He also priest misled police by not giving his last name, SNAP says

Sex abuse victims offer ‘moratorium’ on leafleting south city parish

Self-help group asks to speak or mail directly to church members

In odd move, parishioners signed petitions urging SNAP to protest archbishop

Last year, two sexually troubled priests were quietly sent to parish with school

WHAT
Handing out fliers door to door about three accused troubled priests, SNAP members will make an unusual offer to parish leaders: They will stop handing out leaflets outside Mass about them If church staff let SNAP meet with or mail information to parishioners about the accused clerics.

The clergy sex abuse victims also want

• law enforcement officials to investigate why cleric gave a misleading name to police,
• Archbishop Raymond Burke to a) explain why he sent two priests with troubled sexual pasts to their church in just one year and b) disclose whether he assigned other controversial clerics there too.
• Hill residents to ask friends, neighbors and fellow parishioners if any of them were hurt by the two priests.

WHEN
TODAY, Wednesday, March 14, 1:30 p.m.

WHERE
Outside St. Ambrose Catholic Church (5130 Wilson), corner of Wilson and Marconi (on the Hill) in south St. Louis

WHO
A few members of a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org) including the woman who was accosted by St. Ambrose’s current assistant pastor

VISUALS
The group will provide copies of the parishioners petitions and a photo of one of the accused priests.

WHY
Next week, Fr. Andrew Pinsent will face ‘’disturbing the peace” charges in St. Louis city for grabbing and yelling at a clergy sex abuse victim in January and taking her leaflets. However, SNAP has recently been made aware that he gave police only his first and middle name, not his last name.

SNAP members handed out fliers outside St. Ambrose about two sexually troubled out-of-state priests were sent to St. Louis for ‘treatment’ but quietly worked at this parish during the last year. Despite credible allegations against the clerics, parishioners were not warned about them.

Some parishioners signed petitions urging SNAP to avoid leafleting in the future. In response, SNAP is asking that they be allowed to meet with church members and/or send a mailing to them, instead of leafleting. For now, SNAP will voluntarily refrain from leafleting while the pastor and his parish council consider SNAP’s compromise. They will hand out fliers today, however, door to door in the neighborhood.

In December 2006, Father Darell Mitchell worked at St. Ambrose, even though a) photos of nude boys had been found on his computer and b) he had been accused of giving beer and gifts to a boy, holding boys-only dinners, taking a boy to Europe and letting a boy live at the rectory with him for weeks. (See Post-Dispatch, Yakima Herald Republic, KMOX.com)

In December 2005, Fr. Nicholas Voelker worked at St. Ambrose, even though a) he was accused of assaulting an adult parishioners, b) she had gotten an a court order of protection from him, and c) the his home diocese had given her a substantial settlement. (See Wichita Eagle, KMOX.com)

Voelker has returned to the Wichita diocese. Mitchell resigned in January and has reportedly left the area.
CONTACT:
David Clohessy 566 9790,
Barb Dorris 862 7688