Kim Gale  |  May 11, 2022

Category: Legal News

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Diocese agrees to pay $28 million to settle clergy sex abuse claims

Throughout 2020, more than 230 clergy sexual abuse lawsuits were filed by plaintiffs in New Jersey, who allege church leaders committed Catholic sex abuse by preying upon children as young as 5 years old.

Even though the Roman Catholic Church sexual abuse scandal has made headlines the last several years, it wasn’t until Dec. 1, 2019 that the state of New Jersey allowed civil suits to be filed by victims whose cases would have previously been prevented due to the statute of limitations.

New Jersey’s five dioceses are Camden, Newark, Paterson, Metuchen and Trenton. The Camden diocese is currently in the midst of bankruptcy proceedings after facing 50-plus lawsuits.

The number of lawsuits doesn’t even tell the whole story, according to The Record and NorthJersey.com, because victims still have time to file such a civil suit. The deadline is approaching in just a handful of weeks, at the end of this year: December 1, 2021.

In addition, any victim who promises not to pursue a lawsuit has the option of filing a claim through the New Jersey Independent Victim Compensation Program, a fund put together by the state’s dioceses to provide non-litigated compensation. That alternative program has received hundreds of applications, but the average claim only pays around $115,000.

Clergy Sexual Abuse Allegations Go Back Decades

In 2019, New Jersey’s five Roman Catholic dioceses published a list of 188 clergy members who had been credibly accused of sexual assault. Even so, there are many priests named in the 230 lawsuits who were not included on that list.

Most of the allegations regard abuse that occurred in the 1970s and 1980s, according to a review of the lawsuits by the Record and NorthJersey.com, but there are allegations that go back as far as the 1940s. While most of the survivors of clergy sexual abuse are men, there are about two dozen women who have come forward with claims. Nearly half of the accused clergy members are no longer living.

Even though any allegation of child abuse is terrifying, the versions of events the Record and NorthJersey.com uncovered are chilling.

Boys sit in movie theater seatsIn one case, a girl found the courage to turn to her brother to tell him about how a priest they knew had raped her, but had tried to make the excuse that God had told him to have sexual relations with her. When his sister told him what had happened, the brother said he had also been sexually abused by that same clergy member. Neither had known until that moment that the other had been sexually assaulted by the same Catholic priest.

Contardo Omarini, who died in 1995, allegedly sexually abused three brothers in the 1950s and 1960s while Omarini was with Plainfield’s St. Bernard parish.

Omarini alleged victim Fred Marigliano told NJMonthly back in 2017 that he remembers the abuse occurring in a Times Square movie theater where Omarini would take preteen-aged boys under the guise of a normal outing to a show.

Marigliano didn’t tell anyone about the sexual abuse until Omarini called him one day when Marigliano had his own preteens at home. Omarini said he wanted to meet Marigliano’s children. That’s the straw that broke the camel’s back. Marigliano then told his wife and his own parents about the three years of abuse he had suffered when Omarini had been entrusted as someone who could be a positive role model and exemplary care giver. Omarini was never charged with abuse.

Accused Former Priest Shot and Killed

One of the priests who had been on the list 188 credibly accused members of the clergy was fatally shot in Henderson, Nev. right after the list was made public.

John Capparelli was accused of committing sexual abuse when he was with Holy Trinity parish in Westfield and St. Theresa in Kenilworth back in the 1980s. According to a statement from Gianforcaro, Capparelli taught within the Newark public school system for many years after he was removed from the ministry in 1992.

Capparelli moved to Nevada in the mid-2010s and placed an ad in the local Craigslist page. Police reported the ad said Capparelli “sought out ‘young and good looking men’ who would be willing to wrestle and or compete in submission matches.’”

The last man to answer that ad was Derrick Decoste, age 26, who was arrested on suspicion of murder and robbery in Capparelli’s shooting death. A bullet casing discovered at the murder scene proved to be a match to a gun owed by Decoste.

Filing a New Jersey Catholic Sex Abuse Lawsuit

A growing number of states are making changes to their sexual abuse laws, allowing more survivors to come forward with their own allegations of abuse. Several states have expanded their statute of limitations to give survivors more time, and some have even instituted what is known as a lookback window, allowing those with previously expired claims — sometimes decades old — to bring their lawsuits forward. The exact parameters of these changes vary from state to state.

If you or someone you love has been subjected to abuse at the hands of a Catholic priest or other leader in the New Jersey Catholic church, you may be able to file a lawsuit and pursue compensation. Of course, filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by this abuse, but it can at least provide financial compensation, as well as help those responsible—including individual perpetrators and organizations that may have allowed the abuse—accountable for their actions and inactions.

Filing a lawsuit can be a daunting prospect, so Top Class Actions has laid the groundwork for you by connecting you with an experienced attorney. Consulting an attorney can help you determine if you have a claim, navigate the complexities of litigation, and maximize your potential compensation.

Join a Free New Jersey Catholic Church Abuse Lawsuit Investigation

If you were sexually abused by a Catholic priest in New Jersey, you now have two options for pursuing compensation. Learn more by filling out the form on this page for a FREE case evaluation by New Jersey Catholic Church abuse lawyers.

Learn More

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.

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