6 new sex abuse lawsuits filed against Seattle Archdiocese

Chinook Observer
May 17, 2016

http://www.chinookobserver.com/co/free/20160517/6-new-sex-abuse-lawsuits-filed-against-seattle-archdiocese

SEATTLE (AP) — Six new child sex abuse lawsuits have been filed against the Seattle Archdiocese.

The Seattle attorneys who filed the lawsuits say more abuse survivors came forward after the Catholic church released the names of 77 people against which credible allegations have been made.

They allege they were abused at various parishes and schools across the Seattle Archdiocese from the late 1950s to the late 1980s. In each lawsuit, they claim the Archdiocese knew or should have known that the abuse posed a danger to children, but did not protect them.

In January of this year, the Seattle Archdiocese identified each of the six priests identified in the complaints as being the subject of “credible” sexual abuse allegations involving children.

Each of the plaintiffs filed their claims under pseudonym to protect their identity because they allege they were sexually abused as children.

At least three Roman Catholic priests stationed in Pacific County from 1958 to 1971 were identified as being among 77 Catholic clergy believed to have sexually abused Washington state children.

In one case, a Seaview priest identified by the archdiocese as a sex offender was immediately replaced by another also on the offender list. In another instance, the archdiocese has already paid a Pacific County man to settle a lawsuit over molestation by a priest in Raymond.

In all but one case, the implicated Pacific County priests are known to be deceased. It is unknown whether any of the new lawsuits pertain to the local priests.