ILLINOIS
Chicago Tribune
Vatican rules again that it couldn’t find sufficient proof of molestation, 7 years after Chicago Archdiocese asked cleric to leave Burbank parish
October 03, 2013|By Jennifer Delgado, Chicago Tribune reporter
Seven years ago, the Archdiocese of Chicago removed the popular pastor of a southwest suburban church after he was accused of molesting two brothers.
But Burbank Mayor Harry Klein thought the Rev. Robert Stepek was innocent. So, in 2007, he recommended the priest for a different position of authority: Police Department counselor, helping victims who sometimes included children. Stepek got the job.
To this day, the mayor and some in the community defend the move, while others question the wisdom of hiring a person accused of such an offense to work in a police department.
“I just don’t understand why you would hire someone (accused of) something like that to work with the public,” said Linda Beck, a Burbank resident who occasionally attends St. Albert the Great Catholic Church, where Stepek was pastor for eight years. “I’m disappointed in their judgment.”
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