Sexual abuse lawsuit against retired Kamloops bishop and pastor starts Monday

By Renee Bernard
News 1130
October 05, 2019

https://www.citynews1130.com/2019/10/05/sexual-abuse-lawsuit-against-retired-kamloops-bishop-and-pastor-starts-monday/

A retired Catholic bishop will be in BC Supreme Court next week, defending himself against allegations he allowed sexual abuse to take place back in his Kamloops diocese in the late 70s.

The case is expected to be heard in Vancouver over seven days.

Also named in the case is the man accused of being behind a series of sexual assaults, Fr. Erlindo Molon.

The claim has been filed by a woman who is now 70 years old. Her lawyer says she no longer wishes to have her name published.

According to her lawsuit, she was hired as an elementary school teacher at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, a Catholic elementary school in Kamloops, in 1976. In September of that year, her claim says she was grieving the loss of her father, and sought counselling from Fr. Molon.

Molon had been assigned as co-pastor for Our Lady of Perpetual Help parish in 1974. According to the statement of defence, Molon is from the Philippines, and his superior was the Bishop of Palo, located in the Philippines.

Starting in September and continuing for eight months, according to the woman’s claims, Molon sexually exploited her and repeatedly performed sexual acts upon her innumerable times.

She says in the spring of 1977, she disclosed the sexual assaults to the bishop of the diocese at the time, Adam Exner. Exner would go on to become Archbishop of the Diocese of Vancouver, and is now know Archbishop Emeritus.

However, the woman claims after the disclosure, the assaults not only continued, they escalated in aggression. The lawsuit says the attacks finally ended when the bishop arranged to have Molon removed.

In addition, she says the bishop told her she would have to leave at the end of the school year “under threat of slander and harassment by the education committee.”

For his part, Exner says he dismissed Molon in February of 1977. “In his time in the Diocese of Kamloops, Fr. Molon had issues abiding by his vow of celibacy,” reads his statement of defence. “By February of 1977, the Bishop determined that this issue was such that Fr. Molon could no longer serve the Diocese of Kamloops.”

However, it seems Molon did not stop his pastoral activities. The statement of defence says Molon was recalled back to the Philippines, and that he failed to obey that recall. It was in October of 1977 that the bishop realized he was still acting as a pastor, and issued a letter to Molon.

Molon did leave, and according to the statement of defence, he eventually obtained a position as a military chaplain for the Canadian National Defence.

Exner says because Molon was dismissed in February of 1977, Exner cannot be held liable in any way for any conduct of Molon following that date.

He says he may have met the complainant on one occasion, but insists she did not disclose any sexual assaults. He says they did have a discussion about the relationship between her and Molon.

According to the statement of defence issued by Molon’s lawyers, he is now in his late 80s, is disabled and is now represented by the Ontario Public Guardian and Trustee. He lives in a long-term care facility in Kingston, Ontario and he is incapable of managing his affairs.

The document includes denials that any sexual contact happened between the complainant and Molon.

The woman’s lawsuit says as a result of the alleged sexual assaults, she has post-traumatic stress disorder, has low self-esteem, and depression.

She is seeking a number of damages, including compensation for loss of past earnings, future earning capacity and the cost of past and future health care services.