Catholic Church settles lawsuit with B.C. man abused by priest

WARNING: This story contains details of sexual abuse.

The lawyer for a man who claims he was sexually assaulted decades ago by a priest and teacher at a Catholic elementary school says a settlement in the case is proof of the need for a public inquiry into abuse within the church.

The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Vancouver — a legal entity representing the church — settled with the 55-year-old man known as “John Doe” on the seventh day of a trial aimed at exposing what the victim claimed was a culture enabling the abuse that has hobbled him for years.

At the beginning of proceedings at B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster, Doe testified he was raped as a six-year-old by Father John Kilty, the priest who governed operations at North Vancouver’s Holy Trinity Elementary School, and physical education teacher Ray Clavin.

The church admitted the abuse happened, but contested Doe’s claim for punitive damages, which he said were warranted because of an ingrained culture that empowered pedophiles.

Doe’s lawyer, Sandy Kovacs, told CBC her client did not want to reveal the amount of the settlement. But she said it was enough to suggest the church knew punitive damages were a very real possibility.

With a roster of clients making similar claims against Kilty — who died in 1983 — and other church officials, Kovacs called on the province to hold a public inquiry similar to those which have happened in other jurisdictions.

“There needs to be one. And why aren’t our political leaders calling for one?” she said.

“We’re going to join these survivors’ voices and call for a public inquiry that goes beyond the residential school experience — which is obviously very grave — (because) the Catholic Church has harmed many others as well.” 

‘Woefully negligent’

In his testimony, Doe described abuse that began when he was enrolled in Holy Trinity after the death of his father just months before. He described being sexually assaulted by the priest during a sleepover at his house, which sat next to the school.

He described being “terrified” as he was abused in a basement by Clavin, who is believed to be alive, but whose whereabouts are unknown.

The day before the church settled with John Doe, Kovacs elicited testimony from a priest who is being sued for alleged sexual assault by another of her clients.

Father James Comey was the Holy Trinity parish priest from 2005 to 2015 — by which time the lawyer said the church had already settled a separate case of abuse involving Kilty.

“What was established in his evidence is he says he had no knowledge whatsoever of the fact that Father Kilty had historically abused what we say are countless children,” she said.

Kovacs said the church “would have been woefully negligent in not having prepared their own priest for the fact that there may be abuse claims coming forward.”

A commission of inquiry?

In a statement, Doe said he’s ready to put the past behind him.

“I cannot find the right words to explain how the sexual abuse I endured at age six has impacted my life. The stain of these traumatic events has permeated all facets of my life experience and caused me immense suffering,” he said.

“But this process, too, has helped: I did not appreciate how much freedom and gratitude I would feel after having the opportunity to be fully heard by an impartial and compassionate judge in a court of law.”

Kovacs said she would like to see British Columbia hold an inquiry along the lines of the Royal Commission established by the Australian government in 2013 to investigate claims of institutional child abuse.

The claims heard by the commission spanned a number of different religious institutions, including both the Catholic and Anglican churches.

“More than 4,000 survivors told us in private sessions that they were sexually abused as children in religious institutions,” the commission wrote in a final summary.

“The abuse occurred in religious schools, orphanages and missions, churches, presbyteries and rectories, confessionals, and various other settings.”

For anyone who has been sexually assaulted, there is support available through crisis lines and local support services via this Government of Canada website or the Ending Violence Association of Canada database. ​​If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911.