Child Abuse, Sex Assaults at Mount Saint Joseph Youth House, Suit Says

By Richard Cowen
NorthJersey.com
February 17, 2018

https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/passaic/totowa/2018/02/17/child-abuse-sex-assaults-mount-saint-joseph-youth-house-suit-says/345888002/

A former administrator with Catholic Family & Community Services has sued the agency, claiming she was sickened by toxic mold in the workplace and later fired after investigating allegations of child abuse and sexual assault at the Mount Saint Joseph's Children Center in Totowa.

In a lawsuit, Loretta Urban-Critchett says she went to Mount Saint Joseph's in June of 2015 to investigate a report that an employee had thrown hot coffee on a student. There were also reports of a boy who had twice been sexually assaulted — once in a van with employees present. And she alleges there was a "fight club" organized by night shift workers at the home for troubled youths.

Urban-Critchett says she spoke to the executive director, Diane Silbernagel, who promised to hire a private investigator. She also spoke to the Human Resources director, Dennis Butler, "and Mr. Butler failed to act on the rape incident," the lawsuit says.

Richard Sokerka, the communications director for the Diocese of Paterson, declined to comment on the suit.

"We do not comment on matters of litigation," Sokera said.

Urban-Critchett also claims that the agency agency cheated workers out of overtime by classifying them as "exempt," when they should have been eligible for the premium. Workers were not allowed to show more than 40 hours on their time sheet, "regardless of how many hours they worked," the suit says.

Catholic Family & Community Services is a division of Catholic Charities, which operates child care, nutrition, behavioral health and senior programs in Passaic, Morris and Sussex counties.

Urban-Critchett claims to have gone to the Totowa Police Department with a litany of complaints on March 17, 2016, according to the lawsuit. Totowa Police Chief Robert Coyle said she was referred to the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office, but it is not clear what happened from that point forward.

Assistant Prosecutor Jason Harding, the head of the juvenile division, said state law prohibits him from commenting on juvenile cases. He wouldn't confirm or deny whether the prosecutor's office brought any cases against Mount Saint Joseph's.

"I am bound the state's non-disclosure law," Harding said. "I can't discuss any juvenile matters whatsoever."

A public records request for Totowa police reports regrading calls and other documents related to the home was not filled by press time.

The Diocese of Paterson closed Mount Saint Joseph's in June 2016, ending a 108-year run. Declining enrollment was the primary reason for the closure, according to a statement on the Mount Saint Joseph website.

A woman who worked at the Catholic Charities office at 24 DeGrasse Street in Paterson claims she got sick from mold. (Photo: Richard Cowen/NorthJersey.com)

The youth home, which offered housing and education under one roof, was under the auspices of the state Department of Families and Children. Leigh Arce, a departments spokeswoman, said there were no licensing complaints against Mount Saint Joseph's from 2014 until it closed. But citing child confidentiality laws, Arce declined to comment whether there were any investigations into misconduct at Mount Saint Joseph's.

Urban-Critichett claims she was hired in March 2015 as a Human Resources Coordinator, with the understanding that she would be promoted to Human Resources Director the following July. Urban-Critchett says the diocese backed off the promise because she blew the whistle.

The suit says she became sick from the mold and construction dust, and suffered from a a variety of symptoms, including asthma, numbness, joint pain, fatigue and memory loss. She became pregnant and her son was born with elevated lead, which the suit contends was caused by the toxic work environment.

Instead of becoming Human Resources director, Urban-Critchett says her role was reduced to that of an administrative assistant and she was barred from high-level administrative meetings. She was terminated on February 15, 2017, and a year later is still sick and unable to work, her attorney said.

"Obviously, she's been quite ill because of the conditions of the workplace which they did not fix," said her attorney, Robyne D. LaGrotta. And by blowing the whistle, "she was doing her job. There was no reason to terminate her," LaGrotta said.

Email: CowenR@northjersey.com