NEW JERSEY
The Jersey Journal
Friday, December 23, 2005
By JASON DEL REY
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER
A priest who counsels victims of clergy sex abuse and who recently filed a lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Newark claiming wrongful termination has been placed on administrative leave until litigation is resolved, said a spokesman for the Archdiocese.
"Because of the public nature of the lawsuit, it was decided to place Father on leave until the matter is resolved," said the spokesman, James Goodness.
The Rev. Robert Hoatson, 54, will receive pay and benefits during his leave from ministry but cannot administer the sacraments, Goodness confirmed.
In letters published in The Jersey Journal this fall, Hoatson criticized the Archdiocese's handling of allegations of sexual abuse against Monsignor Peter Cheplic, who worked in several Hudson County parishes. Hoatson has also counseled Joseph Capozzi, of Manhattan, one of Cheplic's alleged victims.
"It would do James Goodness and the Archdiocese of Newark well to focus on the truth rather than the impression people have of them," he wrote in one of the letters.