Legal Analysis By Attorneys
Breaking Legal News
Legal Commentary: See the second part of this article for legal commentary on the rights of church sex abuse victims from clergy sexual abuse lawyer Brian Kent.
A youth group leader at the Good Shepherd Church in Kearny, NJ was arrested on Monday for allegedly sexually abusing a 16-year-old youth group member.
21-year-old Esteban Ruiz is charged with second-degree sexual assault and third-degree endangering the welfare of a child. He was arrested without incident on Monday, June 15.
He is accused of sexually abusing the 16-year-old in April of 2018.
Ruiz’s current employer is listed as Centro de Adoracion Nueva Canaan, a church in Hackensack.
Attorney contributor Brian Kent is a former sex crimes prosecutor who now serves as a sex abuse victims attorney and has represented several clergy sex abuse victims in civil lawsuits. Brian has some thoughts to add regarding the legal rights of these victims:
Sexual abuse in religious organizations is a widespread crisis affecting virtually all religions and denominations. There have been reports of priests, pastors, youth group leaders, and other clergy members sexually abusing followers in religious organizations throughout the country. The victims of these heinous crimes deserve justice.
Reporting a predatory religious leader to law enforcement can result in criminal charges, but the legal options for victims don’t always end here. In some cases, victims may also have grounds for a lawsuit against the organization for negligence.
A religious organization could be considered negligent for failing to protect their members from abuse. For example, an organization might be deemed negligent for ignoring previous complaints of sexual misconduct involving a church leader.
If you or a loved one is a victim of clergy sex abuse, you can learn more about your legal rights in a free consultation with one of our experienced sex abuse victim lawyers.
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