LOUISVILLE, Kentucky, Jan. 11, 2007
Church Sex Abuse Victims Can Sue Vatican
U.S. Judge Allows Sex Abuse Lawsuit Against Vatican To Go Forward
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(AP / CBS)
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The ruling by U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn II allows three men to pursue negligence claims against the Vatican over allegations of sexual abuse by priests in the Archdiocese of Louisville.
The case is the first sexual abuse lawsuit to name the Vatican as sole defendant.
The men alleged that the Vatican knew or suspected some of its priests or bishops were child molesters, but failed to warn the public or local authorities about them because of a policy prohibiting it.
The lawsuit claims the Vatican was negligent for failing to notify law enforcement officials or the public.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages.
Heyburn had previously dismissed parts of the lawsuit that sought damages for sex abuse allegations outside the United States.
William McMurry, the Louisville-based attorney for the three men, said the ruling opens the way to take depositions of Vatican officials and to get copies of church records and documents.
"It's historic," McMurry said. "Our whole purpose is to hold the Vatican accountable."
McMurry is seeking to have the suit certified as a class-action case, alleging that "several thousand" victims exist across the United States. McMurry represented 243 sex abuse victims that settled with the Archdiocese of Louisville in 2003 for $25.3 million.
One of the three plaintiffs suing the Vatican is Michael Turner of Louisville, who also filed the first lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Louisville. Turner alleged he was molested by the Rev. Louis E. Miller in the 1970s while attending St. Aloysius Church in Pewee Valley.
Miller was removed from the priesthood last year by the late Pope John Paul II after pleading guilty in 2003 to sexually abusing children in Jefferson and Oldham counties. He is serving a 13-year prison sentence.
The other two plaintiffs, James H. O'Bryan and Donald E. Poppe, have not settled with any diocese, McMurry has said. Both live in California and allege that they were abused by priests while growing up in Louisville.
O'Bryan contends he was abused by a "Father Lawrence" at St. Cecilia Church in western Louisville in 1928. An archdiocesan spokeswoman has said a Rev. Lawrence Kuntz worked at St. Cecelia from 1928 to 1935 and died in 1952.
Poppe alleges he was molested by the Rev. Arthur Wood, who died in 1983 and was named as an abuser by 39 plaintiffs who settled with the archdiocese.
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Ever see the massive extremely rare and valuable ancient ART collection these rich cats in the Vatican own?
It must be worth hundreds of millions of dollars, the Vatican is filthy RICH even if the parishes that struggle to make ends meet to send them money.
Posted by antoniof123 at 01:28 PM : Jan 11, 2007"
Yes!
Attack them and jail them, and deprive those vain christians of earthly possessions!
They can always get back possessions when they go to their sodomite heaven!
The Albany Catholic Diocese, Bishop Howard Hubbard
its Law firm Tobin and Dempf and its Lawyer has failed the integrity test by not being men and stepping up to the bat and taking reponsibility
for the vial acts their priests and music directors have perpetrated on young children. Thanks to the judge down in Kentucky for wacking these these bishops priests and music directors who preyed upon Jesus Children. Its amazing that it take the long arm of the law to force these unethical low lifes to do the right thing. When they should be guided by the Holy Spirit. Makes you think they never had a connection to CHRIST. Chris Milian Albany NY
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So let me see what if the Vatican does not accept the terms. Then what we attack them.
Posted by antoniof123 at 01:28 PM : Jan 11, 2007
+ report this comment
But when the world disappoints us with its rampant promiscuity and its empty promise of happiness through sexual fulfillment, where can we turn? To God, Who will never disappoint, and to His Church. To seek to destroy and pauperize the Church because of the misdeeds of a few miscreants will not bring back the stolen innocence of the young men and children who were abused; and it will only hamper the many good works of the Church in the world today. Please set aside your anger and pain, and join with good bishops and priests in prayer that such misdeeds will never happen again.
It doesn't matter how few there were. Only a small percentage of the population commits murders as well. Should people who allow that to happen not be held to account?
Perhaps this will make the church reconsider its position on the celibacy of the clergy. Sure, tell someone he can never have *** in his life, and then put him around a bunch of young boys in dresses. That's not asking for trouble, is it?
Anyway, that policy has nothing to do with the purity of spirit the clergy should have. It has to do with the fact that if a priest dies without offspring, his property reverts to the church. How do you think the Catholic church acquired the property it has?
Sure, there's more to life than good ***, but if you are well laid, it makes your attitude much better to handle other things that come along.
Posted by KathyinMich at 03:25 PM : Jan 11, 2007"
You are obviously in denial, Kathy, with your cuddling of evil and nonsense talk about 'anger' when good citizens are concerned about JUSTICE and PREVENTION of future sodomizing and traumatizing of the children.
For how can anyone know that when they are foolish to kneel with a bishop, that the pervert won't want to jump on the backs of the kneeling flock?
