Priest Is Not Charged in Groping Case Due to Insufficient Evidence

By Jay Tokasz
Buffalo News
January 20, 2012

http://www.buffalonews.com/city/communities/buffalo/article714553.ece

Authorities didn’t charge a Catholic priest accused of groping a former parishioner because they had no corroborating evidence, and the alleged victim did not cooperate in the investigation, according to Erie County District Attorney Frank A. Sedita III.

The priest, the Rev. Secondo Casarotto, 70, was abruptly removed as pastor of St. Anthony of Padua Church last weekend and placed on administrative leave, after Catholic Diocese of Buffalo officials learned of a criminal complaint in which a former female parishioner accused him of sexual misconduct.

The woman, who is in her 30s, filed a complaint with Buffalo police last June in which she reported that Casarotto allegedly groped her two years earlier — in the summer of 2009 — while the two were in the priest’s residence at the church on Court Street.

“The police made a decision not to arrest him, and we agreed with that determination,” Sedita said.

The woman has hired the Florida-based law firm of Herman, Mermelstein and Horowitz, which specializes in sexual abuse cases, to investigate. She has yet to file a lawsuit.

Adam D. Horowitz, a partner in the firm, disputed Sedita’s characterization of his client as being uncooperative.

“My client reported her assault to law enforcement. She also provided the police with an email in which Father Secondo told her to ‘forgive’ and ‘move on.’ I am not sure what else was expected of her,” Horowitz said in an email.

The woman first called Buffalo police with the allegations in March 2011, although she did not make a formal statement until three months later — and nearly two years after the alleged groping.

Delays in disclosing what happened often make it more difficult for investigators and prosecutors to establish a credible case against the accused, Sedita noted.

When confronted by police, the priest acknowledged sexual contact with the woman and said that it was consensual, according to the district attorney.

The woman did not allege rape or sodomy in her complaint.

Authorities asked the woman to assist them in finding evidence to support her version of events, but she refused, Sedita said.

“It’s a combination of lack of corroboration and lack of cooperation,” Sedita said. “All you have is the claim of the victim.”

But Horowitz maintained that a detective who worked on the case told him that Casarotto admitted to sexually attacking the woman, then backtracked and contended that it was consensual contact.

Bishop Edward U. Kmiec learned of the allegations against Casarotto after returning from vacation last week and reading a letter from Horowitz.

Kmiec then met with Casarotto, who is a priest of the missionaries of St. Charles Borromeo, otherwise known as the Scalabrini Fathers. In consultation with the Rev. Matthew Didone, provincial superior of the Scalabrini Fathers, based on Staten Island, Kmiec determined that Casarotto should be placed on administrative leave, according to diocesan spokesman Kevin A. Keenan.

The order is obligated to investigate the allegations, Keenan said.

Messages left on Staten Island were not returned.

Contact: jtokasz@buffnews.com