Ed Gavagan
What is the most important thing you want other survivors to know?
You are not to blame. The shame belongs elsewhere, not on you. You are not alone. Please believe; this experience does not define you.
Based on your experience, what is or are the greatest obstacles that survivors face in achieving justice from their abusers and their abusers' enablers?
Statute of Limitations. Gutless prosecutors. Abusers insulated by power, position, connections and a population that cannot believe someone who does good things is also capable of evil. Sometimes the good is only to enable the evil.
Follow Along with Ed's Case Against His Abuser
Police Reopen Investigation of Former Bishop
Retired US Bishop Likely to Face Vatican Trial for Multiple Acts of Abuse
Cheyenne Police Recommend Criminal Charges Against Retired Wyoming Bishop
Case of Bishop Hart Shows Role Clericalism Plays in Abuse Cover-Up
Police's Sex Abuse Investigation into Retired Cheyenne Bishop Finishes
Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne Said the Case Regarding Bishop Hart Reached Its End
Strife Between Police, Prosecutors Sink Sex Abuse Investigation into Retired Cheyenne Bishop
Panel Report: Laramie County DA Not Competent, Should Be Disbarred
Vatican Punts on Bishop Joseph Hart Instead of Taking Action, SNAP Renews Call for Secular Action
Abuse Survivors Group Denounces Vatican Action on Former Wyoming Bishop
State Legal Panel Says Laramie County DA Should Pay $91,000 for Hearing Expenses
Ed's Storytelling
Ed has used storytelling as a means of processing the events of his life. He began telling true stories from his life in 2009 at an open mic night with The Moth in a Greenwich Village pub. His Moth stories have been featured in the Moth's NY Times best-selling books, their podcast with tens of millions of downloads as well as the Peabody Award-winning Moth Radio Hour which is heard weekly on over 470 radio stations worldwide. Ed was invited to deliver a TED talk in 2012 which has since been viewed over 1 million times. Ed loves to tell stories and is even happier when people listen.
Letter from the Pope
In 2020, with the help of Archbishop Charles Scicluna, Ed was able to get a letter to Pope Francis in which he shared the story of his abuse. Below is Francis' response.
