San Antonio Archdiocese Settles Sexual Assault Claim

The Archdiocese of San Antonio (TX) announced on Friday that it has settled a lawsuit involving charges of sexual assault by a priest, Father John M. Fiala.  The case was settled for $946,000, paid by the Archdiocese's insurers. According to a report on the settlement by the San Antonio Express-News, Fiala was indicted on six counts of sexually assaulting the teen at gun point, and subsequently arrested on a charge of attempting to hire a hit man to kill him.  The lawsuit also named Fiala's religious order, the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity; the Diocese of Corpus Christi; and the Archdiocese of Omaha. The Archdiocese of San Antonio apparently received a false letter Fiala's religious order indicating no sex abuse claims when it hired Fiala. A trial involving these remaining defendants is scheduled for August.