LOUISVILLE (KY)
The Courier-Journal
By Peter Smith
psmith@courier-journal.com The Courier-Journal
The Vatican has completed its review of priests accused of sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville, dismissing a fourth man from the priesthood and ordering three elderly priests to live out their days in prayer and penance.
Joseph Herp -- who had been accused of sexual abuse in four lawsuits in 2002 and 2003 -- was dismissed from the priesthood, according to a new report on sexual abuse issued by the archdiocese.
The Vatican also ordered Robert Dollinger, J. Irvin Mouser and Edwin Scherzer to live in prayer and penance. They are not allowed to perform any public ministry, present themselves as priests or have unsupervised contact with minors.
The Vatican uses that option in cases of "health problems or advanced age," according to the archdiocese's report. Mouser is 67, Dollinger, 78, and Scherzer, 79, according to court records. The archdiocese said Dollinger, Mouser and Scherzer would not comment.
The decisions in the cases were made public in the archdiocese's newly published annual report on finances and other activities, including its response to sexual abuse.