DETROIT — The Archdiocese of Detroit responded strongly Jan. 30 to allegations by a survivors group for abuse victims that that it was being “silent” and “secretive” regarding clergy sexual abuse.
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The charges centered on Br. Stephen Baker, TOR, a friar who was found dead Jan. 26 of an apparent suicide at a Pennsylvania monastery. Br. Baker was accused of abusing dozens of boys while serving in Ohio and Pennsylvania since the mid-1980s. Prior to that, Br. Baker attended class and worked at St. Mary’s Prep in Orchard Lake from 1982 until 1985. News reporters earlier this week aired anonymous claims that Br. Baker had victims at St. Mary’s Prep, too.
Prior to those claims, on Jan. 30, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) publicized a statement to the archdiocese, claiming it was a “good possibility” that Br. Baker abused minors in Orchard Lake, and subsequently accused the archdiocese of hiding accusations that he did so.
In response to the letter from SNAP, a statement from the archdiocesan Communications Office said the group was making “a series of unfair and untrue statements regarding the Archdiocese of Detroit.”
As of press time, the Archdiocese of Detroit said it and Orchard Lake Schools had received no allegations or complaints against Br. Baker related to his time in the area. The Jan. 30 statement also said the archdiocese had not been made aware of allegations against him stemming from his time in subsequent locations, and had not even received notice of his death until news reports surfaced.
“SNAP’s criticism of the archdiocese makes absolutely no sense,” Communications Director Ned McGrath said in the statement. “How and why would the archdiocese be criticized as negligent for not disclosing information it did not have?”
The statement said further that SNAP’s allegations toward the archdiocese regarding Br. Baker, as well as similar allegations regarding three priests with Detroit-area ties, were part of a pattern of public statements that were “a common modus operandi” of the group and were “not supported by the facts.”
“Reviews of past so-called revelations by SNAP have proven them to be misguided and misinformed, be it by design or default,” McGrath said.
Regarding the possibility that Br. Baker did have any victims in the area, the statement pointed to the archdiocese’s confidential hotline for abuse victims, (866) 343-8055.
“The Detroit Archdiocese takes all matters involving sexual abuse with the utmost seriousness, and we share any claims with civil authorities,” the statement said.
