The Worthy Adversary

Author: Joelle Casteix

  • CORRECTION – Former LA Priest Arrested for Abuse, victims respond

     

    The story this post was based on is incorrect. I am sorry for any confusion this post caused and pain that any victims may have suffered as a result.

    I accept full responsibility.

     

     

    This morning, former LA priest Carlos Rene Rodriguez was arrested on charges of lewd acts on a child under 14. This is Rodriguez’ second arrest. He was convicted of child sex abuse in 2004. What’s worse is that LA church officials have known Rodriguez is a predator since 1987, and have fought since 2007 to keep his personnel files secret. The files are finally scheduled to be released later this month.

     

     

     

    Former Los Angeles priest arrested for abuse, victims respond

    Statement by Joelle Casteix, SNAP Western Regional Director

     

    Our hearts ache for the child who came forward to say that he or she was hurt by former LA priest Carlos Rene Rodriguez. Our hearts ache even more because if church officials done the right tEhing more than 25 years ago, this child and others may never have been harmed.

     

     

    Rodriguez was convicted for child sex crimes in 2004. Yet Cardinal Mahony and church officials knew the man was a predator as early as 1987 … and did little to protect children. They, and new Archbishop Gomez, have made it perfectly clear that they care more about convicted predators than children and that is unacceptable.

    Southern California families would know about Rodriguez, his crimes, his workplaces, and his whereabouts if Los Angeles Catholic officials hadn’t spent hundreds of thousands of parishioners’ donations and more than five years successfully fighting to keep predator priests’ personnel files under wraps.

    Although Rodriguez’ file is expected to be released later this month, it it too little, too late.

    We hope that anyone with knowledge of Rodriguez’ crimes and the cover-up of those crimes comes forward and reports to law enforcement.

     

     

    (SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. SNAP was founded in 1988 and has more than 12,000 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 and increasingly, victims who were assaulted in a wide range of institutional settings like summer camps, athletic programs, Boy Scouts, etc. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)

    The incorrect story

    Former L.A Priest Arrested on Allegations of Sexual Abuse

    Los Angeles: This morning, at approximately 6:00 a.m., Los Angeles Police Detectives arrested 46 year-old Carlos Rene Rodriguez, a former priest within the jurisdiction of the Los Angeles Archdiocese, at his residence in the City of Commerce. Rodriguez was arrested on a warrant, and will be booked for a violation of Section 288(a) of the Penal Code – Lewd Acts with a Child Under 14 Years Old.

     

  • A History Primer … 2000 Years of Clergy Sex Abuse and Cover-up in Three Minutes

  • A Worthy Book for a Worthy Cause – MILLSTONE

    Tomorrow (Cyber Monday), Jim Dunlap is launching his long-awaited murder mystery/thriller MILLSTONE. He’s also donating 10% of proceeds from the book to nonprofits that support victims of child sex abuse and cover-up in the Catholic Church. Pretty worthy, don’t you think?

    From the Amazon page:

    Detective Danni Pierce only wants one thing: justice for the victims of sexual crimes. But she never dreamed that one case–a case involving a Catholic Priest–would lead her down a twisted path of betrayal, cover-up, and murder. When confronted with a danger greater than anything she has ever faced, will her resolve be enough to save her life?

    Based on true events, Millstone is the tale of one woman’s pursuit of justice, and the only way she will survive is by relying on her dogged perseverance and her faith in those she loves.

    Jim is a good friend and a good writer. The book, which adapted from his screenplay of the same name, is loosely based on events surrounding his son. It’s definitely worth your time and your $4.99 (for the Kindle version – or $14.99 for the paperback).

    You can buy the book at this link Monday, November 26. If you like the book’s Facebook page, you can also participate in their Abuse Awareness Event tomorrow, too.

    Not only will you support Jim and organizations that help victims of sex abuse, but you can help a book by a small publisher get the recognition and sales it deserves.

     

    And yes … I am getting on to finishing The Worthy Adversary …

  • New Abuse Lawsuit Against Damien, Honolulu Diocese

    The latest lawsuit exposing a long string of sex abuse and cover-up scandals at Damien Memorial School in Honolulu

    Two Honolulu men file new clergy sex abuse suit

    They accuse a former Damien Catholic teacher

    He has allegedly molested at least 12 kids in five states

    A former Damien principal has also been named as predator

    New state law lets victims expose abusers & protect kids

    Brother Robert Brouillette

     

    What:

    Holding signs and photos of themselves when they were abused, abuse victims and their supporters will disclose a new child sex abuse and cover-up lawsuit against the Honolulu Catholic diocese and a convicted predator cleric. The suit charges that a Catholic brother:

    — Sexually abused two Damien Memorial School students,

    — Was transferred from school to school because of abuse allegations,

    — Was removed from Damien for abuse allegations, but parents and students were never informed.

