In Brooklyn, the church will pay $ 27,5 million to the victims of a pedophile teacher

Four men who were repeatedly sexually abused by a Roman Catholic religion teacher when they were children have reached a $27,5 million settlement with the Diocese of Brooklyn, the largest settlement ever awarded to victims in similar situations.

Фото: Depositphotos

The repeated rapes of the victims were conducted by 67-year-old Angelo Serrano, who taught the catechism and helped organize religious educational programs at St. Lucy’s St. Patrick’s Church in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, writes The New York Times.

Rape occurred inside the church building and in the apartment of Serrano, located in the old school behind the church.

The agreement was reached amid investigations, including a civil investigation in New York, and the disclosure of child sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in the United States.

According to lawyers, sexual attacks on children in Brooklyn took place between 2003 and 2009 in the year when the victims were between 8 and 12.

One of the boys told about the incidents of his mother, who reported to the police, Serrano was arrested in September 2009 of the year, two years later the priest pleaded guilty, he is now serving a 15-year prison term.

Seeking compensation from the diocese, two victims filed suit in 2013, and two other victims later filed claims. The pastors in the church at the time of the rapes, the Rev. Stephen P. Lynch and the Rev. Frank Shannon, became defendants in the cases.

In the course of the defense, the Brooklyn Diocese claimed that Serrano was a volunteer in the church, not a diocesan officer. The Diocese also contested that the abuse took place in the church territories, arguing that the rape in the Serrano apartment was not the legal responsibility of the church.

But the lawyers for the victims noted that Serrano received payment from the church and had a job in the church.

The Brooklyn judge sided with the victims, finding that the obvious signs of inappropriate behavior of Serrano with the children were ignored by parish workers and other priests.

Lynch and Shannon knew that for many years Serrano often received many boys in his apartment, according to the case file. Lynch and Shannon told that they repeatedly found the boys in the house of Serrano, when they visited the teacher.

Lynch also testified that he once saw Serrano kiss a 8- or 9-year-old boy on the lips and improperly hugged the child.

The secretary of the church, Beatrice Ponnele, also spoke about the dubious behavior of the priest. She said that although there is a rule in the church that children are not allowed to stay in the office with an employee alone, boys aged 7-8 often come to Serrano’s office and do their homework sitting on his lap.

Although Serrano was a religious teacher and worked in the church almost every day between 1997 and 2009 for years, he was a volunteer and there were no records of him or his work history in the church.

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