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Mspi Catholic boarding school sued
in alleged sex abuse
July 17, 2007
The Associated Press
http://www.clarionledger.com
GULFPORT, Miss. --A federal lawsuit
alleges officials with a Catholic boarding school in Bay St. Louis
concealed the sexual abuse of a then-15 year-old in 1983 and 1984.
The lawsuit was filed Monday in
U.S. District Court in Gulfport against Saint Stanislaus
College/Saint Stanislaus High School. The lawsuit seeks an
unspecified amount of damages.
The school principal and school
president both are away this week attending a retreat, said
Assistant Principal Susan Estrade.
"I would not be knowledgeable
enough to talk to you about the lawsuit," Estrade said.
The Saint Stanislaus school, for
grades six to 12, is independent of the Catholic Diocese. It's
operated by the Brothers of Sacred Heart, which operates 10 schools
in the United States and one in Great Britain.
"Our investigation indicates that
this case falls into the same sad pattern of child abuse followed by
cover-up of which we are all too familiar," said attorney Jim Reeves
of Biloxi, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the former student.
"These defendants must be held accountable for their actions and the
damage caused this family."
According to the lawsuit, during
the 1983-1984 school year, the plaintiff in the lawsuit was
subjected to the supervision of an instructor referred to as Brother
William, whom the suit describes as a pedophile.
On multiple occasions during the
school year, the student was summoned by Brother William to his
office and sexually and mentally abused, the lawsuit says.
"As a result of the foregoing, (the
plaintiff) suffered extreme physical and mental pain and suffering,"
according to the lawsuit, which presents only one side of a legal
argument.
The lawsuit says the plaintiff, who
is now a Wyoming resident, turned to mind-altering drugs to deal
with the abuse and developed a repressed memory. His addiction and
unsoundness of mind continued until the late summer or early fall of
2006, and he continues to deal with occasional drug relapses,
according to the lawsuit.
His repressed memory of the alleged
sexual and mental abuse was revived through counseling in November
2006, the lawsuit said.
"Based upon information and belief,
the defendants obtained actual knowledge of the crimes committed as
outlined herein," the lawsuit said. "However, rather than report
these to the minor's parents or appropriate law enforcement
authorities, the defendants actively concealed the crimes."
Nationally, the Catholic church has
been engulfed in controversy over allegations that officials often
didn't remove priests accused of abuse and transferred them instead.
In March 2006, the Catholic Diocese
of Jackson agreed to pay more than $5.1 million to settle six
lawsuits involving 19 individuals who were sexually abused as
children by priests or had loved ones who were abused.
The lawsuits involved accusations
of sexual abuse by priests from the early 1960s through the early
1980s.
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