Deadline for Sex Abuse Claims against Catholic Priests Is April 15

By Journal News
Jorge Fitz-Gibbon
April 10, 2018

https://www.lohud.com/story/news/religion/2018/04/10/deadline-sex-abuse-claims-against-catholic-priests-april-15/502510002/

Alleged victims of sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests have until April 15 to file their final claims with the Archdiocese of New York as part of a victims compensation program set up by the church.

The deadline is for individuals who filed an initial claim with the Archdiocese prior to Nov. 1, the end of the second phase of the compensation program.

Those individuals were given a packet that included a form to request financial compensation for the abuse. Those are the forms due by Sunday.

To date, more than 200 claims of abuse by priests have been filed under the diocese's Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program, launched by Cardinal Timothy Dolan in 2016.

Of those, more than 170 were confirmed and the victims received compensation.

The program gave victims a means to be compensated for the abuse they suffered because the statute of limitations in New York prohibits them from filing civil claims. Nearly all of the claims involve childhood abuse that happened years or decades ago.

The church does not confirm how much has been paid out in total compensation.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of New York, announced a compensation program for victims of sex abuse by priests in 2016. The second phase of the program ended Nov. 1, and those individuals have until April 15 to file their final claims. (Photo: Ricky Flores/The Journal News)

Sex abuse, primarily of young boys, has been the church's largest scandal in recent decades. Over the past decade, dozens of priests have been laicized, removed from the priesthood, because of repeated instances of sexual abuse of children.

In a report earlier this month, Massachusetts-based BishiopAccountability.org, a national watchdog group on the issue, maintained that the Archdiocese of New York has been among the most secretive diocese in reporting the abuse.

Church officials deny the claim, saying that all claims brought to them has been investigated and the victims have been compensated if the claims are confirmed.

Contact: jfitzgib@lohud.com