OREGON
Catholic Sentinel
Ed Langlois
Of the Catholic Sentinel
A man who claimed he was sexually abused as a boy by Dominican Father Emmerich Vogt has dropped his lawsuit against Holy Rosary Parish in Portland and the California-based Dominican province.
A lack of evidence and exculpatory testimony by the plaintiff’s brothers caused the shift, says John Kaempf, a Portland attorney representing Holy Rosary and the Dominicans.
“It is a shame that he was able to anonymously damage Father Vogt, Holy Rosary, and the province through false public allegations and organized protests, thereby using his anonymity as a sword, not a shield,” Kaempf says. “My clients have worked diligently and successfully to prevent child abuse, and they will continue to do so.”
The suit, filed in February 2016, alleged that abuse began 20 years ago at Holy Rosary and lasted a decade. Father Vogt denied the allegations.
The brothers, who were altar servers with the plaintiff whenever he was with Father Vogt, say there was no abuse. When the church and the friars discovered the lack of evidence and the brothers’ statements, they refused to pay to settle the suit. The plaintiff then dismissed it, Kaempf says.
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