Appellate Court Denies Man Abused by Priest a New Trial

Central Valley Business Times
January 6, 2012

http://www.centralvalleybusinesstimes.com/stories/001/?ID=20135

• Agrees that lawsuit was time barred

• 'They never told anyone about the abuse until many years later'

George Santillan may have to hope for justice from a higher authority when it comes to the Catholic priest who sexually abused him when he was a boy in Wasco. The California 2nd District Court of Appeal has denied his request for a court to hear his lawsuit against the Roman Catholic Bishop of Fresno.

In its ruling Friday, the appellate court says it agrees with a decision by a jury in Fresno County Superior Court to block Mr. Santillan's lawsuit because there was no evidence that the diocese knew that the priest was committing such acts either before or during the time when Mr. Santillan and his brother were being abused.

The trial court granted a new trial as to the brother, Howard Santillan, based on newly discovered evidence of another person who had reported that the same priest was abusing him during the period when Howard was being molested. The trial court denied the new trial motion as to George Santillan because the new witness's report occurred after the abuse of George had stopped.

George Santillan had appealed the trial court verdict, contending that the jury was improperly instructed and that certain evidence was wrongly excluded.

The brothers were molested by Anthony Herdegen, the parish priest in their hometown of Wasco, the appeals court decision says. George was abused from the time he was 10 years old in 1959 until sometime in late 1965 while Howard was abused from the time he turned six in 1960 until sometime in 1973, the court says.

"The Santillans concede that they never told anyone about the abuse until many years later, long after the statute of limitations in effect at that time had expired. Claims such as theirs against churches and other entities were revived for the calendar year 2003, but in order to qualify for that revival window, the Santillans had to show that the Diocese knew or had reason to know that Herdegen had engaged in unlawful sexual conduct before or during the time when he abused them," the appeals court says.