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	Bishop to Deal with Accusations of Sex Misconduct KMBC June 10, 2011 http://www.kmbc.com/r/28183892/detail.html The bishop of the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese announced Thursday what he called a "sweeping" plan to deal with recent accusations of sexual misconduct in the diocese. KMBC's Micheal Mahoney reported that Bishop Robert Finn named an independent investigator, and it comes just as an accusation has emerged against the No. 2 priest in the diocese -- Monsignor Robert Murphy. Murphy is the diocese's vicar general. Part of his job is to deal with charges of priest abuse. KMBC obtained a letter psychotherapist Brian Heydon wrote to Finn in April 2007 about an encounter in 1984 when he was 23 and considering the priesthood. Murphy's job at that time was recruiting priests. In the letter, Heydon said Murphy got him to St. Catherine's rectory, where Murphy lived, and tried to get Heydon drunk and then propositioned him. "He assumed I was nothing more than a sex object," Heydon wrote, adding that Finn's appointment of Murphy as "the vicar general is inappropriate at best, and at worst, a continuation of the cover-up." "Monsignor Murphy firmly denies any sexual impropriety or solicitation, and does not remember the circumstances as you have described them," Finn wrote to Heydon. Finn appointed former U.S. attorney Todd Graves to lead an investigation into the latest accusations involving the Rev. Shawn Ratigan, who is accused of possessing child pornography, and the Rev. Michael Tierney, who was removed as a pastor amid reports of sexual misconduct with minors several decades ago. Mahoney reported that Graves' focus will be on young people 18 and under. Graves is not Catholic, and said he only met Finn once, which was earlier this week. "I have no stake in the outcome of this matter. He just told me to conduct a thorough investigation and give him the truth," Graves said. "What protects children in this is turning wrongdoers over the police," said Michael Hunter, of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. Bishop Finn's 5-Point Plan 1. Immediate appointment of former national co-chair of the Department of Justice Child Exploitation Working Group and former U.S. Attorney to conduct an independent investigation of events, policies and procedures. 2. Appointment of an independent public liaison and ombudsman to field and investigate any reports of suspicious or inappropriate behavior. 3. Reaffirmation of current diocesan policy and immediate commencement of an independent review of the policies for Ethical Codes of Conduct and Sexual Misconduct. 4. An in-depth review of diocesan personnel training regarding the Ethical Codes of Conduct and the policy on sexual misconduct. 5. Continued cooperation with local law enforcement.
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