KANSAS CITY (MO)
Kansas City Star [Kansas City MO]
August 3, 2024
By Kendrick Calfee
[See the relevant lawsuit.]
Parishioners of a Kansas City Catholic church are concerned that one of their deacons may be accused of sexually abusing a teenager, and are calling on the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph to publicly address the allegations.
But the diocese hasn’t yet confirmed whether it’s the same man. A lawsuit filed in St. Louis County July 24 names Ralph Wehner as a member of the Archdiocese of St. Louis, and accuses him of sexually abusing a teen for three years in the 1980s.
A deacon at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Kansas City is also named Ralph Wehner, with a biography on the staff page saying he originally hails from St. Louis.
“Brother Ralph Wehner sexually abused (victim) between approximately 1982 to 1984, when (the victim) was 13 to 15 years old. The abuse occurred on at least three occasions,” the suit reads.
As of Friday morning, the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph had not confirmed if the “Wehner” named in the case is the same man employed in Kansas City. Our Lady of Good Counsel’s website says Wehner came to the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph in 2009.
“The Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph takes seriously any accusation of sexual abuse made against clergy, employees or volunteers serving our diocese,” the diocesan office of communications said in an email to The Star. “We are reviewing the details of the lawsuit against the Archdiocese of St. Louis to determine any connection to individuals serving in our diocese.”
In a phone call with a Star reporter Saturday, the Ralph Wehner who lives in Kansas City declined to comment on the lawsuit.
The Missouri chapter of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) sent a letter to Bishop James Johnston Jr. Thursday detailing concerns from the organization and Kansas City Catholics.
David Clohessy, director of Missouri SNAP, set up in front of the diocese headquarters Thursday afternoon to spread awareness and push for transparency from the church.
“We all deserve to know if the cleric accused of assaulting a boy in St. Louis is the same cleric who now works at a parish in Kansas City,” Clohessy said. If the man is the same one who is accused, Clohessy said he asks the church to suspend him and use its resources to inform the public about the accusations. If he is not the man accused, Clohessy said, the church should reassure and comfort concerned parishioners.
On Thursday, Clohessy brought sidewalk chalk and wrote the names of some Missouri priests who have been publicly accused of sexual abuse in front of the diocese headquarters. SNAP supporter Tom White sat nearby with a sign that read “Help us expose predators.”
“Most of our discussion is about survivors of child abuse, but at the same time there are many adults who have been abused,” White said.
LETTER CALLS FOR TRANSPARENCY, PROTECTION
The letter SNAP sent to Johnston also mentions a second suit against other defendants who were formerly in the jurisdiction of Johnston’s diocese.
They were part of a “breakaway” Catholic group, the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). The Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph previously told The Star that they have no oversight over the Society of St. Pius X.
The suit alleges former SSPX priest Fr. Pierre Duverger began counseling a couple, then “began seeing the wife alone,” and having a long-term inappropriate relationship with her.
Other priests at SSPX allegedly knew about the misconduct but did not intervene, and with the approval or direction of SSPX, engaged in concealment in violation of Missouri laws, the suit alleges.
Duverger now resides in Florida, according to court documents. A second defendant in the SSPX case, Fr. Arnaud Rostand, is serving a sentence in a French prison after pleading guilty to sexually abusing seven children.
Clohessy and White are urging Johnston to speak out against SSPX and the alleged misconduct by the former members of the clergy.
SNAP also asked the bishop to “quickly warn (church members) about SSPX in general.”
In February 2019, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation announced it was looking into reports of sexual abuse by clergy in the state’s four Roman Catholic dioceses.
The investigation later expanded to include SSPX. Melissa Underwood, a spokeswoman for the KBI said in an email to the Star Thursday that the lengthy investigation remains ongoing.
No other information about the investigation was available.
In May 2020, several people told The Star they contacted KBI to report sexual abuse and inappropriate behavior by SSPX clergy and subsequent coverup by leaders.
Others said KBI investigators contacted them.
“Victims stay silent for a lot of reasons but one reason is because we don’t feel like our speaking out will make a difference,” Clohessy said. “But if a bishop openly invites people to give information that might prove or disprove this allegation, and says ‘please come forward,’ it would make a huge difference.”
Read more at: https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article290688309.html#storylink=cpy