{"id":11574476,"date":"2025-07-23T14:51:56","date_gmt":"2025-07-23T18:51:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/?p=11574476"},"modified":"2025-07-23T18:35:50","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T22:35:50","slug":"baltimore-archdiocese-insurers-move-to-silence-sex-abuse-survivors-in-court","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/23\/baltimore-archdiocese-insurers-move-to-silence-sex-abuse-survivors-in-court\/","title":{"rendered":"Archdiocese of Baltimore insurers move to silence sex abuse survivors in court"},"content":{"rendered":"

Survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests have had two chances<\/a> to tell their stories in open court as part of bankruptcy proceedings against the Archdiocese of Baltimore.<\/p>\n

On both occasions, their testimony was so graphic it drew gasps and sobs from the gallery at the Edward A. Garmatz U.S. District Courthouse. Many described the opportunity to go public as crucial to their healing process.<\/p>\n

Now three insurance companies employed by the archdiocese are asking the court to bar any further such hearings.<\/p>\n

Federal Insurance Company, Indemnity Insurance Company of North America, and Westchester Fire Insurance Company, all subsidiaries of the Chubb Corporation, have filed a motion with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the District of Maryland that would prevent any more survivors in the case from speaking in open court about what the priests and other archdiocese employees did to them\u00a0and how the trauma of the acts has damaged their lives.<\/p>\n

Members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests,<\/a> or SNAP, lambasted the motion at a news conference in front of the courthouse on West Lombard Street on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

“Why would insurance companies want to block the truth from being heard?” asked Teresa Lancaster, an Annapolis attorney and a survivor of abuse at the hands of the late Rev. Joseph Maskell, then a priest of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, in the early 1970s.<\/p>\n

“We call on these companies to show compassion and human decency. We urge them to allow and listen to this essential testimony and recognize the ongoing impact of this abuse, which lasts a lifetime,” she said.<\/p>\n

Frank Schindler, an official with Maryland’s SNAP chapter, said that while most bankruptcy proceedings focus on “assets, liability, dollar signs and reorganization,” this one has another consideration: the well-being of victims whose lives have been traumatized by abuse.<\/p>\n

“The insurance companies and the church would like to silence the survivors so that they can hide behind cold statistics,” said Schindler, also a survivor of clergy sexual abuse. “This [bankruptcy proceeding] is about a powerful institution backed by powerful attorneys and insurance companies who are trying to abrogate their responsibility for committing serious crimes against children.”<\/p>\n

A creditors committee representing more than 1,000 survivors in the case filed a motion in April asking U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Michelle M. Harner, who is overseeing the matter, for permission to hold a hearing that would include survivor statements.<\/p>\n

In a motion they filed July 23, attorneys for the companies argued that “victim statements are a creature of criminal procedure,” not criminal procedure itself.<\/p>\n

Bankruptcy is a civil legal process in which individuals or businesses seek relief from overwhelming debt.<\/p>\n

The lawyers also cited a decision by the judge in the bankruptcy case of the Archdiocese of New Orleans to disallow “victim statements” on the grounds that such testimony could “taint the court as a finder of fact.”<\/p>\n

The Archdiocese of Baltimore filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy<\/a> on Sept. 29, 2023, days before a new state law, the Child Victims Act, could take effect that would expose the organization to hundreds if not thousands of sexual abuse claims.<\/p>\n

Victims in such cases are permitted to describe on the record what they remember being done to them, a process survivors say can be crucial to their recovery because it allows them to unburden themselves of secrets they have often kept out of shame and because it represents a kind of formal acknowledgement few have ever received.<\/p>\n

A handful of victims have shared their stories within the proceedings.<\/p>\n

Last March, Harner granted a request by the committee representing the survivors to allow victims to speak for two hours during \u201cstatus conferences\u201d on April 8 and May 20 of last year.<\/p>\n

