Sex Assault Lawsuit Against Diocese of Orlando Settles

Priest Was Transferred to Orlando Despite Multiple Complaints in Newark

Priest was Convicted of Aggravated Stalking in 2005

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Apr 08, 2010, 08:30 ET

ORLANDO, Fla., April 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The Miami firm of Mermelstein & Horowitz, P.A., announces that a civil lawsuit brought by a woman stalked and sexually assaulted by a Catholic priest working for the Diocese of Orlando has settled.

Jane Doe v. Diocese of Orlando and Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark (case no. 06-CA0728-35) was filed in Orange County Circuit Court in 2006. Jane Doe alleged she was repeatedly stalked, harassed, and even sexually assaulted by Fr. Wladyslaw Gorak, between 2004 and 2005, while Gorak worked as a priest in Lakeland, Florida.

Gorak, ordained in Poland, began working as a priest in Newark in 1998. Documents obtained by the Plaintiff reveals that other priests and church employees in Newark raised concerns about Gorak, including his sexually inappropriate behaviors with women prior to his transfer to Orlando in 2004. In 1998, the Archbishop of Newark, Theodore McCarrick, was informed of the complaints about Gorak, according to the evidence. In 2001, two different New Jersey police departments investigated Gorak for stalking a female parishioner.

Gorak began working in the Diocese of Orlando in January 2004. Several months later, and despite the fact that Newark's Bishop knew of the complaints about Gorak, Newark's Vicar General, now-Bishop Arthur Serratelli, wrote in a sworn affidavit to the Diocese of Orlando that Gorak was fit for ministry. At deposition, Serratelli testified that he never even reviewed Gorak's file.

In Lakeland, despite Jane Doe's multiple complaints to her parish pastor, Gorak continued to terrorize Jane Doe, following her everywhere, breaking into her home, and ultimately sexually assaulting her. Gorak was convicted of stalking Jane Doe in 2005. The same year, he changed his name to. Walter Fisher.

Adam Horowitz, Jane Doe's attorney, said, "News reports in recent weeks have shed light on a conspiracy by church leaders to conceal evidence of abusive priests from the public. The evidence in this case shows that Bishops are even deceiving each other as to their priest's history of abuse."

Gorak/Fisher remains a priest of the Archdiocese of Newark. According to the Florida Dept. of Corrections, he continues to live in the Lakeland area. Jane Doe is 55 years old. She resides in Ireland with her husband.

The amount of the settlement is confidential and will not be disclosed.

Documents from Gorak/Fisher's file, as well as the deposition transcripts of Newark Archbishop John Myers and Paterson (NJ) Bishop Arthur Serratelli, will be available at http://jessicaarbour.blogspot.com.

www.sexabuseattorney.com

SOURCE Mermelstein & Horowitz, P.A.