Jury acquits Hibbing priest accused of molesting girls

MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

Associated Press JUNE 20, 2016

HIBBING, Minn. — A jury has acquitted a Hibbing priest accused of molesting four girls.

Jurors deliberated about two hours Monday before finding 30-year-old Brian Lederer not guilty on all counts.

Lederer was facing four counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct and two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct, all felonies.

The alleged incidents happened during the 2014-2015 school year after hours at Assumption Catholic School. Prosecutors said another incident happened at a home and others on a school bus.

Lederer took the witness stand Friday to deny the allegations. The Hibbing Daily Tribune (http://bit.ly/28JuSxh ) reports he had no comment after his acquittal.

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.