Statute of Limitations and Tolling...what an interesting subject. Garabedian first Tackled the issue of Statute of Limitations for priests in the case involving the Arch Diocese of Boston where preists had been moved out of state in some cases over 20 years prior. He successfully argued that a perpetrator who had left the state had "Tolled the Statute of Limitations" and would not begin again until the priest was either extradicted back to Massachusetts or was subpoenaed back to testify.
He succeeded and opened wide open claims against many preists going back as far as forty years.
Very few have pushed that hard since then, however, the precedence set left Diocesan Administrators clearly exposed and forced to defend innumerable claims for sex abuse, real and contrived. Yes, some claims have proven to be less than accurate in key details and quickly becomes worthless.
The Preisthood became a haven for perversion as the pool of dedicated vicars continued to dissipate post World War II and the Korean War, although more likely related to a growth economy. Young men found the church a forgiving atmosphere for their perversion and it was not long before the "dedicated" preisthood was largely the minority and upward mobility within the Heirarchy virtually assured. But a heirarchy is of little value if you have all chiefs and no indians and thus the problem priests were "tolerated" watchfully and moved when the heat raised to intolerable levels. Good priests frequently Laisized and took up normal lives as social workers and probation officers, married and melted into American society, further diluting the good preisthood to the point of criticality.
The current economic downturn is likely to lead to a new breed of priests, but if economic recovery is achieved in another decade, well the cycle is likely to return...unless the Vatican abandons the archaic rule of celibacy. Of course they would have to get serious about tithing as the church is not use to paying sustainable salaries for families.
In any event, NO-NONE should fear statute of limitations when the perpetrator has moved to Kentucky to hide from his crimes. I would suggest that it would be more than likely the statute of limitations has been tolled...but if he is back to face criminal charges, one must move quickly to preserve the very limited statute of limitations window, but there is a very large insurance policy ready to settle under sufficient pressure from the victims for the wrongs committed at Dun Loring!!!
And any attorney that fails to exploit the narrow window of opportunity should seriously worry that the firm may face errors and omissions claims.
Gailon Arthur Joy
AUReporter
