Diocese of Charleston Faces Second Lawsuit in a Week

WCSC-TV
January 11, 2021

https://www.live5news.com/2021/01/11/diocese-charleston-faces-second-lawsuit-week/

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A lawsuit filed against the Diocese of Charleston alleges abuse dating back decades.

The new suit is the second filed against the diocese in a week’s time.

The lawsuit was filed by a man who claims a priest sexually abused him over span of two years in the mid-1970s while the defendant was a student at St. John’s Catholic Church and Cathedral School.

The victim says in the suit he was 13 when he he started to be abused on a weekly basis. He said Frederick Hopwood, a priest, would put his hands down the victim’s pants and molest him.

The man said he repressed these memories until recently.

He is suing for damages, claiming the diocese either knew or should have known the abuse was happening.

Hopwood was previously at the center of lawsuits that alleged sexual abuse. He was convicted in the 1990s of committing a lewd act upon a child. Hopwood died several years ago.

Last week, a woman sued the diocese, saying she was molested as a child by a different priest.

Over the years, dozens of priests have been accused.

The diocese has settled various claims, including a $12 million dollar class action lawsuit for victims.

The Diocese of Charleston has not yet responded to a request for comment.