Females were made to take kocks; so it is understandable if Kathy many not be able to relate to experiences of male children who were assaulted with perverted christian kocks and TRAUMATIZED FOR LIFE!
The only good bishop is a dead bishop!
How many dioceses are bled white ? How many parishes no longer serve their parishioners - because they were closed after the greedy "victims" got paid their thirty pieces of silver ?
How many accusations against good priests later got found out to be false...MANY HUNDREDS...but the "victims" continue to make the headlines while the sullied reputations are left to fester, wrongfully.
US judges might think they have some sway in the Vatican...they have another thing coming if they think it will involve cash.
These Catholic Bishops like Hubbard and are the most vial and disgusting human beings around they were directly involved with moving these child predators around who they knew were raping children and continued to participate in it. They derve everthing they get. They deserve it for what they did to young girls and boys in the Albany NY Diocese. They WILL have a problem when they stand before CHrist and defend raping HIS CHILDREN!!!!!!
Maybe because other religions allow their pastors, preachers, etc. to have normal, heterosexual relationships. A single pastor would look suspicious.
Why should you wonder that pedophiles flock to a religion that provides them a safe haven or even assists them in covering up their pedophilia?
It's about time the vatican be addressed in lawsuits. After all, it's been vatican policy for decades to shuffle these pedophiles from parish to parish to keep their sickness under wraps. It's called "aiding and abetting".
www.mythsdreamssymbols.com/dreamforum.html
or from another of my websites 'Dreams & Their Interpretations', dreams taken from the Dream Forum
www.dreamsa2z.com/interpreteddreams.html
a public forum.
The Catholic church has been morally bankrupt for centuries. It's about time they faced finacial bankruptcy as a consequence.
Wouldn't those be nightmares?
Posted by exusmcsgt at 06:23 PM : Jan 11, 2007"
Excellent point!
Thank you.
Posted by albanyphotos at 06:45 PM : Jan 11, 2007"
LOL
Are you sure about that?
From all the court cases, it is more reasonable to conclude that the christian sodomites ARE always 'concerned about raping the children'. LOL
I think you mean to say, concerned about THE "raping of children". LOL
The Catholic Church always has been and always will be about the Catholic Church, not it's parishoners.
Thank you.
Posted by exusmcsgt at 07:43 PM : Jan 11, 2007"
No problem.
You made a very excellent point.
For it can't be that priest become homos just because they are not allowed to get married; because they could just skrew the girls if they were really heterosexual. Instead they of sodomize boys.
If the church of child sodomy is seen as a f@ggot's paradise where their attack on the children will be covered up by fellow f@ggot bishops and popes, then the filthy f@ggots in the society will naturally gravitate towards such churches of child sodomy, much the same way that the filthy f@ggots will want to gravitate towards the boys scout organization to sodomize and traumatize boys scout.
I am not homophobic nor anti-gay rights. I am, however, livid about the preying on the youth of it's parishoners by the Catholic Church's priests and bishops and the conspiracy by the church's leadership to hide and perpetuate it.
There are a lot of hard feelings out there! Some of the protestors in this blog are genuinely faithful Christians who rightfully decry sin. But there are also a lot of folks who are nothing but veteran Catholic-bashers, seeking to capitalize on this tragic situation with cheap shots and nonsequiturs.
Wrong has been done, most surely. But whom will you hurt with your vindictive campaign against the Catholic Church? Not the perpetrators-- They've died, or resigned, or been sent to prison. The people who will be hurt are the poor and hungry, and the people in the pews, people who depend on their good priests to teach, to lead, to bring Christ to them in the Eucharist and the sacraments. You want to take the money, which some of you may have earned by your own labors, from these people-- and give it to lawyers. David Clohessey and the SNAP people are motivated to feed and nurture your revenge, because there are dollars on the table.
And all of you-- Protestants, atheists, anti-Catholics of every stripe-- know that what Christ really taught was that we must forgive. We pray, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those...." If you don't get over it, you will so be judged for your own sins, which are different from the pedophiles' but are also repulsive in God's eyes.
As the unpopular Nixon pardon was needed so that our nation could heal and move on, so is forgiveness needed at this time. Y'all need to refocus and begin to live the Gospel.
Posted by KathyinMich
In speaking the truth, I harm nowhere near as many nor as deeply as the church itself has hurt. And I don't prey on helpless, innocent, and believing children, many of whom are scarred for life.
And as to your charge of "bashing", if speaking the truth about something is "bashing", then so be it.
The Vatican isn't spending all it's money helping poor orphans or whatever - they've got treasures, castles (one of which has been given as a home and reward to one of the prime bishops involved in the @#@#%@# coverup!) - let them sell that to pay for counselling and help and some feeble reimbursement to the people they've hurt so deeply, here and around the world (we're not the only country where the pedophile priests were sheltered and had their way with children).
