Victim of Priest Abuse Seeks Change to Law, by Robert Gavin, Albany Times Union, March 11, 2011

Victim of Priest Abuse Seeks Change to Law

By Robert Gavin
Albany Times Union
March 11, 2011

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Victim-of-priest-abuse-seeks-change-to-law-1068717.php

Priest abuse victim Heath Bromley, 35, whose identity was kept secret during the Mercure trial, comes forward to criticize how the Albany Diocese mishandled his case and the need to pass the Child Victims Act, which extends the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution and civil redress during a news conference with his lawyer Tina Weber, left, in Albany Thursday afternoon March 10, 2011. (John Carl D'Annibale / Times Union)

ALBANY -- Heath Bromley did not want to show his face on camera or speak publicly to the media.

But the 35-year-old North Creek man did both Thursday to call for something he believes is long overdue -- elimination of the statute of limitations for suing perpetrators of the very same abuse he says he endured at the hands of the Rev. Gary Mercure.

The priest was convicted last month in Pittsfield, Mass. of raping two boys in Berkshire County in the 1980s.

Bromley, speaking publicly beside his attorney Tina Weber, questioned not only why there is a statute of limitations, which prevents old cases such as his from being criminally prosecuted or being brought civilly in New York -- but why he has yet to receive an apology.

He said Bishop Howard Hubbard came to the same Queensbury church where he was abused and delivered a Mass to apologize to the parish, but not him.

"No apology has been extended to us personally," said Bromley, speaking to a room of reporters in the Crowne Plaza hotel. "No attempt to apologize to us has ever been made. It wasn't the parishioners who were being raped in the back of a car by a priest when they were 8 years old. It was me."

Bromley said not one member of the Albany diocese helped put away Mercure. The 62-year-old, who last served as a priest in Troy, was found guilty of three counts of rape and one count of indecent assault and battery on a child under the age of 14 for crimes that took place in 1986 and 1989.

The victims were 10 and 12 when Mercure raped them in the back seat of his car when he took them on trips to Massachusetts.

Bromley said the church has been "hijacked" and is needed back.

"So far the Catholic Conference in New York state has worked hard to make sure the statutes of limitations on sex abuse are kept intact," Bromley stated. "The current statutes work hard to protect pedophiles and make it very difficult for victims to obtain justice while guaranteeing a continued career for serial child predators."

The five-year statute of limitations on sex crimes of minors was eliminated on sex crimes in 2006. Still, nothing allows cases to be prosecuted that took place before that point. Bromley supports legislation, the Child Victims Act sponsored by Assemblywoman Margaret Markey, D-Queens, that would allow lawsuits that extend backward to allow civil suits of past cases.

At present, the bill is without a Senate sponsor, according to the state Assembly website.

"Sex crimes, particularly those committed against children, are among the most heinous and deeply disturbing in our society," stated a memo for the bill. "They are crimes that leave life-long scars, multiple victims and require an all encompassing strategy to combat. This proposal would extend the authority to prosecute and to bring a civil lawsuit for damages in child sexual abuse cases in three significant ways, regardless of whether or not DNA evidence is available. This bill will provide a remedy for those whose lives have been unalterably changed by the horror of child hood sexual abuse. Victims of these horrific crimes will get their day in court and be able to seek the justice they have been denied."

Ken Goldfarb, a spokesman for the Albany diocese, said the bill "encourages lawsuits" and excludes public schools and institutions where most sexual abuse takes place.

As for Bromley's call for an apology, he noted that the church has only been aware of him since the trial started.

"Bishop Hubbard has publicly apologized on numerous occasions to victims of clergy sexual abuse and has extended that apology in person to any victim who has requested a meeting with him," he said. "The Bishop remains committed to meeting with victims privately if they so choose."

Meanwhile, Bromley and Weber also want victims to be compensated for medical treatment they endured.

Reach Robert Gavin at 434-2403 or rgavin@timesunion.com