Brooklyn Diocese Faces Scrutiny as Priest Personnel Files Reveal Prior Knowledge of Abuse Allegations
Brooklyn, NY – Newly unsealed personnel files are intensifying scrutiny of the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, with a former altar boy alleging the documents demonstrate the Church misled the public regarding its awareness of alleged sexual abuse committed by priests. The files center around Father Patrick Sexton, a defrocked priest accused of molesting David Ferrick on multiple occasions in 1979 and 1980 while serving at St. Cecilia Church in Brooklyn’s Greenpoint neighborhood.
Ferrick’s lawsuit, filed under New York’s Child Victims Act, contends the Diocese was aware of Sexton’s alleged “pedophilia tendencies” and failed to protect children. The Church, in its official response to the lawsuit, denied that its leaders “knew or should have known that Father Sexton was a known sexual abuser of children.”
However, a judge last month ordered the release of many of Sexton’s personnel files, revealing internal discussions among high-ranking Church officials dating back to 1979 that appear to contradict the Diocese’s public statements. One document, dated September 6, 1979, and marked “Confidential,” details Sexton admitting to a monsignor that he “took pictures of [four boys] naked in the shower” at Jones Beach. The monsignor noted Sexton considered the act “an irresponsible act.”
Further documentation indicates concerns about Sexton’s behavior predated his ordination. A letter dated November 2004, written by a top administrator within the Diocese, stated that allegations of sexual misconduct against Sexton “began shortly after he was ordained to the priesthood” in May 1977. This letter was addressed to then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, months before he became Pope Benedict XVI.
According to the Diocese’s website, Sexton was “laicized” – stripped of his clerical status – in April 2006, during Pope Benedict XVI’s papacy.
The Diocese of Brooklyn declined to comment on the specifics of the unsealed files, citing the ongoing litigation. “The allegations in this case date back nearly fifty years ago,” said Adriana Rodriguez, the Diocese’s Director of Communications. “Since then, the Diocese has taken many actions to ensure the protection of children, including mandating sexual abuse awareness training for all clergy, employees, and volunteers who interact with children.”
An attorney for Sexton did not respond to requests for comment. Sexton has reportedly denied ever having sexual contact with children, while acknowledging taking the photographs at Jones Beach.
The decision to unseal the files came after the Diocese argued that doing so would violate the Church’s First Amendment right to free practice of religion. Judge Joanne Quinones disagreed, noting that some of the documents were already public through news reports. “Sealing is not proper where disclosure would merely result in embarrassing allegations being made public … Or damage to defendants’ reputations,” Quinones wrote in her order.
Anelga Doumanian, Ferrick’s attorney, believes the ruling will set a precedent for other cases filed under the Child Victims Act. “This decision is the first of its kind in the Child Victims Act litigation, and it paves the way for the hundreds and hundreds of other cases like this one,” Doumanian said. “The Diocese of Brooklyn has fought aggressively to keep these documents away from the public.”
The developments coincide with Bishop Robert Brennan’s recent announcement that the Diocese intends to engage a neutral mediator to resolve approximately 1,100 clergy sex abuse lawsuits. Brennan stated the Diocese is “cost-cutting and setting aside significant funds to compensate victim-survivors,” and that settlement funds would not come from parish donations.
Mitchell Garabedian, an attorney representing 25 plaintiffs in Brooklyn, called the mediation announcement “a step in the right direction,” but cautioned that any settlement program must be “without delay, uncomplicated, and fair.”
Doumanian was more critical, characterizing the proposed mediation as a “PR stunt” designed to distract from the revelations contained within the unsealed personnel files. “Now, just as cases are finally moving forward and the truth is coming to light, they are attempting to pull the rug under survivors once again by announcing a global resolution that doesn’t exist,” Doumanian said. “This is a pseudo-offer at best, and survivors won’t be fooled.”
