Perpetrator Was Notorious Abuser Fr. Bruce Ritter
Sexual Abuse Survivor to Speak Publicly
(New York, NY) – At a press conference Wednesday in Manhattan, a sexual abuse survivor and the law firm of Jeff Anderson & Associates will:
- Announce the filing of two lawsuits against the Archdiocese of New York, the Conventual Franciscan religious order, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York and Covenant House for sexual abuse as minors of 2 survivors by notorious perpetrator Fr. Bruce Ritter. The lawsuits were filed as a result of New York’s new Child Victims Act (CVA);
- Discuss and reveal the history of Fr. Ritter, who was a Conventual Franciscan priest. Fr. Ritter worked as a priest in various states including locations in New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Texas and Alaska before his death in 1999. Fr. Ritter founded the Covenant House, a shelter for homeless youth in New York City, in the Archdiocese of New York, in approximately 1968. By approximately 1990, Fr. Ritter expanded Covenant House to 16 cities in North and South America. It is believed that Fr. Ritter sexually abused multiple homeless and underprivileged youths through his Covenant House connection and otherwise. Multiple survivors have alleged that Fr. Ritter sexually abused them when they were minor teenagers at the Covenant House in New York City. Fr. Ritter sexually abused the plaintiffs in these 2 lawsuits between approximately 1970-1974;
- Demand that the Archdiocese of New York and Cardinal Timothy Dolan release all the names of every credibly accused clergy member who has worked in the Archdiocese, as well as information on alleged perpetrators’ histories, current whereabouts and what the Archdiocese knew about alleged child sexual abuse;
- Demand that the Conventual Franciscans release all the names of every credibly accused Conventual Franciscan clergy member, as well as information on alleged perpetrators’ histories, current whereabouts and what the Order knew about alleged child sexual abuse;
- Discuss the CVA, which was signed into law in February 2019. The CVA window gives survivors of child sexual abuse one year to bring lawsuits in cases that were previously barred by the statute of limitations, no matter when the abuse occurred;
- Encourage sexual abuse survivors to come forward confidentially under the CVA.
When
Wednesday, August 21, 2019 at 10:30 AM (ET)
Where
Courtyard by Marriott New York Manhattan/Central Park
Belvedere Room
1717 Broadway
New York, NY 10019
(Parking validation is available)
The press conference will be live-streamed via YouTube and Facebook
On August 1, 2019, Jeff Anderson & Associates released The Anderson Report on Sexual Abuse in the Archdiocese of New York that contained the names, photographs and assignment histories of 310 clergy members accused of child sexual abuse.
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