A Blair County judge has ordered the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown to respond to a lawsuit filed by a Honduran native who stated he was the victim of sexual assault by a former priest, Joseph D. Maurizio Jr.

Maurizio served for several years at Our Lady Queen of Angels parish in Central City, Somerset County.

Maurizio was convicted by a federal court jury in 2016 of sexual offenses that occurred on multiple trips he made to Honduras during the late 1990s and 2000s when he was associated with an organization, Pro Nino, an orphanage dedicated to helping “street children” by providing them with a safe place to live and an education.

U.S. District Judge Kim R. Gibson in Johnstown sentenced Maurizio to 200 months of confinement on charges of engaging in illegal sexual activity in foreign places, transferring funds from the United States to promote his illegal activity and possession of material depicting sexual exploitation of a minor.

Maurizio, 75, is serving his confinement at the Federal Correctional Institution in Lisbon, Ohio. His release date is in 2028, but, according to Gibson’s sentence, he will then be under supervision for the rest of his life.

One of the victims of Maurizio’s assaults, identified in a lawsuit filed in the Blair County Court in 2019 as “John Doe,” contends that Maurizio began abusing him in 1999, when he was 10 years old.

The victim, who testified during Maurizio’s federal trial and who is now an adult, said that Maurizo’s abuse “inflicted severe and permanent mental distress and emotional injuries” on him.

His lawsuit, filed by attorneys J. Andrew Sealey and Trent Miracle of Alton, Ill., charged that Maurizio, who often visited the Pro Nino orphanage, would prey on young boys, giving them candy and a small amount of money in exchange for sexual favors.

Maurizio, the lawsuit stated, first abused the youngster when he was asked to accompany the priest and two other children to deliver materials to a location called La Montana.

The youngsters helped Marizio unload a truck full of items, but, at one point he and Maurizio were alone. Maurizio began to abuse him, the victim claims.

He states in the lawsuit that he “felt terrified and disturbed” by Maurizio’s assault.

The victim, while still a citizen of Honduras, now lives in Philadelphia.

The lawsuit was filed against Maurizio, the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese, Humanitarian Interfaith Ministries, which raised money for Pro Nino, and Pro Nino itself.

Maurizio’s abuse came to light in March 2009 when an employee of Pro Nino heard the boys arguing about whether they should report the priest.

The lawsuit claims that while the diocese investigated the incident, it took steps only to protect itself and not to minister to the alleged child victims or to discipline Maurizio, who continued to serve at his Somerset County parish.

The diocese, through its Pittsburgh attorney, Eric Anderson, filed preliminary objections in which it asked Blair County Judge Wade A. Kagarise to dismiss the case.

The diocese claimed that “Doe” and his attorneys violated rules of civil procedure by not notifying the diocese of the lawsuit within certain time limits of its filing.

Kagarise responded in an opinion by pointing out the attorneys for the victim “made numerous attempts to serve the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown.”

On Jan. 29, 2020, the judge reported he gave “Doe” 45 days to reinstate his complaint and to serve the diocese.

That service, Kagarise stated, did not occur until July 17, 2020.

Because of the late service, the diocese requested the lawsuit be dismissed.

In explaining the law, Kagarise stated that service deadlines are to prevent an individual’s intent to stall the “judiciary machinery,” or to attempt to prejudice a defendant.

The person suing must make a good-faith attempt to serve a lawsuit, but Kagarise emphasized, whether a plaintiff acted in good faith “is within the sound discretion of the trial judge.” He explained there is no dispute that the lawsuit was not served on the diocese within time limits established by the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure, or even within the judge’s 45-day deadline, but he ruled that the lawyers for “Doe” had persisted in their attempts to notify the diocese of the lawsuit, and that there was no prejudice to the diocese because of the late filing.

The judge also pointed out that if he did dismiss the complaint, the plaintiff could simply refile it.

The statute of limitations on “Doe’s” claim will not expire for several years, Kagarise stressed.

“Therefore,” Kagarise stated, “dismissing the complaint or striking service simply would not be in the interest of judicial economy and would cause delays for both parties.”

The judge gave the diocese 30 days to file an answer to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit points out that Marizio made periodic trips to Honduras to work at Pro Nino. His last trip to that country was in February 1999. However, he continued to travel to Central and South America until 2011.

The lawsuit stated Maurizio made other trips to Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua, the Domincan Republic, El Salvador, Panama, Mexico and Haiti.

“Cloth and collar are symbols of hope and trust, particularly in the most vulnerable and desperate communities of the world. … He (Maurizio) abused those symbols,” the lawsuit stated.