Apuron Seeks Dismissal of Libel Claims

By Haidee V. Eugenio
Pacific Daily News
March 9, 2018

http://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2018/03/09/apuron-seeks-dismissal-libel-claims/409420002/

Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron has asked the court to dismiss the remaining claims in a $2 million defamation lawsuit filed against him by former altar boys.

Superior Court of Guam Judge Michael J. Bordallo had dismissed the slander claims against Apuron in the case, but not the libel claims.

Slander is spoken defamation, while libel is written defamation.

Apuron, through attorney Jacqueline Terlaje, said the plaintiffs have failed to show there was defamation and have failed to establish malice.

The plaintiffs are former altar boys Roy Quintanilla, Walter Denton, Roland Sondia and the estate of the deceased former altar boy Sonny Quinata. They have accused Apuron of sexually abusing them in the late 1970s, and sued for defamation after Apuron said they are lying.

In Apuron's Feb. 27 court filing, Apuron said he directed, authorized and approved several statements in May, "without any malicious intent to protect his personal interests, and that of the Archdiocese of Agana."

The first statement was from the archdiocese and Apuron, in response to newspaper ads by the Concerned Catholics of Guam, which called for victims of priest abuse to come forward.

The second statement was a video of Apuron, denying allegations that he sexually abused Quintanilla.

The third was an archdiocese statement, denying the statements made by Doris Concepcion, who said Apuron molested her son when he was an altar boy.

Apuron's court filing also cited a video statement by Deacon Frank Tenorio, defending Apuron from the allegations.

In his filing, Apuron denied each and every allegation about the sexual abuse of minors.

Apuron is one of more than a dozen Guam clergy accused of raping, sexually abusing or molesting children, based on nearly 160 clergy sex abuse lawsuits filed in local and federal court since 2016.