Kentucky

Sixth Circuit rules suit against Vatican by three Kentuckians alleging priest sexual abuse and a church coverup can continue.  The case, O'Bryan v. Holy See, was published and can be found at 08a0417p.06. 

As this battle continues in the courts as the suit against a sovereign stately power continues, I am reminded of my history when the courts were not the only battlefield involving papal and civil issues but rather the very souls of the combatants were threatened as Henry VIII was excommunicated for his challenges in the civil area.  But that was 500 years ago.

Vatican can be sued for priest sex abuse: US court

CHICAGO (AFP) ? A US appeals court has ruled that the Vatican can be sued for the sex abuse committed by US priests.

The Vatican had tried to block a class action lawsuit alleging that it orchestrated a cover-up of sexual abuse by clergy with the argument that it was protected by laws granting sovereign states immunity from most US civil proceedings.

Central to the case is a 1962 Vatican mandate unearthed in 2003 which outlined a policy of "strictest" secrecy regarding allegations of sexual abuse by clergy and threatened those who spoke out with excommunication.

A federal appeals court ruled that the case brought by three Kentucky men can proceed because exceptions in the law allow the Vatican to be held liable for the actions of church employees acting within the scope of their employment in the United States.

"The portions of plaintiffs' claims that are based upon the conduct of bishops, archbishops and Holy See personnel while supervising allegedly abusive clergy satisfy all four requirements of the tortious act exception," Circuit Judge Julia Smith Gibbons wrote in a 20-page ruling Monday.

The Vatican cannot, however, be held liable for the actual abuse because these acts "were not done while... acting within the scope of their employment," Gibbons wrote.