MINNESOTA
Fox 9
by Fox 9 staff
ST. PAUL, Minn. (KMSP) –
St. Paul attorney Jeff Anderson, sexual abuse survivor Al Michaud and officials with the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis gathered at the Landmark Center on Monday to announce a major settlement in the case of John Doe No. 1. Financial terms of the settlement were not disclosed, at the request of the victim, but the settlement also includes 17 child protection protocols that have been implemented by the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis and the Diocese of Winona.
“This child protection protocol, invested in by Doe 1, survivors and the Archdiocese, signals a new day and a new way for protection of children, healing of survivors, and full transparency and disclosure in a new way we’ve never seen,” Anderson said at a news conference.
17 child protection protocols
1. Abuse claims + active ministry: The Archdiocese shall not recommend any clergy for a position in active ministry (i.e., those clergy with permission to exercise priestly ministry to the faithful) or a position that provides for access to minors, who has a pending credible or previously substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor against him, or is otherwise deemed unsuitable for ministry under circumstances that arise in whole or in part, out of accusations or risk of sexual abuse of a minor. Unsuitability determinations are made by the Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis with recommendations from the Director of Ministerial Standards and the Clergy Review Board. Likewise, the Archdiocese shall not recommend, and shall direct clergy not to recommend, any non-clergy employee for a position that provides access to minors, who has a pending credible or previously substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor against him or her.
2. Disclosure of sexual abuse claims: The Archdiocese shall disclose any accusation of sexual abuse of a minor to any Diocese, Catholic entity or secular employer who inquires about the existence of any accusation of sexual abuse of a minor with regard to a past or present Archdiocesan clergy member to the extent that communication is allowed by federal and state law. The Archdiocese shall also disclose the status or resolution of that claim as reflected in its records as allowed by federal and state law. This policy does not apply to ministerial assignments within the Archdiocese.
3. Meetings with survivors of abuse: Archdiocesan leadership shall meet with any survivor or his or her support person as reasonable in a supervised setting with a facilitator when appropriate, with due respect for the needs of the survivor. Meetings shall be private and may be interrupted or delayed by the facilitator if the setting becomes overly difficult.
4. Requests for victims to report abuse: The Archdiocese shall publish in the Catholic Spirit four times per year for five (5) years and one time per year for an additional five (5) years thereafter a statement urging those subject to the sexual abuse of a minor to contact law enforcement to make a report of the abuse.
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