BALTIMORE — The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, or "SNAP," is calling for the Attorney General's Office to speed up its investigations of archdioceses across the state.
Survivors gathered out front of the state attorney's office in downtown Baltimore to first thank the OAG. Its scathing report of the Archdiocese of Baltimore was released a year and a half ago, validating hundreds of people.
"Even if they've never told anybody, they've been tellin' themselves for 20, 30, 40 years, did this really happen? Did this really happen? And the sense of validation you get to see that name in print, saying, 'Yes, he was what I thought he was," said the director of SNAP Maryland, David Lorenz. "You can't describe it. It is indescribable, and it will release a lot of people from the agony they have."
SNAP also called on the OAG to speed up its current investigations into the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., and Wilmington, both of which represented Maryland, to give every survivor in the state closure.
The initial report helped pass the Child Victims Act, which removed the time limit someone has to report abuse.
The Archdiocese of Washington, the Harford County Board of Education, and the Key School are currently fighting the act, saying it's unconstitutional. On September 10th, Maryland's Supreme Court will make its final decision.
