New Lawsuit Filed against Defrocked Stockton Priest

By Jonathan Mumm
News 10
May 3, 2012

http://www.news10.net/news/local/article/191964/2/New-lawsuit-filed-against-defrocked-Stockton-priest

[with video]

His case was notorious, not just because of the sexual abuse he was convicted of, but because of his willingness to talk about his actions, both in a legal deposition and in a documentary film called Deliver Us From Evil.

Oliver O'Grady was convicted in 1993 of molesting two young brothers in Calaveras County and spent six years in prison. Upon his release, he was deported to Ireland, where he is once again behind bars, this time for possessing child pornography.

Now, a 25-year-old man is filing a lawsuit, claiming at the age of five he suffered sexual abuse from the defrocked priest.

Representatives of the group SNAP, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, gathered in front of the Diocese of Stockton building on San Joaquin Street in Stockton Wednesday to announce the filing of the lawsuit.

The group's western regional director Joelle Castrix said the young man behind the lawsuit is looking for justice.

"He wants accountability," Castrix said. "He wants to be able to come into a court of justice and say, 'Oliver O'Grady hurt me and Diocesan officials knew it and covered it up.' He's coming forward so that what happened to him won't happen to another child in Stockton."

The lawsuit does not ask for a specific money amount, but it does seek damages with the amount to be ascertained later. Those backing the lawsuit are also hoping to learn more from O'Grady himself in a new deposition.

"He will fill in a lot of holes that we were never able to ask him before," said Patrick Wall, a former priest and monk who is a consultant to SNAP. "Specifically in the 1990's at Hughson and other parishes about what he was doing and what he was thinking."

The Stockton Diocese released a statement from Bishop Stephen E. Blaire Wednesday afternoon:

The Diocese of Stockton today learned of a civil complaint alleging acts of sexual abuse by Oliver O'Grady in 1992 when O'Grady was assigned to St. Andrew's parish in San Andreas. The filing of the lawsuit was the first notice we had received of this complaint. Immediately upon obtaining a copy of the complaint from the court, we shared it with law enforcement authorities in Calaveras County. We have not yet had an opportunity to review the complaint.

The Diocese of Stockton takes all accusations of sexual abuse very seriously. We follow clear guidelines to ensure that accusations are handled appropriately and that we offer whatever help and healing we can to victims of sexual abuse.