PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Daily News
MORGAN ZALOT, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER ZALOTM@PHILLYNEWS.COM, 215-854-5928
POSTED: Thursday, April 30, 2015
IN WHAT THEIR attorney called a “significant step” in the healing process of two survivors of child sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia has settled the first civil suits filed in 2011 after a damning grand-jury report on sex abuse by area priests.
The settlements with survivors – identified in court documents as John Doe 10 and John Doe 187 – were made earlier this year, the second coming in February the day before jury selection was to begin for the trials in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, said attorney Dan Monahan, who represented both men. Monahan and attorney Jeff Anderson announced the settlements yesterday.
Monahan said the settlements mark a significant development for both men, now in their 30s, as both came forward after the statute of limitations in their cases had passed, meaning their abusers could not be criminally charged.
“For these individuals to come forward, it gave them a certain amount of power that had been taken away from them as children,” said Monahan. “Both are at better places in their lives because of this process.”
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