CEDAR RAPIDS (IA)
Courier
By PAT KINNEY, Courier Business Editor
CEDAR RAPIDS --- A case involving a Cedar Rapids man who alleged a Roman Catholic priest with Waterloo ties sexually abused him in 1983 has been settled out of court.
Daniel J. Ortmann of Cedar Rapids told the Courier he reached the out-of-court settlement in his suit against the Rev. William Schwartz "to bring closure" to an ordeal that has strained him emotionally, physically and financially.
Ortmann's suit against Schwartz has been dismissed in Linn County District Court. Ortmann and Robert Day, a Dubuque attorney whose firm is representing Schwartz, confirmed an out-of-court settlement had been reached. Neither Ortmann nor Day would disclose details.
"The settlement was never about money to me, or to my family," Ortmann said. "It was about making people aware" of the problem of clergy sex abuse.
"I am of the mind that everyone has to face St. Peter at some point in time," Ortmann said. "But, by the same token it's my duty to let the public know."