The New Orleans Saints released a statement following an Associated Press report regarding their involvement in a Catholic abuse lawsuit.
A report from the Associated Press revealed that the New Orleans Saints are involved in an ongoing lawsuit against the local Catholic archdiocese, in which two dozen men have accused the church in being complicit in systemic abuse over past decades. The Saints’ role in court proceedings lies in 200-plus emails exchanged between team personnel and members of the archdiocese, including correspondence with Senior Vice President of Communications Greg Bensel.
Hours after this first AP report, the Saints released their own statement on what’s going on, characterizing their message to the archdiocese as an offering of full transparency and cooperation with law enforcement. Specifically, their core message read, “The advice was simple and never wavering. Be direct, open and fully transparent, while making sure that all law enforcement agencies were alerted.”
We’re just now getting very early insight into what will be a lengthy legal process, so the contents of the documents the Saints are trying to prevent from being made public is unclear. It’s too soon to speculate about what impact — if any — this will make on the organization at large, whether it means staffing changes, potential discipline per the NFL personal conduct policy, or Gayle Benson’s ownership of the team. We just don’t have enough facts to guess right now, and neither does anyone else. So check this space for updates in the near future.
The Saints released a lengthy statement today in response to the @AP story today regarding their involvement with the New Orleans Archdiocese pic.twitter.com/cHHjqqGU3K
The NFL’s New Orleans Saints seek to block evidence of “damage control” in a local Catholic abuse crisis, according to the Associated Press.
The New Orleans Saints have gone to court to block public view of hundreds of emails sent on the NFL.com domain allegedly showing team executives involving themselves in damage control for the Archdiocese of New Orleans in what has become a growing sexual abuse scandal, according to an exclusive report by the Associated Press.
Attorneys for the more than two dozen men suing the church say that in the process of discovery, documents were found indicating that members of the Saints organization assisted the Archdiocese in a “pattern and practice of concealing its crimes.”
“Obviously, the Saints should not be in the business of assisting the Archdiocese, and the Saints’ public relations team is not in the business of managing the public relations of criminals engaged in pedophilia,” the attorneys wrote in a court filing, per the AP. “The Saints realize that if the documents at issue are made public, this professional sports organization also will be smearing itself.”
Team owner Gayle Benson, who inherited the Saints when her husband, Tom Benson, died on March 15, 2018, is a devout Catholic who has given millions of dollars to local Catholic institutions. Archbishop Gregory Aymond has been a regular guest of the team at football games and charitable events of the church.
Nov 28, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; New Orleans Saints owner Gayle Benson waves to fans before a game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. (Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports)
The attorneys for the men suing the church say that multiple Saints employees used their team email accounts to give church officials advice on the proper “messaging,” and how to lessen the impact of a list of the archdiocese’s release of a list of clergy members “credibly accused” of sexual abuse.
“The information at issue bears a relationship to these crimes because it is a continuation of the Archdiocese’s pattern and practice of concealing its crimes so that the public does not discover its criminal behavior,” the plaintiffs’ attorneys wrote. “And the Saints joined in.”
The Associated Press, which has covered sexual abuse by the clergy in a series of recent stories, also has filed a motion with the court supporting the release of the documents as a matter of public interest.
“This case does not involve intensely private individuals who are dragged into the spotlight,” the AP argued, “but well-known mega-institutions that collect millions of dollars from local residents to support their activities.”
It is expected that a court-appointed special master will hear arguments in the upcoming weeks regarding the validity of the public interest claims.
Attorneys for the team admitted that there had been communication between the team and the Archdiocese regarding the list of credibly accused members of the clergy, but that the nature of the communication was based on disclosure and was “the opposite of concealment.”
The email issue is related to multiple claims against George F. Brignac, a longtime schoolteacher and deacon who was removed from his position in 1988 after an accusation of abuse led to several others.
As the AP reported:
Church officials permitted Brignac, 85, to act as a lay minister until local news accounts of his service in 2018 prompted his ouster and an apology from the archdiocese. The AP last year reported that Brignac, despite his supposed defrocking, also maintained access to schoolchildren and held leadership roles as recently as 2018 in the Knights of Columbus.
Following a new wave of publicity — in which Brignac told a reporter he had touched boys but never for “immoral purposes” — Brignac was indicted last month on a rape charge that could land him behind bars for the rest of his life. The prosecution came more than a year after a former altar boy told police that Brignac repeatedly raped him beginning in the late 1970s. Police said the abuse began when the boy was 7 and continued until he was 11.
Neither the Saints nor the NFL had any comment when asked by the AP.
The New Orleans Saints will be represented during a lawsuit involving the local archdiocese and a growing scandal surrounding alleged abuse.
The New Orleans Saints have been involved in court filings against the local Roman Catholic archdiocese, with allegations that hundreds of emails from within the Saints organization show that team personnel helped assist the archdiocese with public relations in the aftermath of the church’s sexual abuse crisis, according to a Friday report by The Associated Press.
Attorneys representing two dozen plaintiffs wrote in a court filing, “Obviously, the Saints should not be in the business of assisting the Archdiocese, and the Saints’ public relations team is not in the business of managing the public relations of criminals engaged in pedophilia. The Saints realize that if the documents at issue are made public, this professional sports organization also will be smearing itself.”
Saints attorneys argued against the suggestion that the Saints acted as an organization in assisting the archdiocese, claiming that any email correspondence was private and should not be released as “fodder for the public.” Team staff allegedly implicated in these emails include Senior Vice President of Communications Greg Bensel.
Team owner Gayle Benson’s connections to the archdiocese run deep; she is lifelong friends with Archbishop Gregory Aymond, who often accompanies her to games and assisted in her late husband Tom Benson’s funeral proceedings. She is devoutly Catholic and frequently donates to the church.
As of Friday, the Saints have declined to make any public comments. It is unclear whether the team will face any repercussions from the NFL for potential violations of its personal conduct policy. This is very much a developing situation, and what it means for the Saints as a team or for key personnel remains to be seen. Stay tuned for updates.
I don’t think this loss is enough to convince Griffin and owner Gayle Benson that it’s time for a coaching change, but if things don’t change, and soon, Gentry’s days could be quickly numbered. “We control our own destiny. We’ve got to be the ones that compete. We’ve got to be the ones that play hard,” Gentry said. “Obviously, we’re struggling right now. And to be honest with you, Zion is not coming in as the cavalry. We’ve got to play good basketball. … It’s unacceptable the way we’re playing right now. It’s just unacceptable.
