Nassau DA: Abuse Cases Exceed 5-Year Statute

By Steve Wick with Chau Lam
Long Island (NY) Newsday
April 30, 2002

http://www.newsday.com/mynews/ny-liabus302689061apr30.story

After an investigation he described as thorough, Nassau County District Attorney Denis Dillon said yesterday that all allegations of sexual abuse against Catholic priests sent to his office by the Diocese of Rockville Centre are too old to be prosecuted.

"We have thoroughly reviewed every matter referred to us by the diocese, as well as allegations brought to our attention by other sources," Dillon said at an afternoon news conference.

All of the allegations, he said, occurred beyond the state's five-year statute of limitations. While refusing to be specific, Dillon said some of the cases his office reviewed could have been prosecuted had they been reported to authorities at the time.

He refused to say how many cases his office reviewed, how many priests were involved, or the age of the person filing any of the complaints.

"I can't tell you anything," he told reporters. "They're all confidential under the law."

With yesterday's announcement, Dillon's office effectively ended its investigation of past sexual abuse allegations against priests in Nassau County. His spokesman, Rick Hinshaw, said "any new allegations would of course be looked at."

Asked whether any aspect of the investigation remained open, Hinshaw said, "We won't discuss what else is being investigated."

Melanie Little, a Garden City attorney who represents seven men who say they were abused by priests in the diocese mostly in the 1970s, questioned just how thoroughly Dillon's office had investigated the allegations.

"Everyone knew when the investigation started that these were old complaints," she said. "My clients were certainly hoping Dillon would go deeper and determine if there was a cover-up by the diocese. To them, the handling of these cases by the diocese is as serious an issue as the abuse itself."

Responding to subpoenas, the diocese last month forwarded personnel files pertaining to sexual-abuse allegations against priests going back 25 years to both Dillon and Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota. While Dillon's investigation has apparently all but ended, it is just beginning in Suffolk. A special grand jury will be empaneled there next week that will look at both the sexual-abuse allegations against priests and the way diocesan officials investigated the complaints.

Last week, Bishop William Murphy announced the formation of two diocesan panels that will investigate any new sexual-abuse allegations. Breaking long-standing diocesan policy, Murphy said a member of one of the new panels, former Nassau Police Commissioner Donald Kane, will have the authority to report the allegations directly to law enforcement officials. That panel, which will also include a nun and a priest, will hear complaints. The second panel will review the work of the first panel.

In a recent interview, Msgr. Alan Placa, who for years was in charge of investigating sexual-abuse allegations against priests in the diocese, said he never would have referred a complaint to police.

In March, Murphy said that based on a review of diocesan files there were no "credible" allegations of sexual abuse against any priest currently doing pastoral duties in the diocese.

"I am deeply disappointed that Mr. Dillon is not going further," said Laura Ahearn, executive director of Parents for Megan's Law, a victims' advocate group. "There needs to be a thorough investigation into whether obstruction of justice occurred. This is not enough."