$95 Million CVA Verdict Against Former Rochester Priest for 1979 Childhood Sexual Abuse

In 1979, a 15-year-old boy in downtown Rochester accepted what appeared to be a simple offer of a ride home. The man behind the wheel was Rev. Foster P. Rogers, a Catholic priest. The boy did not know Rogers and had no connection to his parish. Rogers drove him to a secluded location and sexually assaulted him.

The victim carried the consequences of that assault for more than four decades. He developed post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, generalized anxiety disorder, and substance and alcohol use disorders that disrupted his life long into adulthood. For years, New York's statutes of limitations blocked any legal path forward. That changed when the state enacted the Child Victims Act, which reopened a filing window for childhood sexual abuse survivors. The victim filed his complaint in 2020, and five additional CVA complaints naming Rogers were on file by the time the case reached trial.

Amy Keller of Lipsitz Green Scime Cambria represented the plaintiff at trial before Justice Charles Schiano Jr. in Rochester. Rogers chose to represent himself. Keller presented evidence of the lasting psychological harm her client suffered, arguing the assault had 'destroyed his life.' The jury deliberated and returned a verdict on May 11, 2023.

The panel awarded $30 million for past pain and suffering and $15 million for future pain and suffering, for a compensatory total of $45 million. It added $50 million in punitive damages, a figure that reflected the jury's judgment about the gravity of Rogers' conduct. The combined $95 million verdict was the second-largest CVA award in New York at the time, behind a $100 million verdict returned by an Erie County jury earlier that same month.

Rogers had resigned his priestly duties in 2002 at the request of Bishop Matthew Clark following earlier abuse allegations. At the time of the verdict, he held part-time employment but had limited financial resources. No reduction or appeal of the verdict was reported in contemporaneous coverage.