Not All Accused Priests Named

By Tom Olsen
Duluth News Tribune
February 21, 2014

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/292050/

The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis may have significantly underreported its list of priests “credibly accused” of child sexual abuse, Minnesota Public Radio News reported this week, prompting questions about the completeness of other lists, including one released by the Diocese of Duluth.

Verne Wagner, the northern Minnesota director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said he was not surprised by MPR’s investigation, which found that the archdiocese has dealt with abuse accusations against at least 70 priests since the 1950s, more than twice the official count.

In Duluth, the diocese has listed 22 priests that have been considered “credibly accused.” Following the report on the Twin Cities archdiocese, Wagner says he has a hard time believing the Duluth list is complete.

“I’m looking at this saying, ‘Hey, what about here in Duluth?’ “ Wagner said. “I’ve had victims call me up and tell me they were abused by priests who were not on that list.”

Wagner said he has heard from several alleged victims who said they were abused by priests who have never been publicly disclosed — and that some of those priests remain active in the diocese. He suggested the diocese could be withholding information on others who have been accused.

“These guys know a lot more than what they’re telling us,” he said. “There’s a lot more going on than they have shared with us.”

Duluth Diocese spokesman Kyle Eller released the following statement in response to the SNAP claim.

“Last December, we voluntarily released the names, postings and status of all diocesan clergy members who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors; while we continue to review our old files and we ask all who may have information about such matters to come forward, we know of no other individuals who fall into this category, and there are no other names that ‘should have been released.’ To suggest otherwise without a basis for such accusations is reckless and irresponsible; to reprint such unfounded allegations only compounds that recklessness and is a disservice to the diocese, to the vast majority of our clergy who serve with honor, integrity and compassion, and to the readers of the Duluth News Tribune.”

The Diocese of Duluth on Dec. 31 revealed a list 17 of its former priests who it determined to be “credibly accused,” along with five others who had also faced accusations. At a news conference that day, Bishop Paul Sirba said the list was complete to the best of his knowledge.

The Twin Cities archdiocese in December released a list of 33 accused priests following a Ramsey County judge’s order. But the MPR report, released Wednesday, says the archdiocese has investigated at least 70 priests for sexual abuse accusations.

The investigation, citing hundreds of internal church documents and court documents that were obtained by the station, found that the accused priests worked at nearly every parish in the archdiocese.

Jennifer Haselberger, a former archdiocese attorney turned whistleblower, told the station that the list of 33 priests was just one of many kept in St. Paul, and said that officials stopped keeping lists for fear that they would be required to turn them over in lawsuits.

Haselberger, who resigned in April 2013 in protest of the archdiocese’s handling of clergy sexual abuse cases, said she stumbled across many of the cases by chance.

“I’d be looking through the file of a priest that had never appeared on any of these lists, and I’d see some kind of report of sexual activity involving a minor,” she told the station.

Archbishop John Nienstedt declined to be interviewed for the story, and a spokesman declined to discuss how abuse claims were vetted, MPR reported.

An archdiocese spokesman, however, issued a response after the report was released Wednesday, criticizing the station for its "wrong and misleading" report. The spokesman said several of the accused priests never worked in archdiocese or were found to be falsely accused.

"The archdiocese is dedicated to accurate and responsible reporting of clergy against whom substantiated claims of sexual abuse of a minor have been made," spokesman Jim Accurso wrote. "MPR’s reporting of inaccurate information, which improperly identifies individuals, is irresponsible and does not serve victims, safety of children or the public good. For these wrongly accused individuals, we seek the same due process, justice and dignity granted to other citizens."