Servite High School, on La Palma Avenue in Anaheim, Calif., is located several miles from the Disneyland theme park.

By InfoWise News Team

A male predator sexually abused Jean-Jacques Rousseau in Turin in 1728 – an experience the philosopher vividly described years later.

The incident was “hideous” and harrowing, but didn’t compare to the indifference that met the 15-year-old when he stepped forward to report it.

A Catholic school principal “accus(ed) me of impugning the honor of a sacred establishment and making a lot of fuss” the philosopher recalled bitterly.    

The principal said he himself had been sexually abused as a boy. His tone surprised Rousseau, who came away convinced that sexual abuse is “general practice in the world.”

It still is common – judging by statistics on child sexual abuse by priests and others in churches and schools. Comprehensive numbers are hard to come by, but Catholic dioceses to date have paid more than $1 billion in compensation for sexual misconduct, with more than two dozen U.S. dioceses seeking bankruptcy protection as a result.

As Rousseau learned, the impulse to shield priests, schools and church is powerful. It persists today – almost 300 years after he endured it.

The dynamic creates unfortunate outcomes for victims. Researchers now believe that the minimization, or “invalidation” of trauma, leaves the worst scars on survivors. Conversely, listening to victims in a fully supportive manner can lessen the long-term effects of abuse.

Despite the scandal’s reach, thousands of alumni of Servite High School in Anaheim, Calif. until recently thought the abuse tsunami had bypassed their alma mater. This thinking was punctured in June, when a newspaper item recounted abuse a student, now 60, alleges at the hands of the late Fr. Kevin Fitzpatrick.

In September 2022, the Servite community’s shock amplified when another former student, now 58, described years of abuse by the late Robert Cotton – once chair of the school’s English department.

The revelations involving Cotton, who died in 2007, are especially hard to digest.

Cotton is listed alongside the late television journalist Edwin Newman as special editorial adviser to the Houghton Mifflin English Grammar and Composition textbook published in 1984. He brought advanced, college-level textual criticism to generations of students.

As with revelations elsewhere, these first brave Servite victims punctured the walls of shame that always shield institutions and individuals – empowering others to tell their stories.

As of late September 2022, four additional suits naming Fitzpatrick had been filed in Orange County Superior Court. Multiple additional suits had been filed by December 2022, bringing the total naming Fitzpatrick to at least eight.

Additionally, “multiple other Servite alumni have reached out – either as survivors or witnesses,” Michael Reck, managing attorney for Anderson Advocates’ Los Angeles office, told InfoWise.org.

It is possible that other legal firms are also representing victims.

More than 400 childhood sexual abuse hearings are now being scheduled before a Los Angeles judge as part of a new wave of lawsuits. The suits are being heard as a result of California Assembly Bill 218, which grants adult victims the rights they held as juveniles – when the abuse occurred.

There is a sense of urgency connected to the legislation. At midnight on Dec. 31, the legislation sunsets, ending what Reck calls “a once in a lifetime opportunity” to receive compensation for abuse suffered decades ago.

AB 218 provides substantial protection to victims – including confidentiality. In recently-filed suits, plaintiffs are identified as John Does with four-digit numbers. The two victims recently profiled in news stories chose to participate in interviews. Other victims chose to skip that public step.

On June 21 and then Sept. 21, Servite advised alumni to approach school officials directly with questions about past abuse.

Victims should instead seek legal counsel as soon as possible.

“Talk to a lawyer,” attorney Reck said. “If the perpetrator is alive, law enforcement is an option.

“You’re not alone. At this point, these cases are very time-sensitive. From a practical point of view, sooner is much better than later to step forward.”

The biggest thing victims gain is empowerment, Reck added – although monetary compensation can also be “very significant.”

Telling one’s story is often “life-changing” for victims, the attorney said.

An internet search for the terms “childhood sexual abuse claim California” calls up more than a dozen law firms that work in this area. View legal firm search results here.

SNAP, or the Survivors Network for those Abused by Priests, offers victims “the largest, oldest and most active support group for women and men wounded by religious and institutional authorities.”

A woman abused as a Catholic eighth-grader in Toledo, Ohio founded the organization in 1988. SNAP offers support and advice on reporting abuse to victims in the U.S. and around the world – including those who experienced abuse in other settings and religious denominations.  

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