ST. LOUIS (MO)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Robbi Courtaway
Of the Suburban Journals
Kirkwood-Webster Journal
03/01/2006
As normal daily activities proceed at St. John Vianney High School, allegations of sexual abuse against the Rev. Robert Osborne hang in the shadows.
At a basketball game Feb. 24 between Vianney and Lindbergh High School, for instance, a Lindbergh student made a crack about the school's president, who has temporarily stepped down in the wake of a "John Doe" lawsuit filed against him Feb. 21.
"There was no retaliation from our side," school senior Jeremy Kuppinger said. "I know there weren't any problems."
Kuppinger described Osborne as an outgoing administrator who says hello to students in the halls.
"He's a really nice guy, and he's really smart," Kuppinger said. "He's always giving us new vocabulary words to look up."
A majority at the school believes Osborne is not guilty of the suit's charges that he "sexually, physically and emotionally" abused a student, said John Brightman, a senior at the school.