Priest receives two 16-year prison sentences
By Sam Lucero
Special to The Catholic Spirit
During a sentencing hearing Nov. 9 in Milwaukee County Circuit Court, Father Simon Palathingal, a member of the Salesians of Don Bosco, received two 16- year sentences in prison for first degree sexual assault of a child. Judge Karen Christenson said both sentences will be served concurrently and Father Palathingal will be eligible for parole in four years.
Father Palathingal served as an extern priest in residence in St. Mary Parish, South Amboy, at the time of his arrest outside the rectory June 3.
The case stems from sexual abuse that took place in Milwaukee in 1990 and 1991 while the priest, a native of India, was studying at Marquette University. The victim, Nicholas Janovsky, now 23, was 9 and 10 at the time. Father Palathingal pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual abuse in September.
Janovsky, who spoke during the sentencing hearing, was joined by his parents, Gary and Sally Janovsky, and an aunt, Barbara Rice. Two former Indian students of Father Palathingal now living in the United States also spoke at the hearing, testifying about the positive influence the priest had on their lives and urging the judge to be lenient in her sentence.
“I’m happy that justice was served today, but greatly disappointed that the sentences are going to be served together,” Janovsky said. “Unfortunately, he’ll be eligible for parole and that burden is going to be placed on this community to make sure he’s not released.”
Janovsky said he plans to be present each time Father Palathingal is up for parole.
“I know that I did all I can do,” he added. “It’s very disappointing to see that a man who does these horrific things detailed in the criminal complaint gets off with basically a slap on the wrist.”
Before sentencing, assistant district attorney Gale Shelton, who prosecuted the case on behalf of the state, described some of the incidents of abuse that took place at a former residence for retired priests in Milwaukee called Jordan House. As she spoke, Janovsky, sitting in the third row of the court gallery, separated from the court chambers by a glass partition, covered his face with his hands and cried.
Shelton said Father Palathingal’s statements to law enforcement officials leave questions about his remorsefulness. “The defendant says he’s sorry and realizes what he did was wrong and that what he imposed on Nick was morally and legally wrong. He said he went to Lourdes (France) to confess his sins. This is at odds with what he told investigators.” According to the criminal complaint, after his arrest, Fr. Palathingal told police Janovsky was the aggressor.
In his address to the court, Father Palathingal acknowledged his guilt and apologized to Janovsky. He described his experience as a test of faith. “I have been abandoned by everybody, including my Church. Is this what Christ wants me to go through? Why?” he asked. “I need to be broken down to be mended again. I have to pay for what I did 13 years ago.”
The incident with Javonsky was not the only indication of inappropriate conduct with children. After leaving Milwaukee and before coming to New Jersey, he served a parish in Lake Charles, La. where he was accused of “questionable and inappropriate sexual conduct toward a minor boy.” Those accusations were not investigated by civil authorities because the accuser’s family refused to cooperate.
Despite that accusation, the Diocese of Metuchen received multiple letters of recommendation from officials in the Diocese of St. Charles and one from the Salesian superior when Father Palathingal came to New Jersey.
On his application to become incardinated in the diocese, he never stated that he worked in the Diocese of Milwaukee and answered yes to the statement,“I can state without qualification that on no occasion has my behavior caused me, or anyone else of whom I’m aware, to question my ability to deal with minors in an appropriate manner.”
In response to Father Palathingal’s arrest, Bishop Paul G. Bootkoski has called for changes in the process used to investigate and monitor extern priests. “In a real way, this case illustrates the need for a nationwide clergy database,” he wrote in a letter to the nearly 1,500 families of St. Mary Parish in July. “If such a database were in existence, we likely would have known that Father Palathingal had ministered in Milwaukee and we could have inquired about his conduct there.”
In regard to his prison sentence, Father Palathingal told the court, “This is what Christ wants me to do now. I have harmed a kid due to my very own selfishness. Christ wants me to pay for it and I will,” he said. “I am confident God will bring good out of this in my life.”
Sally Janovsky said while Father Palathingal may be released from prison in four years, “My son has to live with this every day of his life,” she said. “I was raised a Catholic. We had priests in our home as a child. I trusted them. [Fr. Palathingal] was welcomed in our home as a priest. He took that and abused my son and abused our trust.”
Sam Lucero is a reporter with the Milwaukee Catholic Herald. Head Staff Writer Erick Rommel contributed to this article.
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law