Abuse Survivors Blog

The Court of Appeal ruled today that the Portsmouth Diocese is legally responsible for child abuse committed by one of its clergy. The appeal is part of a civil action brought by Miss JGE (name withheld). She claims that she was sexually abused by a Catholic priest whilst resident in a children's home run by the church.

In November last year the High Court found that the church is responsible for the sexual misbehaviour of its clergy, a ruling which the church disputed.
The church had claimed that, on a technicality of employment law, it could not be held legally responsible because there is no formal employment relationship with their priests. But in the first hearing Mr Justice Macduff decided that the professional relationship between a priest and his bishop is sufficiently close so as to impose responsibility. The case involved the late Father Baldwin, a priest of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth.

This firm has successfully represented 5 survivors of appalling abuse by Reverend Roy Cotton, a now deceased Church of England vicar.

Over the past 12 - 18 months damages awards of 5 and 6 figure sums have been agreed with legal representatives for the Diocese of Chichester. In all cases liability was admitted by the Church of England's lawyers, and no points were taken on the fact that the victims' claims were in law, decades 'out of time'. In some cases verbal apologies were issued by high office holders of the Chichester Diocese.

Retired Church of England priest Canon Gordon Rideout is now charged with over 30 sexual offences against 18 children. The offences include indecent assault on teenage girls and boys and are alleged to have taken place over an 11 year period from 1962 to 1973.
The charges follow a nine month investigation by Sussex Police into allegations of sexual abuse of young people in the 1960s and early 1970s.
Rideout is said to have committed the offences in Crawley, London and East Hampshire. He is due to appear before Magistrates on 16 July 2012.

A Roman Catholic diocese is liable to pay compensation for alleged beatings inflicted by a nun and sexual abuse perpetrated by a priest on a young girl, the court of appeal has ruled.

Catholic church claims no responsibility in child abuse case against priest

The Catholic church goes to the Court of Appeal on Wednesday (16 May) to reiterate its claim that it is not responsible for child abuse committed by its clergy.

The appeal is part of a civil action brought by Miss JGE (name withheld). She claims that she was sexually abused by a Catholic priest whilst resident in a children's home run by the church.

In November last year the High Court found that the church is responsible for the sexual misbehaviour of its clergy, a ruling which the church disputes. The church had claimed that, on a technicality of employment law, it could not be held vicariously responsible because there is no formal employment relationship with their priests.

A 'Historic Abuse Redress Scheme' has finally been set up to compensate victims of physical and sexual abuse suffered by those in residential care of the States of Jersey between 1948 and 1994. Tracey Emmott called for a redress scheme to be set up almost 4 years ago, as reported in the Independent.

Canon Gordon Rideout, 73, is suspected of sexually assaulting nine young people between 1965 and 1972 in Crawley, West Sussex; Barkingside in north-east London and Middle Wallop in Hampshire.
Former parish priest Robert Coles, 70, is suspected of sexually assaulting three young men in West Sussex in the late 1970s and mid-1980s.
Last year a confidential review commission by Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss into historic allegations of sexual abuse by Church of England priests against young people in Sussex and elsewhere was received by the Diocese of Chichester and Sussex Police. A team of specialist child protection detectives from Sussex Police began an investigation which led to the arrests of the two priests.
The arrests also follow on-going church inquiries into Bishop Wallace Benn, the Bishop of Lewes, who is facing disciplinary action for alleged safeguarding mistakes. The Archbishop of Canterbury has ordered an investigation into child protection failings in churches in Sussex.
Sussex police said several allegations against Canon Rideout were made to police in 1972 but no criminal proceedings resulted.
In 2001 another related allegation was made to the police and an arrest was made then but there was insufficient evidence to justify criminal proceedings.
In the 1960s Canon Rideout was a chaplain at two Barnado's homes in London.
He was also chaplain at Moira House Girls School in Eastbourne until 2003 and chair of governors at St Mary's special school in Bexhill and Bishop Bell school in Eastbourne. He conducted services at All Saints Church, Eastbourne until 2010.
In 1997 an allegation was made against Robert Coles was investigated in 1997, and an arrest was made, but again there was insufficient evidence to justify criminal proceedings at that time.
The other allegations have only recently emerged as a result of the current inquiry.
The Right Reverend Mark Sowerby, Acting Bishop of Chichester, said: "I can assure the public that the two people who have been arrested were not in licensed ministry recently and the cases are of a historic nature."
09 March 2012

Alexander Bede Walsh, age 58, a former catholic priest is facing jail after being found guilty of two serious sexual offences and 19 counts of indecent assault on boys between the ages of 8 and 16. Walsh targeted the boys while working as a priest in the 70s, 80s and 90s in Coventry, Warwickshire and Staffordshire. Throughout his trial at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court Walsh maintained his innocence. He claimed his victims were lying.

The trial heard from all eight victims, now adults who disclosed the abuse they had suffered at his hands. The crimes came to light when two victims independently contacted Staffordshire Police.

BBC report into a letter from a group of solicitors calling for a public inquiry into abuse within the church, published in The Times on January 17th 2012. Tracey Emmott, representing seven victims of Diocese of Chichester priest Roy Cotton explains the need for such an inquiry.

 

The High Court in London has ruled that the Catholic church is responsible for child abuse committed by its clergy.