Victims settle claims of childhood abuse by teacher
Intentional Torts
Sexual Assault
Negligent Hiring & Supervision
Negligent Hiring/Negligent Supervision
Los Angeles County Superior Court
Confidential v. Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Docket number: Confidential, Downtown, Judge: Haley J. Fromholz. Trial Type Settlement. Settlement date: November 2007.
Settlement
$11,000,000

In the early 1980’s, six young girls (Plaintiffs) ages 4 to 10 were repeatedly sexually abused and molested by a lay teacher employed by the Los Angeles Archdiocese. A seventh Plaintiff was molested by the same teacher after he left the parish grammar school and secured a teaching position at an LA County public school.  The teacher was convicted of multiple counts of sexual abuse and molestation of a minor and sentenced to state prison.

The Defendant knew or should have known of the teacher’s history and potential danger to students from prior allegations of sexual abuse when he worked at a parish school in Chicago before moving to California. Plaintiffs asserted that the Archdiocese knew or should have suspected the abuse when two of the victims reported it to the school, including a parental complaint to the principal, but turned a blind eye to it as part of a deliberate pattern and practice of ignoring allegations of sexual molestation and assault on the part of its clergy and employees.  As to the seventh victim, the Defendant gave a positive employment reference to the molester in order to remove him from his parish position, never warning the LA County School District. Thus the Defendant deliberately exposed the seventh victim to a known molester.

Defendant claimed no notice of the molestations, no notice of the teacher’s past history or that he was posted a danger to parish students, and that it provided a reasonable reference for the teacher based on his documented personnel file.  The Archdiocese also contended that it did not have an habitual pattern or practice of ignoring or concealing allegations of sexual assault.