ALBANY (NY)
Newsday
By MARK JOHNSON
Associated Press Writer
January 3, 2006, 4:42 PM EST
ALBANY, N.Y. -- The state's highest court heard arguments Tuesday involving sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests to determine whether the victims in those cases waited too long to seek damages under state law.
A ruling in favor of the victims could force dioceses across the state to face numerous suits that were dismissed because the statute of limitations had expired.
Nationwide, "hundreds and hundreds" of cases have been dismissed for the same reasons and many more never get filed, said David Clohessy,Abuse Tracker Director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests _ also known as SNAP _ a national support group for clergy abuse victims.