Out of court settlements for two victims of Fr Fortune

TWO men who were sexually abused as children by one of the country’s most notorious paedophile priests have received out of court settlements within the past two years, the Diocese of Ferns has confirmed.

However, the diocese has denied reports that a settlement was reached in the immediate run-up to the resignation of the former bishop for the diocese, Dr Brendan Comiskey, in April of last year.

One settlement was reached in 2001 and the second was reached within the past three months, diocesan spokesman Fr John Carroll said yesterday. The Church has refused to confirm the amount of either payout.

“There was no settlement with any victim of the late Fr Sean Fortune in the spring of last year, as indicated in a newspaper report,” Fr Carroll said yesterday. The complaints made by the two victims were part of the criminal investigation into Fr Fortune at the time of his death.

Meanwhile, one of Fr Fortune’s most outspoken victims, Colm O’Gorman, said the Church now had an opportunity to make good the wrongs of the past.

“The imminent inquiry in the Diocese of Ferns is the ‘last chance saloon’ for the Church, if it is to retain any respectability and regard,” Mr O’Gorman said.

He is confident the terms of reference of that long-awaited inquiry into abuse by Fr Fortune will be strong enough to compel the Church to comply and tell what it knew.

No definite date has been fixed for the probe, but it is thought it should be up and running next month.

“One of the things I find most difficult is to listen to bishops saying they care and they will co-operate and disclose documents. But they’re not abiding by their own guidelines and are behaving in a vicious, vindictive and adversarial manner.”

Another victim of Fr Fortune’s is to be the first person to sue the Pope over access to documents relating to the Church’s handling of alleged clerical sexual abuse.

Damien MacAleenan, who was abused by Fr Fortune in the 1980s, is taking legal action over his entitlements to any information and documents the Church has on the case.