“Catholic priest is (allegedly) an equal opportunity offender, court says, dismissing bias suit” Robin Shea at Employment & Labor Insider has this summary of a decision involving an allegedly foul-mouthed priest who serves as principal of a Roman Catholic school. The court dismissed defamation, harassment, and discrimination claims against the principal, school, Cardinal TImothy Dolan, the principal’s two alleged “henchmen,” and the Archdiocese of New York. Read the complaint here. Here’s how Shea sums it up:
The defamation claim — based on Fr. Reilly’s loudly asking the guidance counselor whether he was a pedophile — was not valid, the judge said, because the priest was not saying the guidance counselor was a pedophile but only asking. (Long story, but it makes sense in context.)
As far as the harassment and discrimination claims, the court found that there was no evidence that Fr. Reilly discriminated against women or older employees — if the allegations in the lawsuit were to be believed, he treated everybody equally badly. The court said,
Although plaintiffs’ main allegations may demonstrate that Father Reilly has made numerous crude, vulgar, insensitive and prejudiced remarks against all types of people and that he may not always demonstrate the morals and principles aligned with a well-respected Catholic institution [EDITOR’S NOTE: Ya think?], the law does not impose liability upon him based on the allegations set forth in the plaintiffs’ complaints.