January 14, 2005

Ex-Fort Lewis priest sued for sex abuse

TACOMA (WA)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

TACOMA, Wash. -- A Thurston County man is suing a priest and several Catholic organizations over sexual abuse he says occurred at Fort Lewis in the 1980s while he was a teenager.

The plaintiff, who is anonymous in the Pierce County Superior Court lawsuit, has filed suit against the Rev. Reinard Beaver, the Archdiocese for the Military Services, the archbishop of Seattle and the bishop of Spokane.

Beaver, who lives in Steilacoom and was a chaplain at Fort Lewis from 1960 to 1986, has been sued by at least three other men who say he abused them. He was removed from public ministry in 1988 after complaints surfaced.

The plaintiff said he regularly attended mass at Fort Lewis in 1982 with his family and that Beaver used his status as the family's chaplain to exploit and abuse him. His attorney, Mike Pfau, said the abuse began when the plaintiff was 12 or 13 and happened at the family's house and during a trip to Walla Walla for a church service.

Posted by kshaw at January 14, 2005 07:10 PM