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Vatican defrocks former local priest

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Dave O'Brien
July 21, 2010

Record courier STAFF REPORT
A Catholic priest who served as pastor of a Rootstown parish from 1999 to 2005 was defrocked this month by the Vatican following allegations that he sexually abused at least two students at a Catholic high school in Youngstown in the 1970s.
Thomas Crum, 61, has been removed from the priesthood, The (Youngstown) Vindicator reported Tuesday. Monsignor Robert Siffrin, vicar general of the Diocese of Youngstown, told the newspaper Crum was removed from the priesthood about two weeks ago.
Crum was assigned to St. Peter of the Fields Church in Rootstown from 1999 to 2005 and was an associate pastor of of Immaculate Conception Parish in Ravenna from 1985-88.
Church officials interviewed by the newspaper said Crum was removed from his ministry at Canton’s Our Lady of Peace Parish and placed on leave in June 2009 after a 30-plus year old allegation of abuse surfaced.
The abuse of a male student allegedly occurred while Crum was a teacher at Cardinal Mooney High School, a post he held from 1975-77.
During his 35-year ministry, Crum served numerous parishes in Northeastern Ohio, mostly in Mahoning and Trumbull counties.
In a statement on their website, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, urged anyone allegedly abused by Crum “or any clergy in the Youngstown diocese” to call police and report the incidents.




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 5 Total Comments
5.
    Posted by Mr. Destiny July 23, 2010
He needs to be defrocked alright!! Maybe de-cocked is more like it!!

4.
    Posted by Mr. Destiny July 21, 2010
So why hasnt this guy been charged with a crime yet?

3.
    Posted by SarahTX2 July 21, 2010
Hopefully instead of hearing from those who are shocked and surprised and don't believe he did it, we'll hear from others who know that he did it and maybe even know of someone else who was hurt by him too. Many thanks to those who took action and reported these events. We do have to wonder what happens to this man after being defrocked? He's just let loose on society? Awful.

2.
    Posted by JudyJones July 21, 2010
Statement by Judy Jones, SNAP Midwest Associate Director, 636-433-2511, snapjudy@gmail.com

SNAP worries: Where Crum is located? Is he is being watched? ...and if he is being kept away from children?

Often, when one victim of a predator discloses information, others sit back and feel like the obligation to report is somehow lessened. But it's important for everyone with information about clergy sex crimes to come forward.

We urge anyone who was injured by Crum or any clergy in the Youngstown diocese to call police officials, not church officials.

Child sex crimes, however old, should be investigated by the independent professionals in law enforcement, not the biased amateurs in church offices. There may still be a possibility that Crum's crimes could be prosecutable.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world's oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. It has been around for 22 years and has more than 9,000 members across the country. Despite the word "priest" in the title, SNAP has members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers.)

Contact: David Clohessy, 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com

http://www.snapnetwork.org/

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