EVANSVILLE (IN)
Courier & Press
By PHILIP ELLIOTT and BRYAN CORBIN Courier & Press staff writers 461-0783 or elliottp@courierpress.com 464-7449 or corbinb@courierpress.com
August 13, 2005
The Diocese of Evansville will wait until accusations against a suspended priest are resolved in criminal court before taking any further action.
The Rev. Wilfred "Fred" Englert, 52, of Jasper, Ind., is accused of sexually molesting a 19-year-old mentally disabled man. Englert, the priest at Jasper's St. Joseph Catholic Church, has been suspended with pay by the Diocese of Evansville. It remains unclear what the diocese's next step will be, given new church rules on abuse and the criminal case unfolding in court documents. In the criminal case, Englert faces charges of engaging in sex acts with the mentally-disabled man between April and July. Court documents cite a mental-health expert who evaluated the young man and concluded that because of retardation, the 19-year-old has the academic functioning of a 9-year-old. Prosecutors thus contend the young man could not legally give consent to sex, despite his age.
When questioned by an Indiana State Police investigator, Englert reportedly admitted some of the man's allegations of sexual contact.
Prosecutors in Dubois and Orange counties filed formal charges against Englert on Tuesday. Englert turned himself in Thursday, posted bond and was released.