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A well-known Palma High School alumnus has filed a lawsuit alleging he was sexually assaulted by the school’s chaplain, possibly after being drugged, in 1984.

Dr. Steven Cantrell, brother-in-law of Palma’s head football coach, Jeff Carnazzo, is the fourth man to allege sexual abuse by the Rev. Gerald “Jerry” Funcheon and the second to do so publicly, rather than as “John Doe.”

in an exclusive interview last week, Cantrell said he is suing and speaking publicly to support Christopher Spedden, the other named accuser, and to call on Palma President Brother Patrick Dunne to reach out to former students who were abused at the school.

in an open letter to the community, the Visalia opthamologist says legal actions related to the Irish Christian Brothers bankruptcy and an approaching deadline for victims pose an opportunity for Palma to “live up to the same morals they have instilled in young men for over 60 years.”

so far, he said, that has not happened.

“Up to now, Palma’s conduct has not been helpful,” Cantrell wrote. “It would be beneficial if the school’s administrator(s) reached out to victims instead of issuing public statements limited to assurances that its financial assets are safe and that no child molesters currently work there.”

Informed of Cantrell’s lawsuit, Dunne responded with a statement saying, “We are so very saddened to hear about another allegation of inappropriate contact where a young man would have been victimized by someone that he should have been able to trust. that said, we have not seen a lawsuit from Mr. Cantrell nor has he contacted the school about it. No charge has been filed here against Palma School so we cannot offer anything further on that matter.

“Importantly, none of our staff, none of the Brothers serving this school, are connected to any of these legal issues. I am confident that the legal process to provide redress and compensation for victims is working.”

Cantrell, a 1989 graduate, said Palma administrators and the Irish Christian Brothers are guilty of “horrific negligence” for placing a known pedophile in the midst of vulnerable students after he was shuffled out of schools in Minnesota, Hawaii and elsewhere facing multiple claims of molestation.

“This suit is out there to prevent this from ever happening again,” Cantrell said.

Revelations of Funcheon’s prior molestations, and the knowledge of them among his superiors in the Crosiers religious order, came to light during discovery in some of the dozens of lawsuits that led the Irish Christian Brothers to declare bankruptcy in New York in April 2011.

former students who were molested at Irish Christian Brothers schools have until Aug. 1 to file claims for possible settlements in that action. More information about the bankruptcy, in which Palma is a named party, can be found at www.omnimgt.com/TheChristianBrothers.

in addition to Funcheon, two other former Palma educators were identified as Irish Christian Brothers employees who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse at other schools. they are the late Brother Jerome Heustis, who was Palma’s principal from 1976 to 1982, and Brother Robert Brouillette, who taught from 1964 to 1968. Neither has been accused of molesting children at Palma.

Cantrell said he was an eighth-grade student at Palma Junior High School when Funcheon molested him on a two-day camping trip to Hearst Castle. Knowing there were numerous such trips involving other boys, and that all of the priest’s other accusers allege they were molested on trips, he fears there are numerous victims who have not had the strength to come forward.

as the Aug. 1 “bar date” approaches, Cantrell said he hopes his high-profile lawsuit and bankruptcy claim will provide courage to others who are suffering in silence, possibly without the strong family support that he enjoys.

the married father of three said he told his parents, longtime Palma supporters, and his sister and brother-in-law about his molestation after reading reports in the Herald connecting Palma to Funcheon’s abuse and the bankruptcy. Each has offered unwavering support, both for his healing and his legal actions.

He said Carnazzo told him he was not to consider how his lawsuit could affect the coach professionally.

“I support my brother-in-law and I’m devastated by what he had to go through,” Carnazzo said Thursday. “It is also difficult for me being that I’ve been an employee for 21 years and I know that Palma cares about kids.”

Cantrell’s lawsuit was filed Thursday in Minnesota, the home of Crosiers. It names the religious order and Funcheon. Cantrell’s attorney, Michael Pfau of Seattle, said it will be followed by a separate suit against Palma and possibly Damien High School in Hawaii, which transferred Funcheon to Salinas.

the suit alleges that Funcheon, now in his 70s and living in Missouri, may have drugged Cantrell or plied him with alcohol before assaulting him. It states that Cantrell repressed any memory of it until “very recently.”

last week, Cantrell said it was the Herald’s reporting that triggered him to put the pieces together and realize the emotional impact the assault or assaults had on his life.

He said his family has been involved directly or indirectly with Palma, cheering its successes and supporting it through failure, for nearly 30 years.

“Given that, it is not possible for me to put into words how I felt when I discovered that Palma had placed me and other children squarely in the path of a serial child sexual predator,” he wrote in his letter.

Funcheon taught religion and sex education. as the school’s chaplain, he also supervised lunch hours and often took groups of boys off campus for burgers.

“That was a big deal,” Cantrell said. “Father Jerry was a likeable guy. He knew how to groom children and he was put in a position that let him do it very well.”

the priest also took favored students on overnight trips, a treat that was coveted by those who had not yet been chosen, Cantrell said. One day Funcheon asked if Cantrell would like to accompany him and another boy to Hearst Castle. He said one boy had canceled and parents were “more comfortable” if he took two students.

With his parents’ permission, the boy jumped at the chance. He declined to discuss the details of what happened, but said he believes he was sexually abused both nights.

Pfau said he also will be filing lawsuits and a bankruptcy claim on behalf of the other boy who attended the trip, who has chosen not to be named.

Southern California attorney Mike Reck represents Spedden and a fourth Palma alumnus who is preparing a claim in the bankruptcy. Reck said both of them were also molested on trips with Funcheon.

Letters revealed as part of other lawsuits indicate the Crosiers were aware of Funcheon’s pedophilia for decades, shuffling him between schools in Indiana, Florida, Germany and Minnesota. One pastor there estimated there were hundreds of victims in his parish alone.

Funcheon was transferred from Damien to Palma in 1984. One letter to his superiors after he arrived in Salinas indicates he was undergoing therapy for pedophilia in Pacific Grove, paid at least partially by Palma insurance.

Cantrell said Funcheon should never have been let near children at Palma. instead, the brothers and administrators knowingly let him take children off campus and on weekend trips.

Now, he said, it is time for Palma and Dunne to “do the right thing.”

“Is Palma going to turn its back on the Palma alumni who were molested by Father Funcheon or is Palma going to help them?” he asked of Dunne. “The right thing to do is to say, ‘We made a mistake. we don’t want this ever to happen again and if you’re out there struggling, we want to help.’”

Cantrell said he also wants to send a message to other men who were sexually abused by Funcheon.

“It’s not your fault,” he said. “We were up against a guy who was a serial child molester with a 20-year history of unchecked (abuse), who was put in a position of power with young boys, who would do anything possible to take advantage of you once he has you. by the time he hit Palma, he was no novice.”

Virginia Hennessey can be reached at 753-6751 or vhennessey@montereyherald.com.

<a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_20611521/palma-alumnus-alleges-abuse-reaches-out-other-possibletag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_20611521/palma-alumnus-alleges-abuse-reaches-out-other-possibleSun, 13 May 2012 03:07:37 GMT”>Palma alumnus alleges abuse, reaches out to other possible victims

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