Lawsuit: Chicago archdiocese hid sex abuse, created nuisance

WXOW
February 4, 2015

http://www.wxow.com/story/28027253/lawsuit-chicago-archdiocese-hid-sex-abuse-created-nuisance

CHICAGO (AP) - A man who says he was sexually abused by a former priest is suing the Archdiocese of Chicago, claiming it created a public nuisance by shielding pedophile priests and allowing them to live freely in the community.

The claim filed Wednesday in Cook County Circuit Court comes on top of other legal action taken in recent years by plaintiffs and their attorneys.

Last year, the archdiocese released thousands of files on dozens of priests that it identified as abusers.

But Chicago attorney Marc Pearlman says a nuisance claim allows victims to seek evidence of sexual abuse across the archdiocese, rather than focus on allegations against one individual. The lawsuit seeks disclosure of the names and documents for all abusive clergy dating to 1950.

A nuisance lawsuit was successful in Minnesota, where it forced the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and the Diocese of Winona to disclose tens of thousands of church documents and the names of dozens of accused priests.

Pearlman is working with Jeff Anderson, the Minnesota attorney who handled the cases there.

The archdiocese did not immediately respond to requests for comment.