BishopAccountability.org
	Miami Archdiocese Issues Rare Apology in Sex-Abuse Case By Jay Weaver Miami Herald October 15, 2008 http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking-news/story/728747.html In a rare public act of contrition regarding a sexual abuse claim, the Archdiocese of Miami has issued an apology in a settlement with a teenage girl who claimed a Pinecrest Catholic Church youth minister assaulted her during a 2006 field trip. Last year, the teenage girl, whose name was not made public, alleged in a lawsuit that the pastor of St. Louis Catholic Church, the Rev. James Fetscher, was aware of sexual misconduct by the youth minister, Anthony B. Ricco, then 19, as far back as 2004 but did not report it to authorities as required by law. She claimed Ricco had assaulted her during a Vermont field trip and other activities in 2006. In a statement posted on its Web page and published in the Florida Catholic newspaper, the Archdiocese of Miami said it "amicably resolved" the case. "The Archdiocese of Miami extends an apology to Jane Doe 31 for its role in the harm caused to her and asks for prayers for all those in the youth ministry who were adversely impacted by such events," the statement said. "The Archdiocese of Miami will continue to prevent future violations." Jeffrey Herman, the attorney for the 15-year-old victim, said Thursday he could not disclose the monetary settlement. He noted the apology -- required as part of the settlement -- was unprecedented. "This is the first time that I'm aware of that the archdiocese has ever done that," said Herman, who has brought and settled dozens of sexual-abuse cases against the archdiocese. "Had they followed their own policies, it never would have happened." Last year, an archdiocese spokeswoman had strongly denied the accusation, saying church officials first learned of the allegations in April 2007 when Pinecrest police notified them about plans to arrest the youth minister at his home. But Herman said other girls complained about Ricco to the youth group's supervisor, Paul Herring, who, in turn, informed the pastor. Fetscher did not remove him from the parish in affluent Pinecrest or alert parishioners or authorities about his misconduct, Herman said. Herman said the girl's parents went to the Pinecrest police as soon as they learned that Ricco had sex with their daughter. In December 2006, Ricco pleaded no contest to nine counts of lewd and lascivious battery on a child between 12 and 16 -- including the alleged victim who filed suit. He was sentenced to two years of house arrest and 10 years probation. The criminal charges involved two female victims, ages 13 and 15 at the time of the alleged offenses. Rico was accused of touching their private parts under their clothing. He was then 18. As part of his plea agreement with the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, the judgment against Ricco was withheld by Circuit Judge William Thomas. That means Ricco, a first-time offender, technically has no criminal record. In a separate announcement on Thursday, Herman said he has filed a lawsuit against the archdiocese alleging a 15-year-old boy was sexually abused in 1977 by a priest at St. James Church in North Miami. The unidentified youth alleges that the abuse began after he went to confession and met the Rev. Anthony Mercieca. He accuses Mercieca of gaining his trust and grooming him, which led to sexual assaults over a two- to three-year period in the church and in the priest's car, according to the suit filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court. Last year, Herman settled another sexual abuse case involving the same Catholic priest, who gained notoriety after he admitted in 2006 that he had an inappropriate relationship with former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, a Palm Beach County Republican. Herman would not disclose the amount of that settlement. According to a lawsuit, Mercieca allegedly took a 13-year-old altar boy at St. James Church on a bicycle ride and afterward molested him in the church's bell tower in the 1970s. That suit was filed in October 2006, about a month after Foley resigned from office after reports surfaced that he sent sexually explicit e-mails to male pages. Foley later said through a lawyer that Mercieca had abused him when he was a boy. Mercieca, who is living in Malta, told several media outlets in 2006 that he fondled Foley and they swam naked together, but he denied having sex with the former lawmaker. On Thursday, the Miami archdiocese issued a statement about the latest lawsuit alleging Mercieca's misconduct. "Father Mercieca's faculties were removed in October 2006 after he was accused of abuse by former representative Mark Foley," the statement said. "A priest without faculties cannot perform or dress as a priest."
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.