BY KEVIN DUGGAN
Almost 600 child sex abuse
lawsuits have been fi led
against the Catholic Church’s
Diocese of Brooklyn since the
passage of the state’s Child
Victims Act in 2019 through
the end of 2020, according to a
recent analysis.
The 571 complaints fi led
against the Diocese, which covers
Brooklyn and Queens, during
the fi rst 17 months of the act
includes fi lings against 532 institutions
under control of the
religious district and 301 alleged
abusers. Of those alleged
abusers are 230 members of the
clergy, according to a report
published Tuesday by the legal
fi rm Jeff Anderson and Associates,
which represents 127
plaintiffs in the two boroughs.
“To every survivor that has
come forward and every survivor
that does: it’s an act of courage
and we’re grateful to you,
knowing that you have made a
difference in protecting kids in
the future and in helping other
survivors come forward and
share their secret, get help,
and have hope and bring healing,”
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COURIER L 16 IFE, APRIL 9-15, 2021
said the company’s attorney
Jeff Anderson in a virtual
press conference April 6.
The most lawsuits under
the act were against defrocked
priest Romano Ferraro, who
has amassed 18 lawsuits
against him stemming from
1958-1991. The New York Times
once called him one of the most
“prolifi c priest pedophiles on
the Eastern Seaboard.”
Among the Brooklyn organizations
with high case
counts is the Bishop Loughlin
Memorial High School on Clermont
Avenue, which counts
seven lawsuits. Five of them
involve the late priest George
Zatarga, who was accused of
grooming and sexually abusing
boys at the Clinton Hill institution,
according to court
fi lings. Zatarga died in 2011.
Another concentration of
cases involve Nazareth Regional
High School in East
Flatbush, where there were
six lawsuits covering abuse
from 1973-1998.
The Child Victims Act was
enacted in August 2019 and allows
victims who were abused
as minors a one-year “look
back window” to circumvent
statute of limitations restrictions
and fi le lawsuits against
their abusers — regardless of
when the abuse occurred. Due
to COVID-19, Gov. Andrew
Cuomo extended the window
for another year until Aug. 14.
The Brooklyn Diocese accounts
for almost one-fi fth of
the 2,801 cases fi led statewide
through Dec. 31, 2020, according
to the law fi rm, which has
yet to include cases from the
new year.
Anderson said there are
likely many more people who
Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School in Clinton Hill was named in seven
abuse lawsuits between 1964 and 1975 under the CVA. Google
have yet to fi le charges against
their abusers. “There is no
question based on the data
that we have assembled of survivors
that have come forward
so far that this is still a fraction
of those that will,” he said.
His company compiled an
online database where people
can search fi led lawsuits by diocese
or by perpetrator, which
the lawyers hope will encourage
more victims to come forward
over the coming months.
“I expect and hope that every
survivor gets the word
and gets the chance to have
a voice and honor that truth
does come forward and get the
help and know that there’s a
chance and a better day,” Anderson
said.
In response to the report,
Diocese spokesman John Quaglione
provided the following
statement:
“The Diocese of Brooklyn
takes each of these complaints
seriously and cooperates fully
with any and all law enforcement
investigations. Most of
these allegations are from decades
ago, which does not negate
the fact that the accused
has the right to due process
under the law. We pray for all
victims of sexual abuse that
they may be able to further
heal and be strengthened by
God’s love for them.”
SPEAKING OUT
Almost 600 child sex abuse lawsuits fi led against
Brooklyn Diocese under Child Victims Act
regardless of insurance or immigration status.
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