Posts Tagged 'catholic church'

PA Priest Caught Photographing High School Wrestlers from Behind

PA priest Monsignor Thomas Derzack was dressed in plain clothes when he attended a wrestling tournament at Bethlehem Catholic High School late last December. That’s when, according to Bethlehem police and the Pennsylvania diocese, he was caught photographing the boys from behind. A police officer present at the event noticed Derzack’s behavior, confronted him, and had him delete the photos from his camera. He then left the school.

The Diocese has since removed Derzack, age 70, from his position in ...

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Boy Scouts, Catholic Church Using Variety of Tactics to Lobby Against Abuse Statutes

Catholic Church lobbying legislators in sermons and bulletins on sex abuse billIn early 2000, an episode of The West Wing aired in which a lawyer – in an effort to influence the White House to commute his client’s death sentence – convinces a rabbi to deliver a sermon on capital punishment during that week’s services as a senior aid to the President is known to sit among the attendees. The President, a devout Catholic, would himself ...

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As Work Continues in Pennsylvania, New Jersey Considers Implications of New Sex Abuse Statutes of Limitations

Pennsylvania and New Jersey work to extend statute of limitations in church sex abuse casesMultiple bills to extend the statute of limitations for victims of child sex abuse have been under consideration in Pennsylvania in recent months. Republican Representative Paul Schemel of Franklin does not want to see a change to the laws governing how long a survivor of sexual abuse has before they must come forward. “We have statutes of limitations for reasons,” ...

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New Jersey Moves to Extend Statute of Limitations for Sex Abuse Cases

New Jersey extends statute of limitations for sex abuse casesNew Jersey has joined a growing number of states that are giving power to the voices of those who were sexually abused as children at the hands of the clergy and organizational leaders tasked with teaching them and keeping them safe. While study after study has shown that it can take years – if not decades – for a victim to come to grips with their ...

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Administrator of PA Dioceses Sex Abuse Funds Has Extensive Prior Experience

The vast majority of Pennsylvania Catholic dioceses have chosen Kenneth Feinberg’s Washington, D.C.-based law firm to handle the administration of funds they’re using to compensate survivors of sex abuse at the hands of the Church.

Feinberg is highly experienced in such matters and has become, as described by triblive.com, the “go-to person for determining how people are compensated in the wake of tragedy.” His prior engagements include the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal that rocked Penn ...

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New Information Emerges on Pennsylvania Catholic Church Sex Abuse Victims Funds

As several Pennsylvania dioceses move to establish funds to settle claims over hundreds of sex abuse allegations, details have emerged about how the funds will be paid and the pathways that survivors of the abuse may have toward filing their claims.

The funds, known as reconciliation and reparation funds, are particularly important to those whose claims may have exceeded the statutes of limitations that would normally bar the victim from pursuing civil action in court. It ...

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