A survivor of alleged sexual abuse when he was a child is suing the New Mexico Attorney General s Office for allegedly withholding public records related to credibly accused Catholic priests within the Diocese of Las Cruces.
“For decades the national Catholic Church used New Mexico as a destination to hide pedophile priests, taking advantage of the unique cultural makeup of our communities, including their devoutness, attorney Paul Linnenburger said in a news release. The perpetrators and those that sheltered them relied on a vast network of secrecy for too long, and survivors have suffered the consequences. New Mexico was unwillingly made the front line in the sex abuse crisis by the Catholic Church and thus far our civic leaders have thus far failed to provide the support countless survivors here need. It is long since past time for transparency and accountability, and it is sad that a lawsuit was necessary to get it.”
Servants of the Paraclete had two New Mexico locations at the time, one in Albuquerque and one in Jemez Springs.
Holley was sent to the Albuquerque Servants of the Paraclete location to get help for pedophilic tendencies following allegations in Holley s home diocese in Worcester, Mass., records show.
Holley was at the Albuquerque location for about a year, according to a 1993 affidavit submitted by Holley to the Second Judicial Court in 1993.
According to the affidavit, Holley wanted to go to a Servants of the Paraclete facility on the East Coast. Bishop (Bernard) Flanagan told me he wanted me to go to Servants of the Paraclete in New Mexico, the affidavit states. On March 23, 1971, I wrote to the Bishop telling him I would prefer to stay at a Paraclete house in the East, like their Vermont facility, but that I would do as he wished when he made the arrangements.It was clear to me that Bishop Flanagan was fearful that if I stayed in Massachusetts I would repeat the