Boy's mom: Settlement decision hurts victims

A childhood photo of Greg Ford, who is now 24.

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(CNN) -- The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston had agreed to pay millions to sexual assault victims of one of its priests, but it backed out of a settlement last week. Paula Ford, the mother of one of the boys allegedly raped by a another priest, spoke Monday with CNN anchor Paula Zahn.

ZAHN: Over the weekend, Cardinal [Bernard] Law defended the decision to back out on deals for financial settlements with victims of convicted priest John Geoghan, but now the church has to deal with another priest under the Boston Archdiocese involved in the scandal, the Rev. Paul Shanley.

The priest, who waived an extradition hearing Friday in San Diego, will soon face rape charges in Massachusetts. He stands accused of repeatedly raping young Greg Ford while serving as a Roman Catholic priest in the Boston area.

And joining us now to discuss the case and the decision by the archdiocese to back out of a multimillion dollar settlement are Paula Ford, Greg Ford's mother, and Sister Marie LaBollita, the nun the boy confided to about being allegedly abused by Shanley. ...

ZAHN: Mrs. Ford, I know you don't do many interviews at all. ... When you heard that this decision had been made to step away from this multimillion dollar settlement, what did you think?

FORD: I felt like the victims were being re-victimized again.

Paula Ford

ZAHN: Let me read for a second what one of the advisers to the archdiocese had to say in The New York Times about the decision Cardinal Law came to. ... If they go to court, then the archdiocese will use all of its defenses, including charitable immunity, statute of limitations, First Amendment. Basically when the church announces a global solution, you don't have to trust them. You have two choices: Go to mediation, go to court and get $20,000. How will this affect your son's case?

FORD: We're looking for the truth first and foremost. And we're looking for change so that this doesn't ever have to happen again. I mean, I don't see the church, you know, reaching out to the victims by forcing them to go to court and not giving them, you know, the therapy that they need, you know what they say and what they actually do I can vouch for it. We're not getting any help that we need.

ZAHN: I know you brought along with you, and we're going to show this on the screen now, pictures taken of your family with Father Shanley, the man you all have accused of abusing your son. He was a trusted family friend, a spiritual adviser. Why was it important for you to share these pictures with us?

FORD: Well, let me make one thing clear. He wasn't a good friend to us. He was merely our pastor. We went to church. We listened to him, homilies. We liked him. We sent the children to CCD. We didn't bring our children to him for counseling. We didn't, you know have dinner with him. We didn't socialize with him. He was merely the pastor. So we just want to make it clear that, yes, it was my son Greg but you know what, it could have been any other child.

ZAHN: You actually have some videotape, too, of the Rev. Shanley performing and singing with children at a variety show at church. As you look at these pictures is there anything -- any alarm that should have gone off?

FORD: Absolutely not. The fact of the matter is that he really fooled everyone.

ZAHN: How many years do you think it was before you even knew your son was suffering at what he says was the abuse by Father Shanley?

FORD: We did not know until January 31 when The [Boston] Globe did a spotlight piece on Father Paul Shanley. Until that time, we had struggled with Greg in and out of hospitals since he had been 13. And you know, they kept saying that he showing classic signs of sexual abuse, but we weren't able to target anyone. And the fact of the matter is not once did any of us ever think that it would have been at the hands of the church.

ZAHN: When you see pictures of Father Shanley, what are you thinking about today?

FORD: I can't -- I can't put any energy toward Father Shanley. We just have to be careful and take care of Greg because even though Greg is 24, the victim is 6. And I think I can speak for all of the victims out there right now that this -- they need to focus on their healing and not Paul Shanley. He can't hurt them anymore.

ZAHN: Sister Marie describe to us what it was like when Paula Ford came to you and told you what was going on with her family and Father Shanley?

LABOLLITA: When Paula came and told me what was happening I was absolutely horrified. I was in the state of shock, not to the degree, obviously, that Paula was in the state of shock, but I was shocked to think that this could happen to a child by a priest. And it just sends shivers through my whole body. My heart just ached for Paula and Rodney and for Greg, for Greg's sister, Catherine. I just don't know how you cope with a family with that kind of news. So my heart was really broken for them.

ZAHN: And what angered you the most when Paula started to share the details of what Greg ultimately admitted to having experienced?

Sister Marie LaBollita

LABOLLITA: Well, I guess there was a double anger. First of all the anger at Paul Shanley for having done this to a child and for being a priest who has a sacred trust and a bond with children. I just couldn't believe that he could do such a thing.

But I was also very angry at the hierarchy of the church, especially our leadership here in Boston who had covered this up and didn't give any warning whatsoever to the parishioners of St. Jean's that Paul Shanley was this type of a man. It blew my mind.

ZAHN: And Paula just a final word to other families out there who have been standing on the sidelines not wanting to take the church to the court on the heels of the decision about backing away from this multimillion dollar settlement. What is your advice to them?

FORD: My advice to them in order to move forward, you know, they need to feel empowered. They can take back control of their lives now for whoever the priest is at hand. They need to speak out so that this won't happen again to other children.