MISSOURI
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
By Joel Currier St. Louis Post-Dispatch
TROY, MO. • A woman says a Roman Catholic priest fondled her five years ago under a blanket on the couch while nearly all of her family were in the room. Her parents say that after they found out, he knelt down before them to confess, and offered to give up his collar and marry their oldest daughter.
The priest, originally from China, insists none of that is true. He says the fervently Catholic family he once called his own and who offered to adopt him after he escaped religious persecution by the Chinese Communist government is trying to steal his dream of being a priest in America. He has been suspended since the accusation was first made in 2012.
A Lincoln County jury sided with the priest Thursday afternoon after a two-week civil trial in which the alleged victim and her family accused the Rev. Xiu Hui “Joseph” Jiang of molesting her as a teen in June 2012. The jury also sided with the St. Louis Archdiocese, rejecting claims it should have known he was dangerous to children and failed to protect her.
Lawyers for the accuser, Jiang and the archdiocese delivered closing arguments Thursday morning. The jury was given the case about 12:30 p.m. but broke for lunch before beginning deliberations. They returned a verdict about 3 p.m., with 10 of 12 jurors siding with the defendants.
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