By Antonio Prado
Dover Post
December 9, 2010
http://www.communitypub.com/news/x1757250378/Priest-parish-to-pay-damages-in-1960s-sex-abuse-case
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| Rev. Francis DeLuca |
Dover, Del. — A Kent Count jury ruled Dec. 1 that St. Elizabeth Parish in Wilmington was negligent in not preventing former priest Francis DeLuca from sexually abusing John M. Vai, 58, in the late 1960s.
The jury levied $30 million in compensatory damages for Vai, including $3 million levied against St. Elizabeth and $27 million against DeLuca.
"The legal system in Delaware works and can render justice to all survivors of childhood sexual abuse," Vai said in a statement released by The Neuberger Firm and Jacobs & Crumplar.
DeLuca, 80, was defrocked in 2008 after serving 60 days in a New York jail for repeatedly molesting his 18-year-old grandnephew.
WHAT WE KNEW
The Catholic Diocese of Wilmington filed for Chapter 11 reorganization under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in October 2009 after failing to reach a settlement with eight victims whose lawsuits were scheduled for trial. There were 142 total claims at the time, but most of them had not been scheduled for trial. That figure has grown to about 150 claims and 144 pending cases. If there was too large a settlement with the first eight victims, the diocese could not fairly compensate the remaining claimants, Bishop W. Francis Malooly said at the time. Attorney Thomas S. Neuberger, co-counsel for approximately 90 survivors of rape and childhood sexual abuse by dozens of priests, and Bartholomew J. Dalton of Dalton & Associates, an attorney for more than 50 victims of sexual abuse who filed lawsuits under Delaware's Child Victims Act, criticized the filing as a way to grind cases to a halt.
Vai was among the cases that were held up by the bankruptcy proceedings. But Vai's case was one of the seven allowed to proceed after victims testified in bankruptcy court, unprecedented for such proceedings, said attorney Stephen J. Neuberger.
WHAT HAPPENED
A jury of seven men and five women returned a verdict for Vai after the jury believed him and two other witnesses, "John Doe 18 and John Doe 2," over former parish priest, Tom Cini, "who actively covered-up the crimes of monster DeLuca on children and who was rewarded by four bishops with high office and power for over 35 years," Vai said. Former St. Elizabeth's pastor, Fr. Charles Dillingham, admitted that Cini was one of DeLuca's closest friends.
St. Elizabeth officials declined to comment on a case still pending.
The punitive phase, which can levy civil fines against those liable, began Dec. 6. The Wilmington parish presented its case at the punitive damages hearings on Dec. 7.
Malooly released a Dec. 1 statement that reiterated his apologies to anyone who suffered child abuse by diocesan priests and reaffirmed his commitment to sustaining a safe environment for children.
"I wish to convey, once again, my sincere apology to Mr. John Vai for the suffering he experienced as a child at the hands of Francis Deluca," Malooly said. "… I am disappointed that the jury found the people of Saint Elizabeth's liable for the acts of Francis Deluca. … Saint Elizabeth's is being made to pay for the criminal and sinful acts of someone who was assigned by the diocesan bishop at the time to be one of their priests."
WHAT'S NEXT
Vai's case was actually the first in what is called the "DeLuca Seven," Stephen Neuberger said. Once the punitive phase of that trial is complete, the next DeLuca case will move forward. That will involve abuse committed by DeLuca at St. John the Beloved Parish.
The next case involves St. Matthew's parish.
A case against another priest, the Rev. Edward B. Carley, is scheduled to begin Jan. 3. Carley allegedly abused Joseph Curry in the 1980s at St. Dennis Parish in Maryland. In April 2009, the late Doug McClure sued St. Ann Catholic Church for abuse committed by Carley and received $1.5 million. In April 2010, St. Ann also settled a $2 million lawsuit brought by John Dougherty.
There are many other cases that have yet to be scheduled because of the Diocese of Wilmington's pending bankruptcy proceedings.
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