Thread by @hlgriffin

.@SNAPNetwork , we see mostly Roman Catholic abuse cases in the trophy case on Lathrop Group's investigations page.

Do y'all have any thoughts for the @IHOPKC people who are being asked to trust @EricVolz that this is a trauma-informed investigation?

lathropgpm.com/services-pract…

The reason I'm asking, @IHOPKC folk, is that, in addition to boasting about how great Lathrop's investigations are for protecting religious institutions, the trophies in the case are mostly Roman Catholic abuse cases, which means @SNAPNetwork would have likely been involved.

@ihopkc @SNAPNetwork .@SNAPNetwork has been supporting survivors of institutional sexual abuse since 1988 & knows a thing or two about what it looks like when ministries mishandle abuse allegations & what helpful responses would look like.

snapnetwork.org/about

@ihopkc @SNAPNetwork My assumption is not that Lathrop Group is all evil, all the time with their investigations, but also that if they list cases like this as selling points for prospective clients on their Investigations page, they are pretty okay with doing what, in my opinion, is evil stuff.

@ihopkc @SNAPNetwork Let's take a look at this, case, shall we?

The survivor has spoken to the press.

Her abuser, who groomed her at a Catholic school in Sacramento, was convicted went to jail.

sacbee.com/news/local/edu…

@ihopkc @SNAPNetwork What techniques did Lathrop Group, the firm that @IHOPKC is asking survivors of #MikeBickle to trust with the abuse investigation, use to "obtained a complete dismissal" of a civil case filed by the victim on behalf of their client, @saccatholic ?

lathropgpm.com/services-pract…

Lathrop Group, representing @saccatholic , intimidated the sexual assault survivor by trying to make her pay $7,300 in legal fees when she had to dismiss her civil case for technical reasons with the intention of refiling.

jgjrlaw.com/blog/2019/apri…

@saccatholic Here is what the O.G. Armchair Investigators, @SNAPNetwork (hats off in respect, baby @ihopkc Armchair Investigators ) had to say about Lathrop, the called "Lathrop & Gage."

.@SNAPNetwork said that Lathrop "has long used 'scorched-earth' tactics against victims."

Which sounds like the firm is okay with evil as an ethos, in my humble Armchair Investigator opinion.

@SNAPNetwork The local counsel for @saccatholic did the usual "There there, now" Reasonable Man demurrals, which @EricVolz could learn from if he wanted to make his smarmy sound more intelligent, but @SNAPNetwork pointed out bullying tactics that the slick rhetoric was trying to cover.

@SNAPNetwork @saccatholic @EricVolz The attorney for the victim, who was, along with another 15 year old girl, groomed & sexually assaulted by her softball coach at a school in @saccatholic before he was convicted, pointed out that the Lathrop strategy was kinda evil, actually

@ihopkc, is Lathrop still your firm?

@SNAPNetwork @saccatholic @EricVolz @ihopkc Anyway, that's gross, isn't it? But you might say, "Silly Heather, that's a case in which Lathrop was representing @Saccatholic in civil litigation," & I would say

"Sure, but evil is an acceptable ethos here for the firm, & this is on the trophy case on the INVESTIGATION page."

Which could mean that Lathrop was also doing an investigation in addition to representing @Saccatholic in civil litigation, or it could just mean the nasty tactic by Lathrop's finest was possibly part of a buffet of scorched-earth victim intimidation tactics that are Lathrop OK'd

@saccatholic Anyway, @IHOPKC, I can see why you were hesitant to name the firm that was conducting the investigation, because Armchair Investigators do know how to Google.

This is a skill I highly recommend, btw.

Try Googling "How to investigate church abuse."

This could help so much!

@saccatholic @ihopkc I am wondering, @IHOPKC, if this could be why @bozlawpa said this in his statement:
bozlawpa.com/news/statement…

@saccatholic @ihopkc @bozlawpa Quoth @bozlawpa : ""Why would reported victims of sexual abuse and misconduct sit down with an attorney from a firm that represents churches in sexual abuse matters and then boasts about its successes?..."

@saccatholic @ihopkc @bozlawpa Continueth @Bozlaw "I have no doubt that this law firm well-represents organizational defendants in sexual abuse litigation. However, it cannot be all things to all people."

@saccatholic @ihopkc @bozlawpa @BozLaw Thusly @bozlawpa: "It cannot represent and defend institutional clients in such cases and then turn around and invite reported sexual abuse victims to meet with its attorneys and to trust them. It simply doesn’t work that way."

@saccatholic @ihopkc @bozlawpa @BozLaw And, you know, he kind of has a point, doesn't he @ihopkc ?

Gosh, we only covered one case in Lathrop Group's Trophy Case on their Investigations page.

There are so many more for Armchair Investigators to explore.

Let's all show IHOPKC what you can do with basic Google skills

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Good job, @ihopkc on being as awful (while less competent) as Roman Catholics on church abuse response.

Meanwhile, you simultaneously managed to get owned by the SBC who released their full Letter of Engagement in a way that was, in fact, precedented.

@ihopkc @threadreaderapp unroll