Apuron Accusers Revise Slander Lawsuit

By Steve Limtiaco
Pacific Daily News
July 25, 2016

http://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2016/07/25/apuron-accusers-revise-slander-lawsuit/87518126/

From left, Sharleen Santos-Bamba, representing her uncle, Roy Quintanilla; Roland Sondia; Walter Denton; and Doris Concepcion, who says her late son, Joseph Quinata was a clergy abuse victim, announce a lawsuit against Archbishop Anthony Apuron at the Haga?tn?a Law Library on July 1. The libel and slander lawsuit also names the Archdiocese of Agana and 50 other individuals.

The former altar boys who accused Archbishop Anthony Apuron of sexually assaulting them have revised their $2 million libel and slander lawsuit, citing more examples in which the local church allegedly defamed them after they made their allegations public.

The revised lawsuit also argues that Archbishop Savio Tai Fai Hon, who has temporarily assumed Apuron’s duties in Guam, should be held equally accountable for past statements by the church because the church has not retracted or repudiated any of the statements.

The revised lawsuit accuses Apuron and the church of making defamatory statements against the accusers, despite knowing, “there had already been a history of sexual abuse committed by priests in the Agana Archdiocese.”

Archbishop Anthony Apuron. (Photo: PDN file)

Since May, three former Agat altar boys and the mother of a deceased former altar boy have come forward to publicly accuse Apuron of sexually assaulting the boys when he was parish priest in the late 1970s.

Roy Quintanilla stated his allegations on May 17, followed a couple of weeks later by Doris Concepcion, who said her deceased son, Joseph A. Quinata, had told her Apuron molested him. Walter G. Denton in early June stated Apuron had raped him during a sleepover, and Roland Sondia in mid-June stated Apuron had molested him.

Hon took over for Apuron during the church investigation into the allegations. According to canon law, only the Vatican can investigate allegations against an archbishop.

The archdiocese and Apuron issued strongly worded statements and video messages in response to the first allegations, stating the accusers are lying as part of an organized effort to undermine Apuron’s authority.

The church did not make any statements disputing the latest allegations, stating only that they are being investigated.

The accusers are seeking $500,000 each in general damages, plus additional damages in an amount to be decided during a trial.

The revised lawsuit notes that, on May 19, the archdiocese released a video in which Deacon Frank Tenorio questions the allegations against Apuron, stating they are orchestrated by people who are against Apuron.

“My brothers and sisters in Christ, please, I beg you to stop this nonsense,” Tenorio stated in the video.

The lawsuit states the Archdiocese, on May 31, after Concepcion’s allegations were made public, issued a statement calling it a “malicious and calumnious accusation,” and stating there is an effort to “confuse and mislead the faithful,” to the point of inducing some people to testify falsely.

The lawsuit alleges that the statements made by Apuron and the archdiocese were made with malice, or were negligent because they failed to determine whether the statements were false or defamatory.

Contact: slimtiaco@guampdn.com