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	Diocese Says Suit's Time Limit Has Passed By Bryan Corbin Evansville Courier & Press December 23, 2007 http://www.courierpress.com/news/2007/dec/23/diocesesays-suitstime-limithas-passed/ INDIANAPOLIS — The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis says lawsuits filed against it by 13 men — including six from Perry County — claiming they were sexually abused by a former priest should be dismissed because the civil statute of limitations has expired. The archdiocese's attorney, Jay Mercer, acknowledged in court in Marion County last week that former priest Harry Elwood Monroe was "a child molester and serial predator," but in seeking a summary judgment argued the time period to file a claim had passed. The most recent of the accusations against Monroe stem from 1983-84 when he served congregations in Perry County. The judge has yet to rule on the request for a summary judgment. The lawsuits allege the archdiocese knew of Monroe's inappropriate behavior toward children as early as 1976 yet transferred him from parish to parish in Indianapolis, Terre Haute, Ind., and Tell City, Ind., before removing him in 1984. The suits allege the archdiocese committed fraud by not disclosing to parishioners that Monroe was a danger to children. The names of the 13 plaintiffs are withheld in court documents, which identify them each as "John Doe." None of the cases involving Perry County plaintiffs has gone to court. Last week's hearing — the first of the 13 — arose from when Monroe was at an Indianapolis parish in the 1970s. The victims' attorney, Patrick Noaker of St. Paul, Minn., has made similar fraud claims in the other lawsuits involving Monroe. Noaker contends the six-year statute of limitations didn't start running until 2005, when the victims learned the archdiocese had already known of Monroe's previous sexual abuse when it transferred Monroe to their parishes. Although never officially defrocked or "laicized," Monroe, now 59, was removed as a priest in 1984. There was no phone number for him at the Nashville, Tenn., address listed in court records. Noaker said the plaintiffs are now men in their mid- to late 30s who were altar boys in the early 1980s when Monroe, who was co-pastor of their parish, sexually abused them. "Had plaintiff and his family known what defendant archdiocese knew — that Harry Monroe had sexually molested numerous children before and that Harry Monroe was a danger to children — plaintiff would not have been sexually molested," one lawsuit says. In a 295-page deposition filed in the first lawsuit, Monroe admitted to some sex acts with adolescent boys, but said he couldn't remember others. Showing regret He expressed regret, and described the sexual abuse in the context of his alcohol and drug addictions at the time. Monroe testified he could not afford an attorney and said he would not legally contest the allegations. "I never saw myself as taking advantage of (the victims)," Monroe testified in the June 8 deposition. "I think I just reverted back to — to like I was one of them. I never thought of myself as an adult, which is just tragic for them." Named as defendants in the lawsuits are Monroe, the Archdiocese of Indianapolis and the individual parishes. The plaintiffs seek restitution for past and future medical care relating to their abuse, and unspecified damages for emotional distress. The 13 lawsuits are all before different judges. "Even if we succeed (on the first case), we may or may not succeed on the other cases," Noaker said. In the first lawsuit, two documents entered as court exhibits may have relevance to the fraud claim. One is a letter from the Indianapolis archdiocese's former personnel director in August 1976 to the House of Affirmation, a psychological treatment center for priests, about Monroe's behavior. The letter mentions "complaints from some parents about the young priest's association and activities with young boys . . . His days off are always spent taking sixth grade boys on camping trips." The archdiocese evidently was aware Monroe was undergoing treatment at a House of Affirmation facility in Montara, Calif., in August 1982, because that's where it mailed him a letter reassigning him to Perry County, Ind., Noaker said. Two years later, Monroe was removed as a priest based on complaints of sexual abuse, court documents said.
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