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	Degree of Suffering Is Questioned in Abuse Suit By Bruce Lambert New York Times May 3, 2007 http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/03/nyregion/03church.html?_r=1&oref=slogin Garden City, N.Y., May 2 — A psychiatrist hired by the Roman Catholic diocese on Long Island testified on Wednesday that two sexual abuse victims exaggerated their emotional suffering in suing for multimillion-dollar damages. The psychiatrist, Dr. William Kaplan of Great Neck, was the only witness that the defendants called to testify on their behalf as the civil trial in State Supreme Court here draws to a close. The suit stems from abuses that Matthew Maiello committed as the director of the youth ministry at St. Raphael's Roman Catholic Church in East Meadow. He pleaded guilty in 2003 to the statutory rape of four teenagers and was imprisoned for two years. Two victims are suing him, St. Raphael's, its pastor and the Diocese of Rockville Centre. Dr. Kaplan testified that his interviews of the two victims and a review of other records "raises the question of malingering, the exaggerating of symptoms or misrepresentation of symptoms." The victims withheld relevant facts about their successes in school, work and civic activities, he said. Despite one victim's claim that she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, she did not merit that diagnosis, he said. But a lawyer for the victims, Ben B. Rubinowitz, challenged Dr. Kaplan's credibility by asserting that he interviewed the two victims for an hour each, failed to ask numerous important questions, failed to review vital documents and even mixed up their patient records. The rest of Dr. Kaplan's cross-examination is scheduled for Thursday, and is expected to conclude testimony in the trial. Closing arguments and the judge's charge to the jury are set for Monday. The extent of harm, a central issue in the case, hinges on testimony from the victims and the mental health experts. The plaintiffs hired a psychologist, Dr. Dawn M. Hughes, who testified earlier in the week that the victims are still suffering significantly, contrary to what Dr. Kaplan said. The other main issue is the responsibility for the abuse. Mr. Maiello, 33, who has few assets, is not contesting the suit. The victims say that the other defendants ignored warnings about him and were negligent in hiring and supervising him. But those defendants blame Mr. Maiello and say they were unaware of his actions and therefore are not liable. After the plaintiffs finished presenting their side on Wednesday, the defense lawyer, Brian R. Davey, argued that they had failed to prove any significant warnings and especially had failed to show any involvement by the diocese, the wealthiest of the defendants. Moving to drop the diocese from the case, he said: "They did not hire Matthew Maiello and did not supervise Matthew Maiello whatsoever." Mr. Rubinowitz, objected, saying that the diocese owns the land and approves the parish budget. "The diocese controls everything," he said. "The buck stops with the diocese." But Justice R. Bruce Cozzens Jr. declined to exclude the diocese, saying, "I'm satisfied there's enough evidence to go to the jury." He also rejected Mr. Davey's motion to dismiss the entire case. Dr. Kaplan said that despite claims of anxiety, depression, nightmares and flashbacks, the victims showed "a higher level of functioning" in their jobs and elsewhere. One victim had made the dean's list and was class president in college, and the other was a volunteer fire officer. In his cross-examination of Dr. Hughes, Mr. Davey accused her of bias, saying, "All that's in your report is the bad stuff but not the good stuff." Dr. Hughes stuck to her findings, saying that some victims delve into activities as a distraction. "You have no idea what's going on inside the person," she said. Another issue involves Mr. Maiello's insinuating himself into one victim's family, visiting often and even joining on vacations, without suspicion. The victims' lawyers said that church officials are implying that they cannot be blamed for missing what the family itself failed to detect. According to court papers and testimony, Mr. Maiello, a decade older than the victim, never posed as a suitor while he became a family confidant. He took that role, the mother testified, while she herself was undergoing cancer surgery and treatment. She said she urged her daughter to join the youth program as "a safe place" with "good, healthy Christian activities." In Catholic homes like hers, the mother said, it was an honor to be visited by a priest, a nun or a youth minister. Of Mr. Maiello, she said, "He was an older person, he was her mentor, he was from the church."
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