Archdiocese of Washington and Abuse Cases TW: abuse

Submitted by DancesWithTreetops t3_126qiqi in washingtondc

About three years ago I reported the priest who abused me when I was in elementary school. I reported to the Archdiocese of Washingtons Office of child protection. I reported knowing that I am well outside of the statute of limitations for any type of civil remedy, and the person who abused me is dead so there won't be any criminal charges. My reasons for reporting were a symbolic transferring of the shame and guilt to the proper place and it has brought me a ton of relief. My only goal in reporting is to obtain an apology from the Pope. It may sound like a lofty goal, but after a conversation with a former Vatican ambassador, I was assured that my goal is within the realm of possibility.

When I reported, I was surprised to find out that the person at the office of child protection was someone I went to elementary school with, and knew the priest. I was actually relieved to talk to a familiar face, and she has been nothing but appropriately helpful and concerned. My rant has nothing to do with her. She referred me to an investigator at Davis Polk in DC. They were retained to conduct an investigation into the behavior of the priest who abused me. It turns out, he was already being investigated when I reported, and there are others.

Monsignor James F Montgomery is the name of the priest who abused me. He abused me at Annunciation School on Mass and Klingle in NW DC. He had absolute free reign to roam the halls unchallenged, and would stand in my classroom doorway staring at me until a teacher would allow him to take me out of class.

He was something of a Catholic superstar in the Archdiocese of Washington. He was also the Director of Catholic Charities and a fundraising powerhouse. I am a trained investigator for my former job, and I did some cursory digging into Montgomerys assignments and that turned out to be a hell of a rabbit hole.

Montgomery attended Mt. St Marys Seminary in Emmitsburg. The Baltimore Diocese is about to release their report, and that place is mentioned A LOT. That seminary turned out a TON of predators and comes up as something in common in the background of several predators in the Baltimore Diocese report. Years of accusations went ignored, and a lot of children were victimized as a result.

When I reported I was assured that the old ways of gaslighting, victim blaming, minimizing, and denials were a thing of the past, and that the church is dedicated to examining its sins of the past in a transparent way. What I have found in practice is entirely different, and today I am just fuming about it. The person who currently holds the report is Bishop Juan Esposito. He is the Moderator of the Curia for the Archdiocese of Washington and a graduate of Mt. St Marys Seminary. He was also the spiritual director there and a professor of Canon Law. A guy in charge with close ties to an institution that has turned out a ton of predators is not making me feel warm and fuzzy for sure.

This morning I tried to get some info from the Esposito's office and was told that they don't have the investigation report. A direct contradiction to what I was told a couple of months ago. When asked for clarification I was referred to their lawyer. So much for transparency. My last two emails to the lawyer have gone ignored, and no further answers from the Diocese. In DC, the folks in charge of releasing or not releasing the information contained in their reports are also people with close ties to institutions and people being investigated. Which brings me to the focus of my anger. In a normal investigation ethical people with ties to the investigated recuse themselves. That hasn't happened here and I think I know the reason. The diocese can't find anyone without ties. Abuse and coverup was SO prevalent that even today, they can't find anyone who can be truly impartial to do anything about it.

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narmcharmsky t1_jeadqwa wrote

Thank your for your bravery. I cannot imagine experiencing all that and getting this immense slap in the face.

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deaths_head_hawkmoth t1_jeagu76 wrote

Sorry this has happened to you. I live in a different diocese, but there is a phone number on this page https://www.usccb.org/offices/child-and-youth-protection/victim-assistance for the person supposedly in charge of handling abuse reports. If I were you I would be spamming her phone number (not email because that is more easily ignored) until some progress was made.

I can totally understand if you do not want to do this, but you might get further also by contacting the current priest of the parish, according to the website his email is mellone@annunciationdc.org. Priests usually have a direct line of contact with their bishop so there is a decent chance that he would be able to escalate it to Archbishop Gregory. What you are asking for is not a big ask, you just have to get through the layers of bureaucracy.

Best of luck.