The church supported the idea, and Archbishop William E. Lori attended both sessions.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important for me and for church leaders continually to hear from victim-survivors about what happened in their life and what that brought about in their lives,\u201d he told the church-published Catholic Review for an article at the time. \u201cI also think it\u2019s a moment when victim-survivors experience a moment of empowerment and justice. And I think their testimonies will have a big impact on my mind and heart and on the proceedings that are to follow.”<\/p>\n

Lancaster said the committee had to file the April motion to get a third such hearing scheduled. She now expects the court to have to schedule a new hearing to deal with the insurance companies’ objections.<\/p>\n

“Delay, delay, delay \u2014 whatever Lori says, that’s been their strategy all along,” Lancaster said.<\/p>\n

The archdiocese did not return requests for comment in time for the publication of this story.<\/p>\n

Have a news tip? Contact Jonathan M. Pitts at jonpitts@baltsun.com.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests have had two chances to tell their stories in open court as part of bankruptcy proceedings against the Archdiocese of Baltimore. But now, three insurance companies employed by the archdiocese are trying to bar any further such hearings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":171,"featured_media":10439636,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"middle","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"subheadline":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[86,89,83,84,85],"tags":[24524,24457],"feature":[],"location":[359,223],"type-of-work":[],"coauthors":[11986],"class_list":["post-11574476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crime-public-safety","category-health","category-latest-headlines","category-local-news","category-news","tag-catholic-church-abuse-coverage","tag-social","location-baltimore","location-maryland"],"post_status":"","edit_last":0,"edit_lock":0,"highlights":"","original_byline":"","original_canonical":"","original_category":"","original_email":"","original_id":0,"original_pubdate":"","original_source":"","primary_section":"","primary_tag":0,"print_workflow_body":{"deck_headline":"","print_title":"Archdiocese of Baltimore insurers move to silence sex abuse survivors in court","print_subheadline":"","print_priority":"","print_placement":"cover","print_planned_ready":"","print_pub_date":"1753329600","print_slug":"TBS-L-SNAPSTORIES","print_budget_line":"","print_excerpt":"Survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests have had two chances to tell their stories in open court as part of bankruptcy proceedings against the Archdiocese of Baltimore. But now, three insurance companies employed by the archdiocese are trying to bar any further such hearings.","print_notes":"","photo_limits":"Photo limits are: 1 featured image, 5 featured gallery images, 5 embedded gallery images and 5 in-article embedded images. Articles that exceed these limits will not export. Please adjust images to reflect these limits.","print_featured_gallery_richtext":"","print_inline_galleries_richtext":"","print_inline_images_richtext":"","print_content":"

Survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests have had two chances<\/a> to tell their stories in open court as part of bankruptcy proceedings against the Archdiocese of Baltimore.<\/p>

On both occasions, their testimony was so graphic it drew gasps and sobs from the gallery at the Edward A. Garmatz U.S. District Courthouse. Many described the opportunity to go public as crucial to their healing process.<\/p>

Now three insurance companies employed by the archdiocese are asking the court to bar any further such hearings.<\/p>

Federal Insurance Company, Indemnity Insurance Company of North America, and Westchester Fire Insurance Company, all subsidiaries of the Chubb Corporation, have filed a motion with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the District of Maryland that would prevent any more survivors in the case from speaking in open court about what the priests and other archdiocese employees did to them\u00a0and how the trauma of the acts has damaged their lives.<\/p>

Members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests,<\/a> or SNAP, lambasted the motion at a news conference in front of the courthouse on West Lombard Street on Wednesday.<\/p>

\"Why would insurance companies want to block the truth from being heard?\" asked Teresa Lancaster, an Annapolis attorney and a survivor of abuse at the hands of the late Rev. Joseph Maskell, then a priest of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, in the early 1970s.<\/p>

\"We call on these companies to show compassion and human decency. We urge them to allow and listen to this essential testimony and recognize the ongoing impact of this abuse, which lasts a lifetime,\" she said.<\/p>

