SEXUAL ABUSE LAWSUIT FILED IN POLK COUNTY AGAINST RETIRED PRIEST

Horowitz Law
April 28, 2020

https://adamhorowitzlaw.com/sexual-abuse-lawsuit-filed-in-orlando-against-pedophile-priest/

On Monday, April 27, 2020 sex abuse attorney Adam Horowitz filed a Complaint in Polk County Circuit Court against  Catholic priest Father Fred Ruse, who in 2018, suddenly retired from the active ministry. The suit, filed on behalf of a Sarasota County man, alleges that in 2001 and 2002, he was sexually abused multiple times by Father Ruse in a classroom and in the chaplain’s office at the Demilly Correctional Institution in Polk City, Florida when the plaintiff was approximately 14 and 15 years old.

The lawsuit claims that Father Ruse of the Diocese of Orlando, then pastor of St. Matthews in Winter Haven, Florida, used his status as a clergyman to meet privately with the plaintiff. He actively groomed the boy and gained his trust by showering him with attention and giving him gifts such as Harry Potter books according to the lawsuit. As their relationship developed Father Ruse allegedly began to fondle the plaintiff’s genitals and masturbate himself to ejaculation. The Complaint states that the sexual contact progressed to Father Ruse giving oral sex to the boy and receiving oral sex from him.

As a minor, the plaintiff did not have the legal capacity to consent to any sexual contact by Father Ruse. He was horrified and in shock.  The Complaint states that his isolation in the Correctional Institution coupled with the priest’s status compounded his trauma and distress, resulting in continual severe emotional, physical and psychological suffering.

Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests in the Diocese of Orlando. If you or a loved one was sexually abused, raped or sexually molested by a priest or other clergy, contact our law firm at (888) 283-9922 or send an e-mail to sexual abuse lawyer Adam Horowitz at adam@adamhorowitzlaw.com for a free consultation.