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	Kc Bishop Charged with Failing to Report Abuse St. Louis Post-Dispatch October 15, 2011 http://www.stltoday.com/news/national/article_9dca9b79-7036-572e-9345-551e67aff687.html A grand jury has indicted Kansas City Bishop Robert Finn on a misdemeanor charge of failure to report child abuse. The Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph also was charged with failure to report. The charges, announced at a news conference Friday, make Finn — leader of the 134,000-member diocese — the highest ranking Catholic official in the nation to face criminal prosecution for allegedly covering up the sexual abuse of minors by priests. In a statement, the diocese said its counsel, Jean Paul Bradshaw and Tom Bath, entered a plea of not guilty for the diocese. According to Gerald Handley and J.R. Hobbs, counsel for Finn, the bishop also entered a plea of not guilty. "Bishop Finn denies any criminal wrongdoing and has cooperated at all stages with law enforcement, the grand jury, the prosecutor's office and the Graves Commission," said Handley. "We will continue our efforts to resolve this matter." Finn was born in St. Louis in 1953 and graduated from St. Louis Preparatory Seminary North in 1971. He graduated from Cardinal Glennon College in 1975 and holds a master's degree from St. Louis University, according to the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph website. Finn was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of St. Louis at All Souls Church in 1979. He served as a pastor in the St. Louis area for several years. He was a teacher in the 1980s at St. Francis Borgia Regional High School in Washington, Mo., an administrator at St. Dominic High School in O'Fallon and the former editor of The St. Louis Review, the archdiocese's weekly newspaper. Finn serves on the Kenrick School of Theology board of trustees at the campus of Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in Shrewsbury. Finn, who was appointed Kansas City bishop in 2005, alienated many of his priests and parishioners, and won praise from others, when he remade the diocese to conform with his traditionalist theological views. He is one of few bishops affiliated with the conservative movement Opus Dei. The Jackson County grand jury began meeting after federal authorities filed child pornography charges against the Rev. Shawn Ratigan this year. According to the findings of the diocese's own recent investigation, church officials knew for five months about troubling photos of young girls on Ratigan's computer and did not formally notify police or state child abuse authorities. Under Missouri law, clergy must report any suspected child abuse. Finn testified before the Jackson County grand jury on Sept. 16. At least five top diocesan administrators or advisers were called to testify before the panel, with Finn being the highest church official to appear. After testifying, Finn told The Kansas City Star that "we're doing the best we can to cooperate with law enforcement." Among those testifying before the Jackson County panel was Monsignor Robert Murphy, vicar general, who came under fire for the way he handled the Ratigan case. Others who testified include diocesan spokeswoman Rebecca Summers and a Kansas City police captain whose opinion diocesan officials sought on a photo that Ratigan allegedly took. The captain also serves on the diocese's review board. Diocesan officials came under sharp criticism for failing to take immediate action when concerns were raised about Ratigan's behavior. In May 2010, the principal of a Catholic school complained to the diocese about what she described as Ratigan's inappropriate actions around children. Other than counseling Ratigan to moderate his conduct, however, his church supervisors took little substantial action. In December, diocesan officials found what prosecutors later alleged was child pornography on Ratigan's computer. The diocese said it contacted a police officer and described "one of the more disturbing images" from Ratigan's computer, asking whether it constituted child porn, and the officer said it did not. Police later confirmed that the officer was Capt. Richard Smith but said that he was told only about one photo and was not made aware that other, more graphic images were stored on Ratigan's computer. The church relieved Ratigan of his duties as pastor of St. Patrick Catholic Church in the Northland and assigned him to live at an Independence, Mo., mission house. While there, according to a federal indictment, he allegedly attempted to take pornographic photos of a 12-year-old girl. Ratigan was charged in Clay County in May with three counts of possession of child pornography. Federal grand jurors later indicted him on 13 counts of production, attempted production and possession of child porn. After Ratigan's arrest, Finn apologized for his handling of the case. Last month, a diocese-commissioned investigation led by former U.S. Attorney Todd Graves found that diocesan leaders failed to follow their own policies and procedures in responding to reports of child sexual abuse. The investigation found that "individuals in positions of authority reacted to events in ways that could have jeopardized the safety of children in diocesan parishes, schools and families." Graves said that the investigation "identified shortcomings, inaction and confusing procedures, but we believe Bishop Finn and the leadership of the diocese understand the gravity of the issues and take these recommendations seriously." The diocese released the findings in a 141-page report compiled by Graves' law firm. Finn called the recommendations "comprehensive, thoughtful and detailed." "We understand their importance and are focusing on them so we establish clear, strong and unequivocal procedures for all diocesan personnel and volunteers that ensure the safety of our children today and into the future," the bishop said in a statement at the time. A second grand jury — this one in Clay County — also has been hearing testimony in recent weeks that focuses on child sexual abuse issues. Finn and Murphy spent several hours testifying before that panel on Sept. 27. Jesse Bogan, of the Post-Dispatch, and the New York Times contributed to this report.
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