Oakdale Priest, Charged with Sex Abuse and Child Porn, Appears in Court
By Emily Gurnon
An Oakdale priest facing charges of sexually abusing two boys and possessing child pornography made his first court appearance Wednesday, Oct. 10, with his attorney. Curtis Carl Wehmeyer, 48, formerly pastor of Blessed Sacrament in St. Paul, is free on conditional release. Ramsey County District Judge J. Thomas Mott ordered him to have no contact with the two boys he allegedly molested or with other juvenile males. If he violates that order, he could go back to jail, as well as face more charges, the judge told him. "Do you understand that?" the judge asked. "Yes, your honor," Wehmeyer replied. The priest, who was not wearing a clerical collar, said nothing else during the brief hearing at the Ramsey County Law Enforcement Center. Arraignment was set for Oct. 23. Supporters of the alleged victims sat on the other side of the courtroom from Wehmeyer, who had defense attorney Thomas Plunkett and two women with him. Wehmeyer was charged Sept. 20 with three counts of criminal sexual conduct. According to the complaint, he molested two boys in the summer of 2010, one beginning when the victim was 12. The other boy's age was unspecified but was listed as younger than 16. The alleged molestation took place in a camper the priest owned; it was parked in the church lot. Other incidents occurred on a camping trip, the complaint said. On Tuesday, the Ramsey County attorney's office also charged Wehmeyer with 17 counts of possession of child pornography, which they found on his laptop, a separate complaint said. Church officials removed him from the parish post June 21 after the alleged abuse victims went to police. Contact: egurnon@pioneerpress.comtwincities.com
|
.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.