Another Child Sex Abuse Lawsuit Filed Against Delbarton School, Priest

Editor's note: This article has been updated with comment from a St. Mary's Abbey spokesperson.

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, NJ — A lawsuit against the Delbarton School claims that a priest sexually abused a child in the 1990s. The complaint became the latest among several lawsuits filed against the school for alleged abuse.

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The lawsuit alleges that Father Jude Salus sexually abused the plaintiff from 1993-94. The plaintiff, who filed the lawsuit anonymously, was a student and approximately 14 years old.

"I used to ask myself all the time, 'why me?'" the plaintiff said in a news release from the law firms representing them. "I didn't get it. I was the good kid — quiet, shy, obedient. It took me a long time to realize that that's exactly 'why me.' Father Jude probably assumed that I would never come forward about what happened that day, and for nearly three decades, he was right."

St. Mary's Abbey, which runs Delbarton, lists Salus as an active monk on its website. But a spokesperson for St. Mary's Abbey says he is retired and "seriously ill." He will have his activities "restricted and monitored closely by the Abbey administration until this matter is resolved," according to Anthony Cicatiello.

See Cicatiello's full statement below:

"We are deeply saddened to hear these claims of abuse. We have great compassion for any victim of sexual abuse. We know the courage it takes for survivors of abuse to come forward. As is our standard practice, when we learned the details of these claims, we contacted the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office and will continue to fully cooperate with law enforcement.

As for Fr. Jude Salus, he is 74 years old, is retired and seriously ill. Fr. Jude has no contact with any students or staff at Delbarton School, and, consistent with our policies, he will have his activities restricted and monitored closely by the Abbey administration until this matter is resolved.

Delbarton’s highest priority is the well-being of our students, and we have progressively improved best-practice standards to ensure a safe environment at our school, which are regularly reviewed by independent third-party experts."

Law firms Jeff Anderson & Associates and Gianforcaro Law have filed 32 lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse from Delbarton.

Salus became ordained in 1975 and began teaching religion at Delbarton and serving in local parishes on the weekends. He currently serves as chaplain at Newton Medical Center and to the Filippini Sisters at Villa Walsh in Morristown, according to St. Mary's Abbey.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Morris County Superior Court, claims that "the culture of the Catholic Church ... created pressure on (the) Plaintiff not to report the abuse."

The complaint demands a jury trial. The plaintiff seeks several compensatory damages and further relief that the court deems equitable.

Gov. Phil Murphy signed the Victims' Rights Bill into law May 2019, which opened a timeframe that removed the statute of limitations as a barrier for lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse. The bill gives the public until Nov. 30 to file such claims.

Since the state temporarily suspended the statute of limitations for such civil cases, several have sued Delbarton and alleged child sexual abuse.

Although New Jersey temporarily suspended the statute of limitations in 2019, Delbarton's public troubles began years prior.

In 2012, Steve Badt became the sixth former student to join a civil lawsuit alleging sexual abuse from the school. Badt said the abuse took place at the hands of a monk from 1979-85. Read more: Former Parsippany Resident Alleges Delbarton Abuse

The man alleged he was sexually abused by Timothy Brennan, who in 1987 was convicted of criminal sexual abuse of another Delbarton student.

But lawsuits escalated since 2019, when lawsuits accused 13 monks linked to the school of sexually assaulting 30 people from the 1960s to 1980s. Attorneys representing victims who say they were sexually abused filed six lawsuits in July against Delbarton School and St. Mary's Abbey and the Order of St. Benedict of New Jersey, which runs the school. Read more: 6 Lawsuits Allege Sexual Assault By Clerics At Delbarton School

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