Former Priest & Austin Catholic Organization Sued for Sexual Assault

Howry, Breen & Herman, LLP Jul 27, 2020

The Schoenstatt Movement of Austin – a Catholic organization – and former priest Gerold Langsch are facing a lawsuit from three women. According to the plaintiffs who have remained anonymous for confidentiality and privacy, The Schoenstatt Movement allowed Langsch to sexually assault and grope them due to the group’s “institutionalized negligence.” The damages the women are seeking have not been disclosed at this time.

Institutional negligence has been a common complaint among sexual assault lawsuits against various Catholic organizations across the world in recent years. In legal definitions, institutional negligence occurs when the supervisors or owners of an organization fail to properly supervise its staff or members, which results in the injury of others. Within church-related sexual assault cases, the term is generally used to describe when a bishop or other leaders “turn a blind eye” away from or ignore or cover up accusations of sexual assault or other inappropriate behavior brought against a priest or clergy member.

Of note, Langsch was previously accused of “inappropriate touching” in 2019. He pleaded no contest and was put on probation for nearly a year.

For more information about this developing story, you can click here to view a full article from KXAN NBC newsgroup. To learn how to file a clergy sexual abuse lawsuit in Texas, you can call (512) 430-4844 and speak with an attorney from Howry, Breen & Herman, LLP. Our law firm has recovered millions and millions of dollars for our clients and is currently representing victims of abuse in a lawsuit against the Catholic Diocese of Austin.

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