Fairfield University, Perlitz Lawsuit Can Proceed

By Meg Learson Grosso
Minutesman News Center
April 17, 2013

http://www.minutemannewscenter.com/articles/2013/04/17/fairfield/news/doc516ecd375c340197343495.txt

A judge has ruled that twenty-three Haitians may go forward with their lawsuit against Fairfield University, Father Paul E. Carrier, S. J., the Society of Jesus of New England (Jesuits), Hope Carter, and the Knights of Malta--the people and institutions that the lawsuit says should have protected the homeless boys from the sexual abuse they suffered in a school founded for street children by 1992 Fairfield University graduate Douglas Perlitz.

United States District Judge Robert N. Chatigny denied the motions of Fairfield University, Carrier, the Jesuits, Carter, and the Knights of Malta, to dismiss the lawsuit on some grounds and granted them on others. The judge said they could be sued for negligent supervision of Perlitz, for negligent supervision of Father Carrier and for a breach of fiduciary duty to the young boys. On the other hand, the judge wrote, in his March 31, decision, that the defendants could not be sued for vicarious liability, or for secondary liability. Nor said the judge, could they be sued on the grounds that either Father Carrier or Hope Carter gave assistance to Perlitz, with the purpose of aiding Perlitz in his wrongdoing.

Mitchell Garabedian, the attorney who won a large settlement against the Archdiocese of Boston in a Catholic clergy sex-abuse scandal, is arguing the case for the twenty-three boys, some of whom are now young men. The lawsuit asks damages of $20 million each for the sexual abuse they suffered from Perlitz between 1999 and 2007 when they were students at Project Pierre Toussaint, the residential school founded in Cap Haitien, Haiti by Perlitz, who, in 2002, was the speaker at Fairfield University’s commencement.

The Knights of Malta gave money to start the school in 1997 and the school continued with donations raised by Fr. Carrier, who was chaplain at Fairfield University at the time, and with donations from the Haiti Fund, which was administered by Hope Carter.

After the scandal broke, Fairfield University hired former U.S. Attorney Stanley Twardy to audit the $600,000 in funds that went to the school in Haiti through Father Carrier from 1997 to 2008.

The audit concluded that $120,000 of that money could not be accounted for, other than that it went directly to Father Carrier. The Haiti Fund, itlzself, received over $3.5 million in donations.

Once the scandal became public, funding dried up and the school ceased to exist.

In December 2010, Perlitz pled guilty to traveling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and was sentenced to 19 and one-half years in prison, followed by ten years of supervised release. U.S. District Attorney David B. Fein noted at the time, that Perlitz sexually abused “at least eight minor victims over the course of a decade in Haiti.” Others have come forward since then.

Fein credits the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Haitian National Police, and the U.S. Department of State for help in carrying out the investigation.

According to Chatigny’s decision, the victims allege that Perlitz told them he was introduced to homosexual activities as a college freshman by Father Carrier. The victims allege that Carrier was in Perlitz’s bedroom in Cap Haitien when Perlitz showed a pornographic video to a student and that Father Carrier, who made frequent trips to Haiti, shunned a Haitian administrator at the Haitian school when she tried to stop Perlitz’s sexual abuse of students.

“Importantly, Perlitz’s sexual abuse of the plaintiffs occurred at a time when organizations involved with young people had become cognizant of the need to take precautions to protect young people against a risk of sexual abuse by pedophiles,” wrote Chatigny

Regarding supervision of Carrier, the judge wrote that there are sufficient facts to suggest that Fairfield University designated Father Carrier to be its agent to oversee Project Pierre Toussaint, and that the Society of Jesus of New England’s authorization was given for Carrier’s involvement in the project.

Carter, the Haiti Fund and Carrier cannot be sued for helping Perlitz violate the law against sex trafficking, wrote the judge, saying that while the lawsuit alleges that Hope Carter flew to Haiti to retrieve Carrier’s computer containing child pornography in order to keep it from investigators, nonetheless, it’s plausible that they did this to avoid embarrassing Perlitz, the school, or themselves. “It is implausible that they knowingly sought to obstruct enforcement of the federal statute criminalizing the commercial sex trafficking of children,” wrote Chatigny.

On the subject of fiduciary responsibility, Chatigny notes that “fiduciary relationships are characterized by a unique degree of trust and confidence between the parties, one of whom has superior knowledge, skill or expertise and is under a duty to represent the interests of the other.”

The street children in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, were uniquely vulnerable to abuse and they placed a high degree of trust and confidence in those operating Project Pierre Toussaint to provide for their most basic needs, such as food, clothing and shelter, wrote the judge.

Paul Kendrick, an advocate for those abused by clergy, and a 1972 graduate of Fairfield University, brought the Haitian boys and attorney Mitchell Garabedian together. “I felt that these street children should be on a level playing field with this powerful institution. They should confront the people who should have cared for them,” said Kendrick to the Minuteman.

“A jury will now decide who knew, what did they know, who neglected to report abuse and they will be held accountable for it,” said Kendrick.

His hope is that there will be a foundation and trust set up so that therapy and counseling are available at no cost, for as long as the victims need it. “I’d like a foundation set up to create awareness and education about child sexual abuse in Haiti,” said Kendrick

The advocate added that he brought the Boston attorney and the boys together, because his Jesuit teaching taught him not to just walk away.

Contact: mgrosso@fairfieldminuteman.com