In what the judge called a “unique” case, a Nebraska jury has awarded $1.75 million in damages to a woman who claimed she repressed her memories of being sexually abused as a child by her father, a former Baptist pastor.

The theory of repressed memory is still a subject of heated scientific debate. But it was the key to the jury's verdict finding Gordon Vella liable for molesting his daughter while he worked at two Baptist churches in Lincoln, Neb.

The statute of limitations, the jury ruled, did not bar the plaintiff's claims for sexual assault and emotional distress because she suffered from a “mental disorder” that prevented her from remembering her abuse until she was 29. Her witnesses included Dr. Daniel Brown, a Harvard University psychology professor who is a leading proponent of repressed memory.

The abuse allegedly began when the plaintiff, identified only as “Anonymous” in court papers, was three and continued until she was 12. In 1985, she reported to police in Springfield, Mo., that Vella had molested her on numerous occasions.

No charges were filed and, according to a court document, the plaintiff resolved “to not relay information about the abuse to anyone again” and “completely blocked the memory of the abuse” until a January 2003 counseling session. She sued her father and the two churches in 2004.

In Nebraska, the statute of limitations for sexual assault is seven years or within seven years of the victim's 21st birthday, whichever is later. But the statute is tolled if “at the time the cause of action accrues,” the plaintiff was a “person with a mental disorder.”

Applying that law, U.S. District Judge Richard G. Kopf ruled in May 2006 that Vella's daughter had a triable case.

“In my opinion, the 'repressed memory' illness described by Dr. Brown, a type of amnesia, is a mental disorder of the type contemplated by the Nebraska statute,” he said in denying summary judgment. “Such an illness truly precludes one from suing since one cannot elect to bring suit if one cannot remember that one has been injured.”

Other Nebraska cases, Kopf noted, involved “very weak evidence of 'repressed' and 'recovered' memories,” but Brown had presented an “extremely detailed affidavit” and conducted “extensive testing and examination” of Vella's daughter.

“I am aware of no cases applying Nebraska law that contain focused expert testimony (such as that presented by Dr. Brown) on the question of repressed memory. Thus, this case appears to be unique,” the judge said.

The expert testimony, obviously, was strong enough for the jury. And Vella, who no longer works as a pastor, only avoided what could have been a higher award because Nebraska does not allow punitive damages.

Kopf summarily dismissed separate claims against the churches, finding that the “secret” abuse of the plaintiff was causally unrelated to any negligent supervision of Vella. Counsel for Vella said he would appeal the verdict.

By Matthew Heller
5/6/07