SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Two more women have come out to share their stories of clergy child sex abuse publicly.
Cousins Judith Louise-Worachek and Cathie Ray say the abuse happened decades ago while attending school at St. Jude in Southcrest.
Each alleges they were abused multiple times by Priest Gregory Sheridan, who is named on a Diocese of San Diego list of priests with credible allegations against them.
"Inevitably we would end up in his bedroom with me on his lap, it didn't feel right, but you're not going to talk bad about a priest to your parent," said Ray.
RELATED: San Diego woman accuses Monsignor of sexual abuse, asks for other victims to come forward
For many years neither of the women knew the other had also been abused.
"We made an agreement through the years that we would not ever tell our parents, our grandmother, especially our grandmother," said Ray.
The women said their family members adored the priest, and they did not want to cause their family pain, deciding to wait to share the story until after those loved ones passed away.
"Now it's time to come forward and speak my truth and help others," said Louise-Worachek. "I want my name known. That Sheridan abused me, sexually abused me, and violated me."
The Diocese provided this statement to 10News:
Monsignor Gregory Sheridan has been publicly listed as a credibly accused priest of the San Diego diocese since 2007. He retired in 1983 and died in 1991. We would encourage anyone who considers themselves a victim-survivor of Monsignor Sheridan to make sure their abuse has been reported to law enforcement and to contact us if they desire counseling at no cost to them. Later this summer, if they haven’t already filed a claim against the diocese, we would encourage them to file a claim with the Independent Victim Compensation Program, which can arrange for monetary compensation if they qualify.
The women say at this time they are not interested in the compensation program being offered by the Diocese of San Diego.
