Court Denies Catholic Bishop’s Request to Dismiss Charges

By Michelle Pekarsky
Fox 4
April 5, 2012

http://fox4kc.com/2012/04/05/court-denies-catholic-bishops-request-to-dismiss-charges/


On Thursday, the Jackson County Circuit Court denied the request of Bishop Robert Finn’s attorney to dismiss the charges against Finn that he failed to report suspected child abuse.

Finn appeared in court last Tuesday with his attorney, who argued the phrases “immediately report” and “reasonable cause to suspect” were vague and that Finn was not the “designated reporter” for the diocese to report offenses to law enforcement.

Prosecutors say Finn and the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St Joseph failed to report that they suspected Rev. Shawn Ratigan, 46, of child abuse. Prosecutors say the diocese discovered child pornography on Ratigan’s computer in December but didn’t turn them over to police until May. Ratigan faces federal and state charges of child pornography possession and has pleaded not guilty.

The judge decided, citing past cases, that “persons of ordinary intelligence have no difficulty understanding the meaning of ‘immediately report.’”

On the question of Finn not being assigned by the diocese to be the “designated reporter” of child abuse, the court ruled that there was enough evidence and a jury should decide this question.

Furthermore, the judge denied the request to separate the trial of Finn from the trial against the diocese, saying the risk of prejudice was not so severe to prevent a fair trial.

Finn has pleaded not guilty and apologized for how he handled the case. His trial is set for September 24.