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  Verdict in Deluca Priest Sex Abuse Case; St. E's Negligent

By Amy Cherry
WDEL
December 1, 2010

http://www.wdel.com/story.php?id=401971976674

[with audio]

The highly anticipated verdict is in, in the priest sex abuse civil suit brought by survivor, John Vai, who we're now hearing from for the first time.

WDEL's Amy Cherry spoke with him. Audio Here

DeLuca has been ordered to pay damages to Vai in the amount of $30 million

The jury also found St. Elizabeth's parish in Wilmington grossly negligent. They've been ordered to pay $3 million.

Vai tells WDEL he's been searching for the truth, and now he's found it.

"Immediately, I feel some relief, some of satisfaction of going through a six-week trial." But Vai says the fight is far from over.

"We want the truth out. We want it all out. We want the Diocese of Wilmington and the parishes here, locally, to realize that they made a gross mistake," says Vai.

The Vai case now moves into the punitive damages stage, where it's expected to set a precedent for the remaining trials slated to go forward against DeLuca and other parishes.

In a written statement, Bishop Francis Malooly with the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington says he's disappointed that the people of St. Elizabeth's have been found liable for the acts of DeLuca. He says it's "unfortunate" the parish community will be forced to pay for DeLuca's criminal and sinful acts.

 
 

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