NEW YORK (NY)
New York Daily News
February 14, 2019
By Molly Crane-Newman and Nancy Dillon
A Manhattan native who says a priest repeatedly molested her – sometimes during games of strip poker – is among the plaintiffs in a new lawsuit demanding the names of all New York pedophile priests and brothers reported to the Catholic Church.
The lawsuit against the Catholic Conference of Major Superiors of Men was filed Thursday in Manhattan Supreme Court, the same day Gov. Cuomo signed into law the historic Child Victims Act.
The new law extends the criminal and civil statutes of limitations on sexual assault so victims, including victims of clergy sex abuse, have a new chance to seek justice and accountability decades later.
“For years I had hoped that something would change, so that I, and people like me, who have stayed silent, would finally see justice. Today, by filing this lawsuit, hopefully the truth about the perpetrators will come out,” plaintiff Bridget Lyons, 47, said as the lawsuit was announced.
Lyons was a 13-year-old girl living with her mom and 8-year-old brother in the East Village when Father Jack Kennington began molesting her in the 1980s, she says.
Kennington, who was a priest at Most Holy Redeemer in Manhattan, inappropriately touched her and her brother during massages and the secret card games, she and her family previously alleged.
“This abuse led to years of depression, PTSD, trust issues. …It also ruined my faith and trust in the Catholic Church,” she said Thursday at a press conference with her fellow plaintiffs and lawyer Jeff Anderson.
Lyons’ initial bid to sue Kennington in 1993 was rejected due to the statute of limitations, but her brother was allowed to file thanks to his younger age. The brother’s suit was settled for an undisclosed sum.
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