OAKLAND (CA)
Daily Star [London, England]
April 27, 2026
By Sian Hewitt
The case was one of hundreds of lawsuits filed by survivors of clergy abuse against the diocese.
A man who was sexually abused by a priest has won a multi million pound payout. The man, who has not been identified publicly, has been awarded $16 million by a jury after bringing a case against his former church.
The survivor won the civil lawsuit against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland, and now it has been said that the verdict “could have broad implications for hundreds of similar clergy abuse cases.” The case is just one of hundreds of lawsuits filed by survivors of clergy abuse against the diocese.
Others have also come forward with lawsuits, but until now, the other have been on hold since the diocese filed for bankruptcy three years ago. A judge allowed this case, along with a handful of others, to move forward but this is the first to have reached a verdict, and it is a big one.
The lawsuit was brought by a plaintiff identified in court only as “John Doe”. He said he was sexually abused more than 50 years ago by former East Bay priest Stephen Kiesle.
The case went to trial and the jury found the diocese liable and awarded $16 million in damages. The survivor’s attorney said the verdict brings some closure to his client and could encourage others to come forward.
The attorney Rick Simons said: “Relieved that a 16-year trial has come to an end, exonerated of the shame and guilt that he’s carried since he was 10 years old.”
Simons, who is also on a legal team representing all Catholic clergy cases in Northern California, said there are at least 60 cases linked to Kiesle and hundreds more tied to the Oakland Diocese. “And there are hundreds of kids who either never came forward, who died early, who are living on the streets,” he said.
Simons said jurors in this so-called test trial made a statement with the multi-million dollar verdict.
“They’re telling all of these institutions and their insurance companies that we’ve had enough and we recognize the depth of harm in a child abuse case even if these other institutions and people won’t,” Simons said.
Kiesle was sentenced to six years in prison in 2004 after a wave of molestation cases surfaced against him. He is currently in prison in connection with a separate 2022 vehicular manslaughter case.