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Wonderful-Cup-9556 t1_jeahbh2 wrote

There is only support for you as you continue your journey through the pain of abuse in the Catholic community from folks who get it. It’s like nothing changes but the rhetoric.

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DancesWithTreetops OP t1_jeai69b wrote

Replying to deaths_head_hawkmoth (#2,490,050)

Thanks for the response and info. The person at the office of child protection did her job well and is someone I actually trust a bit. She has nothing to do with the investigation. The office where the report is currently located is the Moderator of the Curia and I dont trust anyone in that office. The head honcho is a graduate of the same place that turned out the predator who abused me, and a shitload of other predators. I’m a where there’s smoke, then there must be a fire kind of person. Mt. St Marys Seminary in Emmitsburg Maryland is thick with smoke. So I am not expecting anything positive from the Moderator of The Curia office.

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Penelope742 t1_jeajptk wrote

Omg. My daughter went to Annunciation when he was there.

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NaughtyGoddess t1_jeanvz6 wrote

Maryland holds a lot of blood. And I'm not sure why people are still in a religion that has a bad reputation of child predators. I mean almost all religion based institutions have this dangerous problem. It's disgusting. This is why I don't mess with religion. And I think it's rather dangerous. People use it to abuse others everyday...

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DancesWithTreetops OP t1_jeap22j wrote

Replying to NaughtyGoddess (#2,491,847)

The folks in the Baltimore Diocese should all be held personally responsible for the atrocities in Maryland. Catonsville Maryland specifically. A church in Catonsville had 11 predator priest transferred in and out of its parish in a decade.

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Malnurtured_Snay t1_jeaxvdk wrote

> She referred me to an investigator at Davis Polk in DC.

I truly wonder what the benefit of conducting such an investigation through a legal office is rather than via law enforcement, besides of the obvious benefit of making it easier to cover up the results.

Very sorry you went through this OP.

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DancesWithTreetops OP t1_jeayoef wrote

Replying to Malnurtured_Snay (#2,494,215)

Using outside counsel to conduct an investigation makes a ton of sense. I have no issue with that at all. Additionally, I have no problem with the people who conducted the investigation. The person who headed up the investigation is VERY good at his job, ethical as hell, and a verifiable truth teller. But, there is no denying that the results are much easier to cover up when the investigators firm is being paid by the employer of the investigated. They can do whatever they want with the results of that investigation. Which sucks.

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MarkinDC24 t1_jeb54b5 wrote

Organize. Mobilize. Build coalitions. Organize. Mobilize. Build coalitions. Organize. Mobilize. Build coalitions.

How can community members help here? Each of us have tools we can leverage and collectively we can make a sizable impact. For those of us who have studied state development, the power of religious institutions is large. For example, in Italy the coercive power of religion can be seen in the menacingly large religious painting of God at the Uffizi Gallery. Before we had kings/queens/presidents, we had religious figures, who people were taught to fear!

Technology has helped level the playing field. Happy to connect with you more to be of service - and I am sure there are plenty of other folks on this thread who share the same sentiment.

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DancesWithTreetops OP t1_jeb7lve wrote

Replying to MarkinDC24 (#2,496,018)

Mark I thoroughly appreciate your response. Truth told just writing down what I wrote, and sending it out to the DC subreddit is the help I was seeking. One day I’m going to send something out and a survivor of Montgomerys predation is going to see it and reach out. Knowing that there are others out there, and not being able to share our experiences is difficult for me. It would be really validating to talk to someone that has stood in the guys presence and knows what I know about him. Because his name is still remembered with a ton of undeserved admiration. And that just doesn’t sit well with me.

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Malnurtured_Snay t1_jeba9q1 wrote

Replying to DancesWithTreetops (#2,494,411)

It must be very frustrating to know that competent investigators worked on this, and not be able to access their report. I'm sure the investigators are also frustrated because it might be difficult to work on something like this, speak to the victims, identify wrong-doers, possibly identify ways to make sure this doesn't happen again, and see everything swept under a rug.

