Jury awards $5M to Delbarton grad
In an historic ruling, a jury on Wednesday awarded $5 million to a Delbarton School graduate who accused a monk of sexually abusing him in a campus barn 50 years ago.
It is the first of 39 cases of alleged sexual abuse at the boys prep school in Morris Township to reach trial, and is believed to be the first such case against a Catholic institution in New Jersey to land in court.
The plaintiff, identified only as T.M., beamed as he accepted congratulatory hugs outside the Morristown courtroom, where the most intimate details of his life had been under a microscope for five weeks, in a legal quest he began seven years ago.
Richard Lott, the 89-year-old former monk accused by T.M., was not present when the verdict was delivered.
T.M. and lawyers on all sides refrained from commenting because a second trial — to assess punitive damages — will follow next week. Superior Court Judge Louis Sceusi denied a request by attorney Kurt Krauss, representing the Order of St. Benedict of New Jersey (OSBNJ) that runs Delbarton, to dismiss the punitive phase.
Victims’ rights advocates who attended the trial hailed the verdict as a landmark victory and a beacon to all who have lived with the trauma of sexual abuse.
“I am very proud that the victim stood his ground and decided to tell his story. This should send a powerful message to all institutions that they must take allegations seriously,” … said Mark Crawford, director of the state chapter of SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) and a survivor himself.
“Survivors should not be afraid to stand up, be heard and tell your truth. Because justice will prevail,” Crawford said.
Marc MacNaughton, a former Delbarton track coach and teacher, called for lay people to assume control of Delbarton and the shutdown of St. Mary’s Abbey, home of the OSBNJ at the school.
“Today marks a historic moment—the first successful New Jersey trial against the Catholic Church—showing that persistence, courage, and the pursuit of truth can prevail,” said MacNaughton, who successfully sued Delbarton alleging he got fired and blackballed as a whistleblower. He used his trial award to launch a legal career.
‘PREPONDERANCE OF EVIDENCE’
On its second day of deliberations, the jury unanimously determined that T.M. had proven, by a preponderance of evidence, that Lott abused him a half-century ago.
A series of findings flowed from that.
Although T.M. failed to prove that OSBNJ knowingly permitted, or acquiesced, in the abuse of T.M., jurors held that the Benedictine order “negligently failed” in supervising or retaining Lott. That negligence was a “substantial factor” in causing harm to a minor — T.M. was 15 when the incident allegedly occurred.
By 5-1 votes — with the same woman, Juror No. 2, disagreeing both times — the jury apportioned 65 percent of the blame to OSBNJ and 35 percent to Lott, and awarded $5 million in compensatory damages for T.M.’s pain and suffering, emotional trauma and lost enjoyment of his childhood.
The late-afternoon verdicts came two hours after a jury shakeup. An alternate juror replaced the jury foreman, who was removed by the judge for researching legal issues, in violation of the judge’s orders. The alternate was present for the trial but had been excluded from deliberations.
Another juror was dismissed for failing to show up on Monday. And a key defense witness — psychiatrist Jacob Jacoby, who was expected to challenge the trauma claimed by T.M. — got booted last week, along with his testimony, for citing a report that had not been provided to T.M.’s lawyers.
‘A DARK CLOUD’
During a civil trial that included a slew of witnesses and more than 80 sworn statements, lawyers for OSBNJ, its insurance company, and Lott portrayed T.M. as a well adjusted person sniffing a big payday. They noted he was gainfully employed for decades, married for 18 years, and even visited Lott on several occasions after graduation.
“There’s a lot of smoke. There’s no fire,” asserted Lott’s lawyer, Mark Brancato, in his closing argument.
Defense attorney James Barletti accused T.M. and a former monk, Kieran Kole, of attempting to blackmail Lott in 2016, citing testimony about their alleged promise not to sue Lott if he agreed to testify against Delbarton.
The defense also cited testimony that T.M. never complained to his parents or a close friend about any Delbarton abuse while he was a student. A deposition from T.M.’s brother painted him as a chronic complainer and “tattle-tale.” So why did T.M. wait so long to take legal action? Barletti asked in his summation.
Defense witness David Wolowitz, a retired legal aid attorney, testified there were essentially no educational policies in the 1970s for dealing with child sex abuse, a taboo subject back then.
“If more could have been done, OSBNJ would have done it,” Barletti told the jury.
T.M.’s team could not provide anyone to back his testimony about a New Year’s Eve party, where Lott allegedly plied him with beers before sexually assaulting him back on campus. There was no party at the Mendham home cited by T.M., according to a witness who had lived there with his parents.
Conversely, the defense presented no witnesses to corroborate Lott’s alibi, pointed out T.M.’s legal team of Rayna Kessler and Michael Geibelson. Lott, a monk who taught chemistry and supervised a student maintenance crew that hired T.M., testified he was at a Lakewood parish to serve Mass over the fateful New Year’s weekend.
On the witness stand, T.M. said the abuse “seared” his brain, creating a dark cloud that has shadowed him ever since, inhibiting his relationships and trust in others. He felt betrayed by the late Abbot Brian Clarke, who assured him he would handle his complaint about Lott.
In a sworn statement, T.M.’s late mother said her son was dismayed to discover Lott and other clerics continued to abuse Delbarton students. She and a friend of T.M.’s said the once happy-go-lucky teen’s personality changed soon after graduation, when he wrote a letter to the abbot with his allegation.
T.M. said he did his best to carry on — repressing his trauma in ways not unusual for victims of childhood sexual abuse, testified clinical psychologist Christine Courtois. She said T.M. showed signs of several forms of post traumatic stress disorder, including “trauma bonding,” in which victims maintain contact with their abusers, seeking explanations and apologies to overcome feelings of guilt and shame.
Geibelson painted a picture of a school where priests and monks groomed and preyed upon vulnerable students with impunity. Headmaster Michael Tidd acknowledged that two elderly monks accused of sexual abuse still live on the grounds, under close supervision; he testified the public is safer that way.
A timeline shown to jurors dated allegations of sexual abuse at Delbarton to 1954, and allegations against Lott starting in 1961.
T.M.’s ability to press his case was aided by state legislation that stripped immunity from nonprofits and temporarily eased statutes of limitations.
Jury awards $5M to Delbarton grad who accused monk of 1976 sexual abuse
MorristownGreen.com
Kevin Coughlin
October 8, 2925′
