Retired B.C. teacher named in 3 sexual abuse lawsuits
CBC
A retired British Columbia Catholic high school teacher with ties to the notorious Mount Cashel Orphanage in Newfoundland is now facing a third civil claim from a former student alleging sexual abuse.
The latest documents filed in B.C. Supreme Court allege Alfred Patrick Quigley groomed and sexually battered a 17-year-old student at St. Ann's Academy in Kamloops in 2013.
Quigley, 73, is also named in two previous lawsuits alleging he sexually abused students during tenures at St. Thomas More Collegiate in Burnaby in the 1970s, and O'Grady Catholic High School in Prince George in the 1990s.
None of the allegations have been proven in court. CBC News reached out to Quigley in Newfoundland, where he now lives, but did not receive a response.
The Kamloops claim also names the Roman Catholic Bishop of Kamloops, the Catholic Independent Schools of the Kamloops Diocese, the Catholic Public Schools of the Archdiocese of Vancouver and the Catholic Independent Schools Diocese of Prince George among the defendants.
The Kamloops claim identifies the plaintiff only as "St. Ann's Survivor" or "S.A.S." It says Quigley, who was a teacher, guidance counsellor and sports coach at St. Ann's, "engaged in a continuum of grooming of S.A.S.," before inviting him to a movie in August 2013.
After the movie, the claim says, Quigley drove S.A.S. to his home and gave him a beer, despite knowing he was a minor. While watching TV together, the claim says, Quigley sexually assaulted S.A.S.
CBC News reached out to the Catholic Independent Schools of Kamloops Diocese and Bishop Joseph Nguyen of the Kamloops Diocese. An email statement sent on behalf of Bishop Nguyen said he was unable to comment because the matter is before the courts.
"The Diocese of Kamloops is committed to responding fairly and compassionately to all claims of historic sexual abuse," the statement said.
The Archdiocese of Vancouver also said it could not comment on the S.A.S. claim.
"We would like to express deep sympathy for all victims of abuse. We hope the attendant publicity will help give any other victims/survivors the confidence to come forward and get the healing they deserve," said Matthew Furtado, communications director with the Archdiocese of Vancouver.
The Kamloops claim says Quigley is a member of the Congregation of Christian Brothers, a lay ministry of the Roman Catholic Church, and was "at one or more times throughout his lifetime engaged as an educator and residence director at Mount Cashel Orphanage in Newfoundland."
The Mount Cashel Orphanage was the site of the largest sexual abuse scandal in Canadian history, where more than 100 boys were physically and sexually abused by the Christian Brothers who ran the orphanage over the span of many decades.
The Mount Cashel story and coverup has a direct connection to B.C.
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