BALTIMORE — On October 1, victims of Catholic sex abuse in Maryland will be able to file civil suits, regardless of how long ago their abuse took place.
This week, Baltimore Archbishop William Lori is warning they are considering "bankruptcy reorganization."
The passage of the Child Victims Act means at the beginning of next month, the statute of limitations will be removed for filing civil suits. Because of the eventual payments, the Archdiocese of Baltimore says it may find itself in dire straits.
"With the passage of the new law, there is a high likelihood that the archdiocese will face multiple lawsuits, the number of which is hard to predict," Lori wrote. "The archdiocese simply does not have unlimited resources to satisfy such claims; its assets are indeed finite."
Lori said the archdiocese wants to pay victims and maintain their ministries; two things he says are not mutually exclusive.
READ MORE: Archbishop warns of 'devastating financial consequences' due to potential lawsuits
"For survivors it's another slap in the face, because they're being re-victimized here," Mike McDonnell, interim director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, told WMAR.
SNAP advocates in Maryland, and across the country, on behalf of those victims. McDonnell believes that the idea the Baltimore Archdiocese could file for bankruptcy is a move to protect itself.
"This is a tactic, utilized for [the Archdiocese] to swim into some safer waters, if you will," said McDonnell.
"Had the Archdiocese taken care of the wounded sheep instead of protecting the abusive shepherd, we would not be having this conversation," he continued.
If the Archdiocese eventually succeeds in the bankruptcy process, it could mean a limitation, describes Kurt Wolfgang, executive director of the Maryland Crime Victim Resource Center:
"That may make it so there is a date certain, by which [victims] must bring their claim or forever lose it," Wolfgang explained "And of course, that would be one of the significant, and wrong, tactical advantages that could be gained by this action."
For victims and their advocates, this year has proven successful thus far. In April, Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown's office released its report bringing to light decades of abuse, and in Annapolis, the Child Victims Act was signed into law.
In the letter sent Tuesday, the Archbishop said he would discuss how to respond to the new law with Archdiocese leaders in the coming days.