Frank Schindler, an official with Maryland's SNAP chapter, said that while most bankruptcy proceedings focus on \"assets, liability, dollar signs and reorganization,\" this one has another consideration: the well-being of victims whose lives have been traumatized by abuse.<\/p>

\"The insurance companies and the church would like to silence the survivors so that they can hide behind cold statistics,\" said Schindler, also a survivor of clergy sexual abuse. \"This [bankruptcy proceeding] is about a powerful institution backed by powerful attorneys and insurance companies who are trying to abrogate their responsibility for committing serious crimes against children.\"<\/p>

A creditors committee representing more than 1,000 survivors in the case filed a motion in April asking U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Michelle M. Harner, who is overseeing the matter, for permission to hold a hearing that would include survivor statements.<\/p>

In a motion they filed July 23, attorneys for the companies argued that \"victim statements are a creature of criminal procedure,\" not criminal procedure itself.<\/p>

Bankruptcy is a civil legal process in which individuals or businesses seek relief from overwhelming debt.<\/p>

The lawyers also cited a decision by the judge in the bankruptcy case of the Archdiocese of New Orleans to disallow \"victim statements\" on the grounds that such testimony could \"taint the court as a finder of fact.\"<\/p>

The Archdiocese of Baltimore filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy<\/a> on Sept. 29, 2023, days before a new state law, the Child Victims Act, could take effect that would expose the organization to hundreds if not thousands of sexual abuse claims.<\/p>

Victims in such cases are permitted to describe on the record what they remember being done to them, a process survivors say can be crucial to their recovery because it allows them to unburden themselves of secrets they have often kept out of shame and because it represents a kind of formal acknowledgement few have ever received.<\/p>

A handful of victims have shared their stories within the proceedings.<\/p>

Last March, Harner granted a request by the committee representing the survivors to allow victims to speak for two hours during \u201cstatus conferences\u201d on April 8 and May 20 of last year.<\/p>

The church supported the idea, and Archbishop William E. Lori attended both sessions.<\/p>

\u201cIt\u2019s important for me and for church leaders continually to hear from victim-survivors about what happened in their life and what that brought about in their lives,\u201d he told the church-published Catholic Review for an article at the time. \u201cI also think it\u2019s a moment when victim-survivors experience a moment of empowerment and justice. And I think their testimonies will have a big impact on my mind and heart and on the proceedings that are to follow.\"<\/p>

Lancaster said the committee had to file the April motion to get a third such hearing scheduled. She now expects the court to have to schedule a new hearing to deal with the insurance companies' objections.<\/p>

\"Delay, delay, delay \u2014 whatever Lori says, that's been their strategy all along,\" Lancaster said.<\/p>

The archdiocese did not return requests for comment in time for the publication of this story.<\/p>

Have a news tip? Contact Jonathan M. Pitts at jonpitts@baltsun.com.<\/em><\/p>"},"print_workflow_exported_ts":"1753310209","print_workflow_exported_username":"Andy Knobel","print_workflow_shapes":"","print_workflow_side":{"print_section":"24225","print_status":"24232","add_export_buttons":"","print_endpoint":"tribune"},"really_short_title":"","short_title":"","syndication_source":"","market_neutral_title":"","social_title":"","dfm_hub_post_id":0,"paywall_level":"","featured_media_content":{"content_type":"image","content":{"id":10439636,"title":"TBS-L-SNAP-PRESS-CONFERENCE-0904-P2","filename":"TBS-L-SNAP-PRESS-CONFERENCE-0904-P2.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/TBS-L-SNAP-PRESS-CONFERENCE-0904-P2.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/tbs-l-snap-press-conference-0904-p2\/","alt":"","author":"36","description":"Teresa Lancaster, attorney and survivor, speaks at a press conference organized by SNAP, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, outside the Attorney General\u2019s office in downtown Baltimore. 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