News

(Kochi, India/Crookston, MN) – Bishop Amalraj of the Diocese of Ootacamund, India, announced today that he has lifted the suspension of convicted predator priest, Father Joseph Jeyapaul. Jeyapaul’s suspension was lifted on January 16, 2016 after the Bishop consulted with the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Statement of Jeff AndersonOn behalf of two survivors we have represented, and no doubt countless others Jeyapaul has abused, we are appalled…

(Minneapolis, MN) – A lawsuit was filed today on behalf of a sexual abuse survivor, Doe 114, in Hennepin County District Court naming Jason McLean, a former Children’s Theatre Company staff member, as the defendant. McLean sexually abused Doe 114 in 1983 when she was a student at Children’s Theatre Company. Throughout his tenure with Children’s Theatre, McLean worked as a company actor, staff member, and teacher.In addition to McLean, other staff members have been accused of sexually abusing students at…

On December 7, 2015, the Diocese of Duluth filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection. Judge Robert J. Kressel set a May 25, 2016 deadline for creditors, including survivors of childhood sexual abuse, to come forward confidentially and bring a cla…

(Honolulu, HI) – On January 14, 2016, the Diocese of Honolulu filed a lawsuit naming First Insurance as a defendant and releasing information pertaining to ongoing negotiations in a court-ordered mediation between survivors of childhood sexual abuse and the Diocese of Honolulu and other parties. This suit disclosed that dozens of lawsuits have been settled since the mediation process began in September 2015. Mark Gallagher of Kailua, working with…

 St. John’s Abbey today released personnel files of 18 of its monks who were credibly accused of sexually abusing minors. The documents in the files show that several of these monks were allowed to work at other parishes and dioceses internationally, in the United States and in Minnesota…

At a hearing today, United States Bankruptcy Judge Robert J. Kressel set a May 25, 2016 deadline for creditors, including survivors of childhood sexual abuse, to confidentially file claims in the Diocese of Duluth bankruptcy case. The decision requires all information about survivors of sexual abuse to be kept strictly confidential. “Any survivors out there who are suffering in silence, blaming themselves, can now confidentially get help and take action,” said attorney Mike Finnegan, “But time is…

Children’s Theatre Company,Jason McLean Named in Third Lawsuit (Minneapolis, MN) – A third civil lawsuit was filed today on behalf of Doe 116 in Hennepin County District Court naming the Children’s Theatre Company and Jason McLean as defendants. McLean began sexually abusing Doe 116 in 1981 when she was a young teenager and continued to abuse her for several years. Throughout his tenure with Children’s Theatre, McLean worked as a company actor, staff member, and taught acting classes to students. Today, Doe 116 has courageously filed a claim. She has also decided to publicly come for…

(Minneapolis, MN) – A third civil lawsuit was filed today on behalf of Doe 116 in Hennepin County District Court naming the Children’s Theatre Company and Jason McLean as defendants. McLean began sexually abusing Doe 116 in 1981 when she was a young teenager and continued to abuse her for several years. Throughout his tenure with Children’s Theatre, McLean worked as a company actor, staff member, and taught acting classes to students.

Today, Doe 116 has courageously filed a claim. She has also decided to publicly come forward so that the full truth of her story can be known. Her name is Me…

Ruling Will Help Protect Children, Expose Diocese’s Protection of AbusivePriests, and Scrutinize Decisions Regarding Allegedly Abusive Priests A lawsuit alleging that the actions of the Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre regarding clergy sex abuse constitute a public nuisance will be allowed to proceed in New York Supreme Court in Nassau County. The Diocese of Rockville Centre has refused to release a full list of its priests that have been…

(Minneapolis, MN) – A second civil lawsuit was filed today on behalf of Doe 76, a child sexual abuse survivor, in Hennepin County District Court naming the Children’s Theatre Company and Jason McLean as defendants. McLean began sexually abusing Doe 76 in 1984 when she was 15 years old. McLean was a Children’s Theater company actor at the theater and taught acting classes to students at Children’s Theatre. Last week, the first lawsuit naming Children’s Theatre and McLean as defendants and brought under the Minnesota Child Victims Act was filed…