Local court judge postpones further action in $2M libel suit, in clergy abuse cases

By Haidee V Eugenio
Pacific Daily News
August 9, 2017

https://goo.gl/4yv8ev

Archbishop Anthony Apuron

Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron's counsel, Jacqueline Terlaje, says her client's motion to dismiss the $2 million defamation lawsuit against him has been pending for a year but has agreed to a judge's Aug. 9, 2017, order of a 30-day stay.

Further action on clergy sex abuse cases filed in the Superior Court of Guam, as well as a libel suit filed against Archbishop Anthony Apuron in Superior Court, has been delayed until at least Sept. 12 because of pending settlement talks.

Superior Court Judge Michael J. Bordallo  Wednesday morning held a status hearing for 20 clergy sex abuse cases and the $2 million libel and and slander lawsuit filed by former altar boys against Apuron and the Archdiocese of Agana.

Bordallo during the hearing ordered a temporary stay on the libel case and abuse cases until an agreement has been reached on the mediation process for the nearly 100 abuse cases pending in local and federal court. The church had requested the stay.

Apuron’s counsel, Jacqueline Terlaje, told Bordallo that Apuron’s motion to dismiss the defamation case had been filed about a year ago.

Terlaje said Apuron is not participating in the mediation process at this time.

“On the defamation suit, what our grounds are, is that every person has the right to assert their innocence; that they cannot be sued in defamation simply by asserting their innocence,” Apuron’s counsel said after the status conference. “The court has ordered a temporary stay. 30 days is not going to be a huge delay in the matter and I am pleased with that, the court has an interest in moving the case forward.”

Bordallo, who initially recused himself from hearing the defamation case, said he will review Apuron’s motion to dismiss within the 30-day period.

Bordallo, Superior Court Presiding Judge Alberto Lamorena and all the other local court judges have recused themselves from hearing the libel and slander case between September 2016 and January 2017,  saying they have ties to either the plaintiffs or the defendants.

During Wednesday’s hearing and in his initial notice of disqualification, Bordallo said Concerned Catholics of Guam president David J. Sablan is the father-in-law of his current chamber clerk, Cynthia C. Sablan. Bordallo later on agreed to hear the case.

Bordallo said if after the 30-day period and the parties are unable to agree on a mediation process, the defamation and clergy abuse cases have to move forward. The next status hearing is set for 9:30 a.m. on Sept. 12.

He urged parties to start thinking how to divide the cases just in case there is no agreement on the mediation process. 

Attorney David Lujan, who represents dozens of accusers who filed lawsuits against the church in federal court, has said there will be a meeting Sept. 5 related to the mediation that is scheduled to take place from Oct. 30 to Nov. 3.

"Hopefully we'll be able to come to a settlement through the mediation process with the victims," archdiocese attorney John Terlaje said after the hearing.

Attorney Gloria Rudolph represented the plaintiffs in the libel case during Wednesday’s hearing.

Apuron and the archdiocese called the former altar boys liars after they publicly accused Apuron of sexually abusing them in Agat in the 1970s. The former altar boys are Walter Denton, Roy Quintanilla and Roland Sondia.

Doris Concepcion, the mother of deceased former altar boy Joseph Quinata also is a plaintiff in the libel suit against Apuron and the church. The archdiocese, after Apuron was suspended, retracted his statements. 

The pope suspended Apuron on June 6, 2016. Besides a libel suit and clergy sex abuse lawsuits, Apuron is also undergoing a Vatican canonical trial.

Counsels for plaintiffs in the clergy sex abuse cases filed in local court were also present, including attorneys Kevin Fowler and Anthony Perez, as well as other defendants including the Boy Scouts of America’s counsel Patrick Civille.