BishopAccountability.org
	Priests' Attorney Raps Bishop Lawyer of Two Named in Abuse Suit Says Remarks Damaging By Mark Guydish Times Leader [Pennsylvania] May 24, 2005 The attorney who represented two priests in a civil lawsuit alleging sexual misconduct with a minor issued a stinging rebuke of Bishop Joseph Martino on Monday Attorney Sal Cognetti, who represented the Revs. Carlos Urrutigoity and Eric Ensey, was responding to a May 6 press release from the Diocese of Scranton that announced a settlement in the suit filed by a man identified as John Doe. In the diocese press release, Martino was quoted as saying that Doe's allegations "were very damaging. In view of the serious claims made by the young person and in light of the statements by the witnesses who supported his claim, it was determined that the just decision was to reach a settlement that will assist the victim and his family as they attempt to heal." Cognetti countered that there wasn't "even one corroborative testimony in support of" Doe's claims. "It shocks me deeply as an attorney to see the prejudicial and antagonistic nature of the statements leveled against my clients by their own bishop, apparently giving credence to the allegations without any finding of fact whatsoever on his part (or a court's part)." Cognetti also claimed Martino "does not know the case, except from those who have, quite apparently, erroneously advised him on the matter," and that the bishop "does not even know personally the priests he has so unjustly defamed. ..." Stressing that the settlement was not an admission of guilt, Cognetti wrote that "in many instances, such as the present case, lawsuits may quickly become more expensive than the relief being sought by a plaintiff. As a lawyer, I saw it as my duty to advise my clients to opt to settle out of court, as many innocent people have to do." Cognetti also took a swipe at media coverage of the case, in which Doe accused the two priests of sexual misconduct that started while the Society of St. John -- including Urrutigoity and Ensey -- and Doe were staying at St. Gregory's Academy in Elmhurst. A trial, he wrote, had a high "risk of ending up with a jury pool tainted by the news of similar allegations in other dioceses, as well as several conjectures printed as 'facts' by the news media and one-sided reports given by the plaintiff's attorneys." Under the settlement, Doe will get $200,000 from the diocese, $55,000 from the society and $125,000 from the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, which runs St. Gregory's. The Fraternity's payment will be made over time, so it will actually total $199,550, according to Doe's attorney, James Bendell. The diocese press release also announced that the society had sold its 1,000-acre property and that part of that transaction "was the full payment of the loan which was arranged by former Scranton Bishop James C. Timlin." The diocese had guaranteed a $2.6 million loan to help the debt-ridden society. The society issued its own statement May 6, contending "the successful sale of the property gives evidence to the society's claim that their project is financially viable." Acknowledging ownership of the land had created a "substantial mortgage," the society press release -- which had no individual's name attached to it -- said that after the sale "The Society remains free of all debt." It also apparently remains free of any home or religious sanction. When Bishop Martino "suppressed" the society in November, he essentially revoked former Bishop James Timlin's approval to allow the society to exist and set up in the diocese.
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