Diocese of Rockville Centre seeks dismissal of 44 abuse claims

Claims of years-ago abuse of youths by Diocese of Rockville Centre personnel should be dismissed because the state law lifting the statute of limitations is unconstitutional, the diocese says in court papers, according to one of its attorneys.

Jennifer Freeman, a lawyer at the White Plains law firm Marsh that she said had filed about a dozen claims against the diocese, said in an interview that it was unusual to suspend statutes of limitations, but argued that case law allowed for it for several reasons, including to remedy injustice.

“The injustice here is obvious,” she said. “There is a societal plague of child sex abuse in New York and other states.” She said it could take years for a victim to come to terms with past abuse.

Freeman said allegations such as those raised in the claims could be backed up by the church’s own files and past criminal cases against alleged abusers.