Archdiocese Settles Abuse Suit While Denying Its Validity

Last Monday, the Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis issued a press release disclosing that it has settled a lawsuit brought by a female plaintiff identified as Jane Doe 92. Doe 92 claimed that she was sexually abused by Joseph Ross, a priest who was removed from the ministry in 2002. In 1988 Ross plead guilty to a misdemeanor stemming from his inappropriate touching of a young boy. The Archdiocese said that Ross is a known abuser and it is not defending him. However it continues to assert that Jane Doe's allegations are false, saying that she:

has been diagnosed, by her own treating doctors, with a medical condition that causes her to falsify claims, exaggerate symptoms and make inconsistent statements. Her own doctors and expert witnesses voiced doubts about her allegations and noted that they contained multiple inconsistencies.