A judge threw out a sex-abuse lawsuit against a private school. He said that as a nonprofit institution the American Boychoir School could not be sued for acts that injured a child. Two lawsuits had been filed against the school claiming dozens of boys had been molested by employees of the school.
The New Jersey law prevents victims suing charitable institutions, while leaving individuals open for lawsuits.
- Mr. Hardwicke said he was “absolutely stunned” by the judge’s decision and planned to appeal. “I was really taught, and truly believed, that the courts were interested in justice, that the legal system was interested in protecting the rights of victims,” Mr. Hardwicke said.
He’s incredibly naive then. The legal system is not concerned with protecting victims, but with administering the laws passed by legislators. If it were concerned primarily with victims then no criminal would ever get off on a technicality.
It doesn’t look like the situation will change either, even though a bill has been filed that would repeal the law.
- In a telephone interview, Senator William L. Gormley, the Judiciary Committee co-chairman, said flatly, “The bill isn’t going to be moving.” Mr. Gormley said he opposed the bill because it would open the gates to lawsuits for acts that were decades old.
The article also notes that the Catholic bishops of New Jersey are also lobbying heavily against the bill. While I think the bill could open the floodgates against the Church, I still think it should be passed. It’s time we, Catholics, as a whole, dealt with this forthrightly and in the open. If that means dealing with lawsuits for millions of dollars, then we must do so.