Nope, people mad about this aren't Catholic bashers - a Catholic basher IMHO would hardly be as upset as a Catholic would be about this happening - if you're a basher, it just fits what you already think. Those poor souls who believed in the church - they're the ones who are most furious about this, who I'd expect to be hardest on those who turned THEIR church into a sanctuary for pedophiles and their supporters.
I'l also add that, during its existance, the church has tried to stifle man's understanding and knowledge, waged wars against those who believe differently, operated brothels, and a list of other acts way too long to detail here to the extent that the church only has credibility for those who never outgrew the need to believe in fairy tales.
In fact, the church doesn't even follow its own dogma, so why in the world would I consider doing so?
Considering that the church has even stooped so low as to try to blame some of it's victims, I agree. They have been dragged kicking and screaming into compensatory suits - hardly an attitude of repentance, by any measure.
Considering the imprisoned priests and the judgements and awards against the church, I think it has been more than established that the church is not above American law. In regards to God's law, you'll have to ask him. Don't hold your breath waiting on an answer.
The Catholic Church behaves more like a rogue corporation than a church. They have little or no concern for their parishiners.
Having said that, I'm looking for lawyers meaner than junk yard dogs, who can "nail jello to the wall" when dealing with deceiving liars, and when they get done with the Vatican, maybe they can scare the wackos in the state of Wisconsin till they are petrified spitless,for having covered up childabuse in the public schools! If I can save up for gas to go there and rant myself, I would sure like to take you along to go balistic on them right along with me. Please.
Also, one might note that all the abuse (with few exceptions) happened in the 60's, 70's, and into the very early 80's. With the start of John Paul II's papacy, the Church cleaned up its act; but this kind of crime is the gift that keeps on giving. Those within the Church that did the crimes and those who let it all happen are being rightfully punished, but as the cases age and are resolved, this scandal will eventually just go away.
Not to mention - it'll send a good message, and say plenty about the Vatican - whether they pay up or say they are above the law.
Suits against individual dioceses are a different story, because those assets are held in the name of the US bishop in charge. Vatican assets are another thing entirely.
As for "sending a good message", Catholic bashing has been around for centuries, and the Church is still going strong. This won't make much difference.
Once, the church believed that - and conquered Rome with their truth. If they now hide from the truth....
The US Courts hold NO sway at all over the Vatican, nor can they "seize" property here. Sorry for your Storm Troops, Susan, but you'll have to use them on the rogue Anglican Queers.
As far as the stupid and uninformed remarks about "no other religion has pedophiles," all I can say is - read your papers from the FRONT and go towards the Sports pages in the back...not the other way 'round. You might remember REAL news that way.
Posted by Hermit22 at 01:39 AM : Jan 12, 2007"
LOL
Nope!
No hurt here.
I'm just alert enough to know that we should not be savaging those who are most deserving of our protection; the young, the old, the weak, etc.
And what makes it galling is that these devilish christian sodomizing hypocrites actually go out of their way to suck in their 'victims' by PRETENDING to be saviors, or claim to be leading the 'victims' to some imaginary Jesus who would save them!
When you can't attack the argument, people tend to attack the messenger (although, I don't know what's supposed to be so good or bad about being a Baptist). Nice try though. I'm sitting here a confirmed (as in confirmation) Catholic, from a family of Catholics.
But still - The truth is always powerful and worth fighting for - against however long established and powerful an organization.
Once, the church believed that - and conquered Rome with their truth. If they now hide from the truth....
does not provide you with any report on your case. They just want you to go away. Forgiveness yes. Social Justice is what needs to happen here.
Children were raped and abused and many of these bums are back in the pulpit because of Corupt Albany Judges and attorney's. One Troy NY Judge let a pervert priest go was caught red handed!!!
You Have a Albany County district attorney who goes soft on women raping young boys with slaps on the wrist. Christian Brothers Academy is a prime example of this with Sandra Beth Geisel raping a boy, CBA is a big supporter of Bishop Howard Hubbard who knowingly moved around priests who raping children to do more raping of children. The standards have dropped tremendously
and ethics character and integrity just doesn't seem to exist anymore arround hear!!!!
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by albanyphotos
June 6, 2009 7:22 AM PDT
- In New York State The Duane Markey Bill will allow 1 year statute of of limitations window to allow Catholic Children and others to get the SOcial Justice which Bishop Howard Hubbard talks about but doesn't see for the children they raped and abused in the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese and Schools. It amazes me that that they the Albany Catholics need the long arm of the law to force them to do the right thing when the HIGH BAR SHOULD BE CHRIST. Under Bishop Howard Hubbards leadership the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese and Schools are closing left and right. SAD but when you stray from CHRIST in ABUSING CHILDREN and refuse to take responsibility for raping children GOD has a way of dealing with you. HUBBARD hasn't learned his lesson yet but hopefully the Duane Markey Bill will pass and will bring some justice to this sad Situation in Albany NY and bring people to the CHRIST.
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