ALASKA
Duluth News Tribune
MARY PEMBERTON
Associated Press
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - A priest accused of sexually abusing boys more than two decades ago has been dismissed from the priesthood, the Catholic Diocese of Juneau said Sunday.
The dismissal of Michael Patrick Nash stems from an investigation that began in late 2002, when a former Juneau resident claimed that he had been abused by Nash in the early 1980s.
"I am relieved we are coming to a sense of resolution and some conclusion to what all around has been a tragic affair," Bishop Michael Warfel said Sunday.
The diocese decided that Joel Post, who now lives in Duluth, Minn., had "suffered grave harm at the hands of Mr. Nash" and agreed to pay him $175,740 to settle his claims.
After the allegations became public, a number of other men came forward and made similar claims, according to the diocese.