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	Priest Is Accused of Molesting Boy Suit Alleges Coverup by Catholic Diocese By Ron Nissimov Houston Chronicle May 4, 1999 A local Catholic priest is accused in a lawsuit filed Monday of sexually abusing a boy for 10 years, frequently after the giving the youth alcohol or drugs. The Harris County state district court suit also claims that the Roman Catholic Diocese of Galveston/Houston has engaged in a conspiracy "to cover up the sexual abuse of minors" of many church officials, including the priest who was sued, the Rev. Dennis Peterson. The plaintiff was allegedly molested by Peterson after he began having behavior problems as a child from previous sexual abuse and was brought to Peterson for counseling. Because of the alleged conspiracy, the local diocese also was named as a defendant in the suit, which seeks unspecified actual and punitive damages. The plaintiff filed the suit under the name "John Doe I" to protect his privacy, said his attorney Windle Turley of Dallas. Turley was the lead attorney in a Dallas area case that resulted in the largest judgment ever against a Catholic diocese. In July 1997, a Dallas County jury awarded $ 119.6 million to eight men who claimed they had been sexually abused as boys by their Catholic priests. The Catholic Diocese of Dallas said it could not afford to pay such a large judgment, and the case settled in January 1998 for $ 23.4 million. Turley represents two more clients who have pending cases against that diocese involving similar allegations "The case in Harris County is very similar in there was an authority figure in the form of a Catholic priest who continuously abused a minor child," Turley said. "Evidence will show the church had knowledge the priest might have been engaging in this activity." Officials at the local diocese were not available Monday. Peterson apparently last served as pastor at St. John Neumann Catholic Church, 2730 Nellwood Dr. An official at the church said Peterson was recently placed "on medical leave" and was not available for comment. Turley said when the Catholic church is confronted with credible evidence that a priest has sexually abused a church member, it commonly places the priest on some type of leave "to take care of his addiction." He said his client is in his 20s and has been "severely injured" by the alleged sexual abuse. He said the man has problems coping with his job and takes medication to handle the mental anguish associated with the abuse. The lawsuit said the plaintiff was first sexually abused in 1983 by a lay person who was the leader of a scouting program sponsored by the church. The plaintiff's family was actively involved at the time in the St. Bernadette Catholic Church in Harris County, the suit said. The suit said after the repeated sexual abuse from the lay person, the plaintiff's "behavior changed" and his family was encouraged to take him to Peterson for counseling in 1987. Peterson allegedly frequently molested the boy from 1987 until 1997, often after the priest gave him alcohol or drugs, the suit said. According to the suit, Peterson first met the boy in 1987 at St. Ann's Catholic Church and continued to molest him after he was transferred to St. Francis Cabrini Catholic Church in Houston. Turley said he believes the Catholic Church has improved its handling of allegations of sexual abuse by priests by taking the claims more seriously and implementing counseling programs for priests.
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