While sexual abuse scandals have already rocked religious groups, another story surfaced about the advocacy of a young woman from Minnesota trying to prevent a priest in India from abusing young children. Twenty-six year old, Megan Peterson, now living in Queens, filed a lawsuit against a diocese in India in her bid to stop the pedophile priest from harming children.

It was in April 2016 when the issue was reported online. At that time, she said that the suit will be filed on her behalf by her attorney, Jeff Anderson. What made this case unique and interesting is the fact that this is the first time a lawsuit is filed in a federal court against a diocese located in a foreign country such as India. The lawsuit claims that by reinstating the convicted priest to the ministry, the Diocese of Ootacamund is exposing the children to danger.

Peterson, herself, was a victim of Rev. Joseph Jeyapaul 11 years ago while the latter was then a priest in the Diocese of Crookston. It was in 2005, at the age of 14 when she was molested and sexually abused by Jeyapaul.

The Predicament

She was born and raised in Minnesota where she became an altar girl and an active member of the choir. According to Peterson, it was only within weeks when the priest raped her in the parish office. Her ordeal was followed with more sexual abuses which lasted for almost a year and Father Joseph Jeyapaul even had the boldness to blame her for these abuses, saying that it was her who made him do it.

The priest was with the diocese in Crookston City from 2004 to 2005 and aside from Peterson, there was another teenage girl who was also sexually abused by Jeyapaul. However, before a case was filed then, the priest already went back to India.

It was in 2012 when Jeyapaul was extradited to the United States to face the charges against him for sexually abusing the two girls but he was only tried for the rape of the other girl. The case about the abuse of Peterson was dropped as part of the plea agreement. Moreover, the priest was only sentenced to one year in prison, a sentence he quickly got over with since it included the period he was in jail during the trial. After serving his sentence, he was deported back to India and given a suspension of one year.

But what pushed Peterson to file a case against the diocese in India was when she learned in February that with the recommendation of the Bishop and the permission of Pope Francis, Jeyapaul was reinstated to the ministry in less than a year.

With the knowledge that this man will again do the same thing with other children and be active as a priest, Peterson made the move to file a lawsuit against the diocese and the bishop. She expressed her desire to save the children in India to suffer the same predicament she had.

In 2011, Peterson also sued the Diocese of Crookston and was awared $750,000. But the Minnesota woman said that it mattered more to her that Jeyapaul will not be able to harm children anymore.

Reference

http://www.fox9.com/news/209451598-story

A treatment center in Minnesota for abusive priests is the focus of a recent lawsuit. A man being called “Doe 27” claims to have been abused by retired priest, Rev. Francis Hoefgen who is now 63 years old.

According to the Star Tribune, “The center in Silver Spring, Md., has been a destination for the treatment of Minnesota Catholic monks and priests accused of sexual abuse of children, other sexual misconduct and addiction. The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville also are named in the suit …

“…The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Dakota County, involves the Rev. Francis Hoefgen, now 63. Coupled with a separate clergy sex abuse suit filed Monday, the archdiocese has been sued at least 21 times since the Child Victims Act lifted the statute of limitations for child sex abuse cases and gave past victims a three-year window to bring previously barred claims.

“Susan Gibbs, a spokeswoman for St. Luke Institute, said she had not seen the lawsuit involving Hoefgen and could not comment. The archdiocese issued a statement saying it was investigating the claims.”

The recent $660 million settlement in the Catholic Priest sexual abuse scandal in Southern California has left some vindicated and others outraged. The Archdiocese of Los Angeles led by Cardinal Roger M. Mahony settled the case days before Mahony would have had to testify at trial.

The settlement, the largest ever for a case of this type, covered 508 plaintiffs who were sexually abused by Catholic clergy. By many accounts, Mahony himself was able to escape further criminal and civil charges with the settlement even though he was negligent in reporting incident of sexual abuse and child rape to police authorities and chose instead to reassign priests to different locations.

For another week, the nation’s church leaders have been under fire, for misconduct and clergy sexual abuse lawsuits. Embattled and accused polygamist Warrens Jeffs, leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, lost one lawsuit for $8.8 million for misconduct with church assets. Jeffs is also awaiting trial on charges of rape for his role of setting up the marriage of a 14-year-old girl to her cousin.

In San Diego, the Roman Catholic Diocese filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy hours before it was to go to trial for more than 140 cases of clergy sexual abuse. The bankruptcy filing automatically halted the court proceedings for the sexual abuse cases. The Diocese said the filing was necessary for they feared that the rulings in the sexual abuse cases may wipe out the church’s $150 million in assets.

In Alaska, a former Jesuit priest, James Jacobson, has admitted to fathering four children and is accused of acts of sexual assault between 1961 and 1976. Two of Jacobson’s sons, now grown, are suing him for failure to pay child support.

In Jacksonville, Florida a lawsuit was filed against Trinity Baptist Church, alleging the former pastor, Dr. Bob Gray sexually molested children years ago. So far, 20 women and one man have come forward with the allegations and have also implicated the church in a cover-up of the crimes.