Victim Advocate Calls for 'Straight Answers' on Slade Sex Abuse Claims

A national group of victim advocates is calling for increased transparency from local Catholic church officials, as police investigate claims that staff at Monsignor Slade Catholic School sexually abused a former student.

Barbara Dorris, victims outreach director for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), released a statement Thursday saying local church officials have left families "in the dark" so far.

Here is the statement Dorris wrote on the SNAP website:

Our hearts ache for parents at this school who must be upset about the child sex allegations and the vague way school officials are dealing with them. Parents and the public need and deserve straight answers about possible child sex crimes. It’s disturbing to see Catholic officials leaving families in the dark about such serious matters.

We hope that every person who may have seen or suspected or suffered any misdeeds by this teacher will call police immediately. We also hope that Baltimore’s Catholic archbishop will use his vast resources to aggressively seek out any victims, witnesses and whistleblowers who may have information or suspicions about this teacher, so he might be effectively prosecuted and kept away from kids.

The Anne Arundel County Police Department has not responded to requests from Patch for more information on the criminal investigation.

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