2 Twin Cities Priests on Leave for Misconduct "Many Years Ago"

By John Brewer
Pioneer Press
November 4, 2013

http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_24450511/2-twin-cities-priests-leave-prior-misconduct

Two priests of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis are taking voluntary leaves of absence for misconduct that occurred "many years ago," according to a statement released Sunday evening.

The misconduct did not involve sexual abuse of minors or members of any parish where the priests were serving, according to the statement from archdiocese spokesman James Accurso.

The Rev. Paul Moudry, pastor of St. Margaret Mary in Golden Valley, and David Barrett of the Church of St. Wenceslaus of New Prague, will not perform any public ministry during their leaves, Accurso said.

They will cooperate with the Ministerial Standards Board of the archdiocese as it reviews the cases and makes recommendations, Accurso said.

The priests did not respond Monday to requests seeking comment.

Accurso declined to say what the specific misconduct was, when the priests were ordained and where they served previously.

Jeff Anderson, a St. Paul attorney who has represented victims of clergy sex abuse, said the statements illustrate the lack of transparency that has marked the church's handling of sexual misconduct.

"It's really simple. They need to just tell us why (Moudry and Barrett) have either taken a leave or been put on leave," Anderson said Monday. If they pose a risk of harm, the public should be made aware, he said.

Rev. Kevin Clinton, pastor of the Church of St. Wenceslaus in New Prague, said he has been supervising Barrett for four years.

Barrett most recently served as regional associate pastor for the church, celebrating Mass and administering sacraments for two small parish communities to the west of New Prague, Clinton said.

Before that, Barrett, who was ordained in 1997 according to archdiocese records, was associate pastor at Most Holy Redeemer Church in Montgomery, eight miles south of New Prague, Clinton said.

Clinton would not divulge the nature of Barrett's misconduct but said he had been making "progress and growth."

"For the last 12 years, he's been addressing this," Clinton said. "It's not as if it came out of the blue. It just hasn't been public."

Asked whether the leave of absence was at Barrett's instigation, Clinton said he believed it was.

"He was aware the Ministerial Standards Board was founded and that they were going to go through records. Given that information, I think he anticipated he would be one of the people who would need to be evaluated."

Clinton cautioned the public not to jump to conclusions.

"I think people need to realize that sexual misconduct is on a continuum" from horrific child abuse to much less serious behavior, he said, implying that Barrett's conduct fell on the latter end.

Barrett, 49, is listed in the 2013 Official Catholic Directory as being on "special assignment."

Others given that designation this year include:

-- Mahtomedi priest Jonathan Shelley, whose computer files were turned over by the archdiocese to St. Paul police and contained adult pornography. Police reopened their investigation less than a week later after receiving new information;

-- Michael Krenik, convicted of lewd behavior after he exposed himself in 2010 to a police officer in a St. Paul park; and

-- Christopher Wenthe, convicted in 2011 of criminal sexual conduct with an adult parishioner. The reversal of that conviction is on appeal.

The announcements of the latest leaves came amid a month of turmoil at the archdiocese.

Press accounts, spurred in part by a former employee turned whistleblower, have exposed failures by top archdiocese officials to report possible criminal activity to police regarding Shelley's computer and to alert law enforcement or parishioners to a St. Paul priest who exhibited "troublesome" sexual behavior. The latter, Curtis Wehmeyer, was later convicted of molesting two boys.

Other priests, such as Michael Keating of the University of St. Thomas, have been sued in recent weeks for child sexual abuse -- lawsuits made possible because of new legislation that temporarily lifts the civil statute of limitations for underage sex abuse victims.

Moudry, 64, was ordained in 1987 and has served as pastor at St. Margaret Mary since 2001.

Emily Gurnon can be reached at 651-228-5522.

Contact: jbrewer@pioneerpress.com