Current:Home > Stocks70-year-old man reaches settlement with Roman Catholic diocese over sex abuse suffered at age 8 -MarketStream
70-year-old man reaches settlement with Roman Catholic diocese over sex abuse suffered at age 8
View
Date:2025-04-15 20:49:17
FALL RIVER, Mass. (AP) — A 70-year-old man who recently reached a settlement with a Roman Catholic diocese in Massachusetts over sexual abuse he suffered at age 8 said Wednesday he is speaking out because “my voice was taken away from me for all those years” and he wants to help others like himself.
“There were a number of details that bring that memory back, painful details,” Claude Leboeuf said at a news conference in Fall River. “I could feel muscle pain, sometimes emotional pain. I can visualize them. I can never know when those memories come flashing back to me. But that’s how it happens. It’s very real to me.”
Several years ago, Leboeuf, of Providence, Rhode Island, contacted Mitchell Garabedian of Boston, a well-known lawyer for clergy and sexual abuse victims. Leboeuf said he was abused in 1960 at a church in Attleboro, Massachusetts, by the Rev. James Porter, who pleaded guilty in 1993 to molesting 28 children during the 1960s and 1970s while he was a priest in the Fall River Diocese.
Porter, who had left the priesthood by that time, was sentenced to 18 to 20 years in prison. He was scheduled to be released in 2004, but the state moved to have him classified as sexually dangerous to keep him behind bars indefinitely. He died in 2005.
Garabedian said he’s represented dozens of people who said they were sexually abused by Porter. He said “a mid-five-figure settlement” was reached with the diocese for Leboeuf, declining to be more specific. A spokesperson for the diocese said he was working on a response.
Back in the early 1990s, the Fall River Diocese adopted a policy to prevent sex abuse by priests. It had reached an undisclosed settlement with 68 people who said they were molested by Porter.
Garabedian said Leboeuf was able to prevail despite an expiration of the statute of limitations in Massachusetts to file a claim in child sexual abuse cases.
More survivors are pursuing cases as states increasingly consider repealing time limits for child sex crime lawsuits. Vermont was the first state to remove the limits in 2019, followed by Maine in 2021 and Maryland this year. A bill in the Massachusetts Legislature has been referred to committee.
The Associated Press generally does not name people who say they were victims of sexual abuse unless they come forward, as Leboeuf has.
veryGood! (93673)
Related
- Beware of giant spiders: Thousands of tarantulas to emerge in 3 states for mating season
- Don’t count on a recount to change the winner in close elections this fall. They rarely do
- CBS News says Trump campaign had ‘shifting explanations’ for why he snubbed ’60 Minutes’
- Who is Jeff Ulbrich? New York Jets name DC interim head coach
- Tropical rains flood homes in an inland Georgia neighborhood for the second time since 2016
- Prince Harry Shares One Way Daughter Lilibet Is Taking After Meghan Markle
- Courts could see a wave of election lawsuits, but experts say the bar to change the outcome is high
- Not everything will run perfectly on Election Day. Still, US elections are remarkably reliable
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- Yes, Glitter Freckles Are a Thing: Here's Where to Get 'Em for Football or Halloween
Ranking
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- Airlines say they’re capping fares in the hurricane’s path as Biden warns against price gouging
- West Virginia lawmakers OK bills on income tax cut, child care tax credit
- How AP uses expected vote instead of ‘precincts reporting’ when determining a winner
- Beware of giant spiders: Thousands of tarantulas to emerge in 3 states for mating season
- Philadelphia judge receives unpaid suspension for his political posts on Facebook
- Dream Builder Wealth Society: Love Builds Dreams, Wealth Provides Support
- Who is Jeff Ulbrich? New York Jets name DC interim head coach
Recommendation
Realtor group picks top 10 housing hot spots for 2025: Did your city make the list?
This camp provides a safe space for kids to learn and play after Hurricane Helene
2 off-duty NYC housing authority employees arrested in gang attack on ex New York governor
Opinion: WWE can continue covering for Vince McMahon or it can do the right thing
Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
Military board substantiates misconduct but declines to fire Marine who adopted Afghan orphan
West Virginia lawmakers OK bills on income tax cut, child care tax credit
The Flaming Lips Drummer Steven Drozd’s 16-Year-Old Daughter is Missing