Investigators spoke to all survivors of abuse or their family members who contacted his office to “listen to their story and get their account of abuse,” Schmitt said. His office received more than 100 phone calls from survivors of abuse or witnesses and interviewed 45 people who were willing to share their accounts.

The report — the first examination of Missouri church records by an organization outside of the Roman Catholic Church — was not reviewed by anyone outside his office before its release, Schmitt said.

“We took this in a very deliberate and serious way,” Schmitt said. “We were dealing with this from our office at the highest level. It deserves that kind of attention, and we think the report is substantive.”

Still, Schmitt said, he understood Clohessy’s frustration.

“There is a lot of great work done by victims’ advocates all across the country, and I don’t judge how victims respond,” he said. “Victims have a right to be angry at how this has been covered up.”