Eight clergy abuse survivors to testify in Archdiocese of Baltimore bankruptcy case

Eight people who survived sexual abuse committed by Catholic clergy in Maryland are set to testify in the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s bankruptcy case.

Their statements in court will bring to 14 the number of abuse victims who testified in the case about their torment. Monday’s hearing is the second such proceeding scheduled by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michelle M. Harner, who has said she is allowing the testimony, unusual for bankruptcy cases, to bolster victim trust and participation in the process.

Harner booked the hearings at the request of the committee of survivors tasked with representing the rest of the church’s victims in the case, and with the blessing of the archdiocese. Survivors committee attorneys previously said the testimony offered an opportunity to shed light on the human toll underlying the technical and money-oriented proceedings.

The first hearing, on April 8, featured gut-wrenching testimony from six survivors, who recounted abuse at the hands of priests and Catholic school teachers and told of the enduring impacts of what they experienced, such as persistent nightmares and pervasive problems with trusting others.

The survivors described their torment with Archbishop William Lori in the courtroom, at times just a few feet from where they were speaking. Lori pledged to attend both hearings to listen to the survivors’ stories.

Paul Jan Zdunek, chair of the survivors committee, said Monday’s testimony from survivors would build upon last month’s, showing how “the damage done to their lives as children has plagued them for decades since.”

“It has ruined relationships, caused them mental and physical scars, and in many cases completely upended normal and successful lives they might have had,” Zdunek said in a statement. “While no amount of money will reverse the damage done, it is important to listen to and fully understand the impact their abuse had on their future and for us to compensate them fairly for their loss.”

Monday’s hearing comes about two weeks ahead of a critical juncture in the bankruptcy case: May 31 is the deadline for survivors to file abuse claims against the archdiocese.

“We are at a critical moment in this case as we approach the date that survivors need to file their claim forms in order to be considered to receive monetary damages for the abuse they endured,” Zdunek said. “Once May 31st passes, they will forfeit any opportunity to consider filing in the future.”

The church declared bankruptcy Sept. 29, two days before Maryland’s Child Victims Act, a law that abolished time limits for people sexually abused as children to sue their abusers and the institutions that enabled their suffering, took effect.

By filing for bankruptcy, the archdiocese sought to protect its assets and limit its liability. The church also said it was doing so to be able to fairly compensate an estimated hundreds of survivors with civil claims while allowing the archdiocese to carry forward with its mission.

State lawmakers enacted the child victims law following the release of a report by Maryland’s attorney general that said 156 clergy and other Church officials tormented more than 600 children and young adults, dating to the 1940s. The abuse spanned the diocese’s jurisdiction, which covers Baltimore and nine counties in the central and western parts of the state.

This article will be updated.