    They will also:

    — Discuss a recent child sex abuse accusation against a former Damien principal,

    — Urge victims and witnesses to report to abuse to law enforcement, not church officials, and

    — Show how a landmark new Hawaii law is helping to warn parents about predators.

    Where:

    Outside of Damien Memorial School, 1401 Houghtailing Street (at School Street) in Honolulu

    When:

    Thursday, November 8 at 11:00 am

    Who:

    Two to three victims of child sex abuse and their supporters who are members of a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPNetwork.org), including a California woman who is the group’s Western Regional Director and a former priest who is now one of the nation’s leading experts on the Catholic clergy sex abuse crisis.

    Why:

    This week, two former Damien Memorial students filed a new child sex abuse and cover-up lawsuit against the Honolulu Catholic Diocese and Br. Robert Brouillette, an Irish Christian Brother and former teacher at the school.

    Both men, who are still Oahu residents, charge that Brouillette sexually abused them while both were young students at the school. One victim was abused in 1984 and the other was abused in 1986. They were able to come forward and expose Brouillette because of a landmark new Hawaii law that allows victims of child sexual abuse to come forward and seek justice in the courts, no matter when the abuse occurred. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/07/opinion/more-time-for-justice.html?_r=0.

    Separate from the lawsuit, the Irish Christian Brothers, a New York-based Catholic religious order that runs Damien, declared bankruptcy in 2011 to avoid costly and public child sex abuse civil trials. http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/16904070/group-says-child-predators-worked-at-catholic-school. Both victims also filed claims against Brouillette in the bankruptcy. According to attorneys, sixteen victims from Damien have come forward as a result.

    Brouillette has been accused of sexual abuse by at least a dozen victims in IL, CA, HI, AZ and MO. In 2000, he was convicted of possession of child pornography after being arrested in an internet child molestation sting. His last known address was in Missouri. http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news/1999_12_04_Presecky_CatholicBrother.htm

    This is just the latest in a string of scandals at Damien Memorial School. Last week, a former Damien principal was forced to step down from his job in Seattle due to allegations of abuse. Br. Karl Walczak, Damien principal from 1987-1999, was accused of abuse while he was a teacher at an Irish Christian Brother school in Chicago. The alleged victim filed a claim in July, but Irish Christian Brother and Archdiocese officials did not disclose the allegations until Halloween. SNAP and parents were outraged at the delay in disclosure.
    http://www.komonews.com/news/local/ODea-High-School-principal-resigns-amid-sex-abuse-allegations-176692501.html?tab=video&c=y. A lawsuit against former Damien chaplain Fr. Gerald Funcheon was filed in May. http://www.mauinews.com/page/content.detail/id/561462/Lawsuit-claims-abuse-by-former-Honolulu-priest.html?nav=5031.

    SNAP is urging all victims at the school to come forward and get help while they have civil rights under Hawaii’s new window legislation. The two-year law, sponsored by Senator Maile Shimabukuro, expires in 2014.

    The victims are represented by Attorneys Mike Reck and Mark Gallagher. Copies of the lawsuit will be available at the event.

     

  • **Updated** Seattle high school principal removed for abuse – Parents not informed

    UPDATE –

    Seattle Archdiocese officials have admitted that Br. Karl Walczak was removed for sex abuse allegations.

    Walczak has been principal of O’Dea High School since 2011. Before that, he was at Brother Rice High School in Chicago.  He was principal of Damien Memorial School in Honolulu from 1987 to 1999.

    ********

    There are reports of out Seattle that O’Dea High School principal Br. Karl Walczak was accused of child sexual abuse in court documents and removed from his job in August.

    And three months later, parents still have not been told the truth.

    According to a letter which has since been taken down from the O’Dea website (it used to be posted here. You can now view it here.), Walczak “took a leave” of absence in August, “to assist in resolving a proof of claim filed in the Christian Brother’s Institute bankruptcy proceedings.”

    The letter continues, “Thank you for your ongoing support of Brother Walczak and the entire O’Dea community.”

    The only proof of claims filed against individuals in the Irish Christian Brother Bankruptcy were claims of child sexual abuse. There was no mention of any allegations to parents, students or the greater community.

    BehindThePineCurtain also is reporting the abuse in a letter to Seattle Bishop J. Peter Sartain.

    It is now almost November, and church and school officials have remained silent. Where are the promises of transparency? Why aren’t they reaching out to other potential victims? Why aren’t they doing ANYTHING?

    If I were an O’Dea parent, I would demand answers, a tuition refund and a transfer for my child to a school where officials DO NOT clam up when the principal is sued for sex abuse.

    Walczak also worked at Damien Memorial School in Honolulu and Brother Rice High School in Chicago.

    More coming …