The Diocese of Erie has launched the Independent Survivors’ Reparation Program to administer a fund for the benefit of survivors of sexual abuse.
The fund will be open for six months, Friday through Aug. 15.
Abuse survivor and Bradford native Jim VanSickle said he had spoken to Bishop Lawrence Persico of the Erie Diocese on Friday regarding the fund.
“I wanted him to know I really appreciated this,” VanSickle said. “It would be helpful for many survivors. I think Bishop Persico is on the forefront in Pennsylvania.”
According to the diocese, Persico had sent letters to each abuse survivor who had reported abuse, and whose address the diocese had available, “informing them that they would be receiving information regarding the fund.”
The fund administrators also have sent a packet to each of these survivors with the same information that is now available online. Survivors who did not receive a letter or who have never come forward before are welcome to submit a claim through the website.
A statement from the diocese announcing the fund said of Persico, “it is his sincere hope that the establishment of the Diocese of Erie’s Survivors’ Reparation Program will provide some measure of justice, closure and validation for the terrible acts that victims endured. The fund is another important aspect of the bishop’s and the diocese’s ongoing efforts to address the emotional, psychological and pastoral needs of survivors of abuse, whether it was committed by a member of the clergy or by a layperson affiliated with the diocese.”
Persico also arranged for two additional features available to survivors, the diocese indicated.
Any survivor who wishes to view the diocese’s files concerning his or her case will be welcome to do so. A request for the relevant files should be made directly to the diocese’s independent investigators at ErieRCD@KLgates.com.
“We know some people have voiced concerns that without a public trial, information about the past will still be hidden,” Persico said. “That is not the case in the Diocese of Erie. Survivors will have the right to see files pertinent to their cases.”
Claimants may also apply to the fund with or without the assistance of a private attorney, as the diocese’s investigators have pro bono attorneys to advise survivors without charge. The list of third-party lawyers volunteering to advise survivors may be obtained by emailing ErieRCD@klgates.com.
For his part, VanSickle was thrilled with Persico’s decisions.
“I was surprised it was going to cover lay people too,” he said, adding that hasn’t been the case in other areas. “The other thing I was pleased with, is he is going to allow victims to see the files they have put together in their cases.
“Those are exciting things.”
VanSickle said while he is pleased with the measures being taken, he doesn’t plan to apply to the fund.
“My goal isn’t about receiving money,” he said. “My goal is about extracting truth from the church. It’s about justice and seeing our predators in court. I want them to step forward and identify the people who have been abusive. I would like to see them reach out to every survivor.”
VanSickle, who was victimized by David Poulson while the elder man was a priest teaching at Bradford Central Christian High School in Bradford in the 1970s and 1980s, was abused in Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio.
He is hopeful that the enactment of the Child Victims Act in New York, which ends the statute of limitations on cases like VanSickle’s, will mean he will have a chance to see Poulson prosecuted for the crimes against him.
“I think the exposure of people who have done these deeds is super important,” VanSickle said.
According to the diocese, money for Phase I of the Independent Survivors’ Reparation Program will be provided through a new line of credit obtained by the Diocese of Erie and secured by the diocese’s own historic investments. No money donated by the faithful to any parish, school or charitable cause within the diocese, or to the diocese’s annual Catholic Services Appeal, will be used in the fund.
The fund came about after the statewide grand jury investigation by Attorney General Josh Shapiro following the grand jury investigation into sex abuse in the Catholic Church in Pennsylvania.
A victim’s fund is not one of the recommendations Shapiro made in the aftermath of the grand jury report. Instead, he is pushing for the ability of victims to pursue civil litigation.
On Friday, Joe Grace, press secretary for Shapiro’s office, said, “The Office of Attorney General Josh Shapiro strongly supports the four reforms recommended by the statewide Grand Jury that investigated and exposed decades of sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests in Pennsylvania.”
