MINNESOTA
Minnesota Public Radio
Madeleine Baran · St. Paul, Minn. · Dec 20, 2013
An internal church memo from 2002 names three priests with “known abuse histories” who weren’t on the list of “credibly accused” priests released by the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis earlier this month.
The three priests are: the Rev. Tom Gillespie, the Rev. Harold Whittet, and the Rev. Ambrose Filbin. Gillespie, a Benedictine monk, was identified by St. John’s Abbey on Dec. 9 as a cleric “likely to have offended against minors.” Whittet and Filbin are dead.
The Aug. 12, 2002, memo obtained by MPR News provides further evidence that the archdiocese has not released the names of all priests it believes sexually abused children.
Archbishop John Nienstedt has said the archdiocese will update its public list if it “learns of additional credible claims of abuse by a minor by a member of the clergy.” However, Nienstedt won’t say why he hasn’t disclosed the names of several priests identified in the 2002 memo as known abusers.
A spokesman for the archdiocese did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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