Posted on 11/26/2008 10:41:30 AM PST by NYer
On Monday, in what's being described as a "landmark" ruling, a Federal appeals court green-lighted a sex-abuse suit naming the Holy See among its plaintiffs:
[The] ruling, issued by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, marks the first time a court at so high a level has recognized that the Vatican could be liable for the negligence in sexual-abuse cases brought in the U.S.PHOTO: Reuters
The ruling is seen as a breakthrough by those allegedly abused by priests. Investigators and grand juries have found several instances where the church failed to report alleged abusers and covered up alleged misdeeds to protect them.
Jeffrey S. Lena, the attorney for the Holy See, said he was not "presently inclined" to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the decision.
It remains to be seen whether the Vatican, which is a sovereign state recognized by the U.S. government, will make further arguments that it is immune from U.S. civil proceeding.
Catholic dioceses in the U.S. have paid out at least $1.5 billion to alleged abuse victims, most of this since the scandal broke open nationwide in 2002.
The appeals court found that the church government may be held liable for actions taken in the U.S. based on the Vatican's policies or directives.
"What the court has allowed us to do is proceed against the Vatican for the conduct of the U.S. bishops because of the bishops' failure to ... report child abuse," said William F. McMurry, the attorney for three men who claim they were abused as children by priests in the Louisville, Ky., archdiocese. He is seeking class-action status in the district-court case.
The ruling marks the first time that a federal appeals court recognized that the Vatican could be liable under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, a 1976 law that governs when a foreign nation or its agents can be sued, said Marci Hamilton, a constitutional-law scholar who is part of the legal team in the Louisville case.
"If someone can crack that barrier of immunity, it opens the door to other claims against the Catholic church," says Jonathan Levy, a Washington, D.C., attorney who represents concentration-camp survivors in a suit against numerous parties including the Vatican bank. The Vatican, in that case, prevailed in its claim of sovereign immunity.
Mr. Lena, the lawyer for the Holy See in the Louisville case, said Monday's ruling is a small step and one that is far from establishing whether Vatican policy contributed to thousands of incidents of abuse that have been alleged over several decades. "We're miles away from liability," he said. The ruling is "very incremental."
Happy Thanksgiving, FRiends.
Happy Thanksgiving to you, too!
Thanks! :)
And to all you and yours.
Just finished up the roast goose with salt pork and mashed potato stuffing and all the kids are tucked into their beds.
Thanksgiving is good this year.
Never had roast goose, although it would be a good way to get rid of those Canadian geese. I hear it’s like duck, only with more grease, unless cooked properly.
***Never had roast goose, although it would be a good way to get rid of those Canadian geese. I hear it’s like duck, only with more grease, unless cooked properly.***
It’s a larger bird, slightly coarser flesh with essentially no white meat. The fat proportionally is about the same as duck. We buy only domesticated birds (a couple of times a year, as we do lamb) because it is a stonger taste than the usual poultry and it’s a treat rather than a mainstay.
It is ridiculously easy to roast, as is lamb, but so many people are afraid to even try it. The fat makes a tremendous gravy. We are boiling the bones down for stock overnight. Better taste than chicken stock.
Thanks, I love lamb too, but it is usually pretty pricy.
***Thanks, I love lamb too, but it is usually pretty pricy.***
There is a food chain here in Iowa called Fareway that has a meat counter that is second to none anywhere I’ve been. The beef is very good, the pork better than that, but the lamb (fresh Iowa lamb) is better than I’ve had anywhere in the world - Canada, England, Germany, Spain, Mexico - and their sale prices for leg have run to the three bucks a pound range.
Was unsure about moving to the frontier, but there are some things that are worth it. Moving west of Illinois was another one.
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