almost 10 years of Benedict—a man with the public persona of a porcupine and pastoral nature of a curmudgeon on a bad day—who could believe that a new pope could…Continue reading A year of Pope Francis