Although the Rev. Lawrence Murphy died in 1998, an Illinois man known as "John Doe 16" has filed a lawsuit against the Vatican for allegedly covering up the priest's sexual abuse, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. The man was a student at a school for the deaf in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The deaf school abuse spanned years.
The lawsuit seeks to hold high-level Roman Catholic officials liable for abuse plaintiffs (John Doe 16 and others) say was allowed to continue despite allegedly being told about the deaf school abuse.
The larger story about Rev. Lawrence Murphy has gotten plenty of play in the national and international press, including this article in the Associated Press. As many as 200 boys at the Milwaukee deaf school may have been molested by the priest between 1950 and 1975, many of whom say they were ignored or silenced when they attempted to speak out.
Catholic Pope Benedict XVI (then known as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger) halted a church trial against Rev. Lawrence Murphy about the deaf school abuse because he sent a letter to the Cardinal claiming he had repented, recently released documents show.
According the Sun-Times article, John Doe 16 wrote a letter to then-Vatican Secretary of State Angelo Sodano on March 5, 1995 claiming the now-deceased priest molested him repeatedly for many years. It was previously believed that the Vatican didn't learn about the abuse until July 1996.
John Doe 16's Illinois injury lawyer released the letter and furnished a copy of a receipt that proves the letter reached the Vatican. The Vatican, a sovereign state, dismissed the lawsuit as a "stunt" that lacks merit. Vatican attorney Jeffrey Lena said the Vatican did not learn about the abuse until several decades later.
John Doe 16's lawsuit seeks release of confidential Vatican files and unspecified monetary damages.
Related Resources:
- Clergy Malpractice (LawBrain)
- Milwaukee Lawsuit Against Pope Benedict Claims Catholic Church Covered Up U.S. Priest Sex Abuse (New York Daily News)
- Search Chicago Injury Lawyers (FindLaw)
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