Mcdonough Directly Disputes Archbishop's Testimony

By Brian Lambert
MinnPost
April 24, 2014

http://www.minnpost.com/glean/2014/04/mcdonough-directly-disputes-archbishops-testimony

There appears to be a serious crack in the clerical fraternity … . Madeleine Baran of MPR reports, “[A] longtime official for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis disputed Archbishop John Nienstedt's sworn testimony on the clergy abuse scandal. Nienstedt had testified April 2 that the Rev. Kevin McDonough told him not to write down sensitive information about abusive priests because the information could become public in a lawsuit. Nienstedt also said McDonough provided vague information on past cases and led him to believe that the archdiocese was safe for children. … ‘He and I would have never been in a position for much casual conversation,’ McDonough said. ‘Archbishop Nienstedt managed largely by memo.’"

Oh, look what I have in this pocket … . The AP says, “Gov. Mark Dayton says he's willing to devote another $100 million of a budget surplus to ... broadband infrastructure expansion, additional prison staffing and court-ordered psychological examinations of sex offenders.”

Just a little beyond deterence … . The latest from the Byron Smith trial, from Pam Louwagie of the Strib: “Photos showed six gunshot wounds to Haile Kifer’s body — the most immediately fatal went into her head from under her left ear, according to testimony from Kelly Mills of the Ramsey County Medical Examiner's office. Nick Brady’s body contained three gunshot wounds, all of which would have been fatal, Mills testified.”

Advancing … the bill banning on-line lottery action. Says Doug Belden of the PiPress, “A bill that would ban online lottery ticket sales advanced in the House Thursday. The bill got the OK from the House Commerce committee and heads now to Rules. … In addition to banning online lottery ticket sales, the Senate version would eliminate ‘Play at the Pump’ gas-station sales as well as ATM sales.” MinnPost's Doug Grow saw this coming a couple of weeks ago.

Did you see this couldn’t-be-scripted-better moment from last night’s Twins game? Via FoxSports’ Tyler Mason: “With Minnesota Twins designated hitter Chris Colabello up to bat, FOX Sports North's Marney Gellner was interviewing Colabello's parents in the stands. During the live interview, Colabello launched a two-run home run to center field to tie the game at 2.”

Note to those headed that way … . The Strib’s traffic guy, Tim Harlow, reminds readers, “Commuting is about to get more difficult in the southwest metro as a section of Hwy. 169 closes Sunday evening and will be shut down until July. MnDOT will close the southbound lanes of Hwy. 169 between Crosstown Hwy. 62 and Valley View Road in Edina to resurface the road, improve drainage systems, install guard rails and put a new deck on the overpass spanning the Crosstown. Southbound Hwy. 169 traffic will be diverted onto westbound Hwy. 212 to I-494 during the nine-week closure.”

International sex abuse … . The AP reports, “A British private school said Thursday that images of between 50 and 60 of its students were found on the computer drive of an American suspected child predator who killed himself last month. The FBI has asked for international help to find victims of William Vahey, who worked at 10 international schools around the world over four decades. … Vahey, 64, committed suicide March 21 in Luverne, Minnesota, two days after U.S. agents filed for a warrant to search his computer thumb drive.”

Strib business columnist Lee Schafer pooh-poohs the General Mills “immunity” flap: “... now that General Mills has said never mind, we’ve changed the terms back, it’s difficult to see what all the fuss was about. Arbitration clauses in consumer agreements have become more or less business as usual. ... It’s certainly true that anyone who thinks district court is efficient or particularly fair to small-claims plaintiffs has probably never seen the inside of a courtroom.” On Twitter, MPR's Bob Collins took Schafer to the virtual woodshed.

Classic fodder for Angry (and generally Old) White Males … . Jon Collins of MPR reports, “ … the celebration of Columbus Day still rankles Bill Means. ‘We had been edited out of existence in the public school system,’ Means said. ‘To say Columbus discovered America is one of the first lies we're told in public education.’ That particular struggle may be coming to an end, at least in Minneapolis. On Friday, the City Council will consider a resolution that would re-designate Columbus Day as Indigenous People's Day.” Then can we move on to Lake … Calhoun?