Years ago I worked for an Episcopal church and as an employee had to attend a program called "Safeguarding God's Children" ... and it was essentially about behaviors we, as staff, needed to be on the look out from children, employees, or volunteers which might lead us to believe something inappropriate was happening. Now, this was 9 years ago? But I'm pretty sure the instructions we had that we were mandatory reporters and that we had an obligation to go directly to the police.

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LisaSaurusRex83 t1_jebb0et wrote

Thank you for sharing your story. I’m sorry that it’s one you even have to share!

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MarkinDC24 t1_jebbdsw wrote

Replying to DancesWithTreetops (#2,496,580)

Do not mention it. I would imagine you writing it down, is a form of journaling, which research has shown supports positive PERA (a framework for mental health). In terms of next steps, please know that whatever you decide to do is perfect, and I am not asking for anything specifically. Broadly, I just wanted to know if there was anything that I could do - now - to support.

I have been through my own trauma. Through a supportive network, I confronted my (Physical) abuser, and told the person how their actions have had a negative impact on my life. If people can not confront their abusers, I have been told it can help to visit the sites where trauma occured, or for some talking about the trauma is enough. Whatever one chooses to do, in my case (talking to the abuser), helped me process my trauma - and learn why the other person inflicted the physical trauma on me in the first place. Thus, I hope that I helped break a cycle – the trauma often starts somewhere with someone and spreads like a virus until it is diagnosed/treated.

These fights can be physical and mentally draining. So, just know, you have people waiting on the side lines to support. When one voice gets hoarse, other voices steps in to keep the noise up. If one person needs to rest, another person wakes up to stand guard. A community of survivors who organize. Moblize. Build coalitions.

In solidary.

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DancesWithTreetops OP t1_jebbfa9 wrote

Replying to Malnurtured_Snay (#2,497,197)

They are bound by attorney client privelege. I am sure outside counsel wants to see justice done or whatever a resolution looks like for those affected. I dont really have a gripe with them. I spent twenty years doing protection work for the 1 percent. Keeping my mouth shut came with the job. I understand their position.

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DancesWithTreetops OP t1_jebhboe wrote

Replying to MarkinDC24 (#2,497,488)

You’re a class act my friend. Most appreciated. I am an active participant in therapy. I have a great support system and have a nice quiet life. Every couple of months I like to remind the diocese that I’m here and not going away. Not too loud, and not too quiet. Even if they never reply, I’m getting what I need. Sharing my experience on reddit has been a positive experience for me as well. Interactions like this reaffirm my hardwon notion that the world is generally a cool place no matter how cynical I can get. There was a very long time where that notion was not my go to. I also just like the fact that a lot of people in DC see this sub.

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gator_fl t1_jebktvm wrote

Sorry that happened to you and I hope you keep up the good fight.

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39ssurtak t1_jecjfs4 wrote

What’s at the end of the investigation? Is there an outcome you want that you can articulate? It is reasonable or achievable? These are important decisions to make and clearly identify when it involves trauma.

One thing that helped me move on from sexual trauma was truly, unyieldingly accepting that there is no justice actually coming. It was a fairy tale told to children. I have a strong moral compass, so it took years to accept that my efforts (legal, with law enforcement, social advocacy, etc) we’re just keeping me mired in the traumas. I thought I could fix something or protect others or that balance was owed, might be the most succinct ways to put it.

It’s noble to pursue this and you may not yet be at the end of the road, but it’s sometimes necessary to accept that there will be no results, at all. It happened and now nothing will happen. The universe shrugs.

From personal experience there can be a lot of pain in continuing to believe in the potential for justice - it’s like a slap in the face over and over and you don’t deserve that. I can’t even imagine how hard this has been for you, especially fighting the machine that is the Church.

Anyways, sometimes it’s just time to take your life back for yourself and only yourself. When you’re ready. Until then, fight your fight and kick ass. You’ve moved a million boulders uphill already.

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Praxiscat t1_jee4y89 wrote

Hard up voting because this is a reminder the Catholic church is an institution that has systematic child sexual abuse and they have consistently fought any and all accountability for it. Listen to the victims.

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