MINNESOTA
National Catholic Reporter
Brian Roewe | Dec. 17, 2013
The archbishop of St. Paul-Minneapolis has voluntarily removed himself from public ministry while local authorities investigate an accusation against him of inappropriate touching four years ago.
The Twin Cities archdiocese learned last week of an allegation that Archbishop John Nienstedt touched a young man’s buttocks in 2009 during a group photo session following an area confirmation ceremony. The archdiocese said it directed the mandated reporter who first learned of the alleged incident to report it to St. Paul police.
Upon consulting with Carlo Maria Viganò, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, Nienstedt decided to step down from public ministry effective immediately while the investigation is ongoing, according to the archdiocese. Auxiliary Bishop Lee Piché, the vicar general, will take the archbishop’s place in public duties.
Spokesman Jim Accurso said the archdiocese could not comment further as the investigation is pending.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.