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	Vatican Strips Priesthood of Man Accused of Sex Abuse The Associated Press, carried in The Beacon Journal March 9, 2006 http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjournal/news/state/14054676.htm CINCINNATI - A man accused of sexually abusing several boys in the Cincinnati area has been removed from the priesthood by the Vatican. Lawrence Strittmatter's dismissal from the clergy was announced by the Archdiocese of Cincinnati on Wednesday. Strittmatter had requested the removal - referred to as laicization by the Roman Catholic church - and Pope Benedict XVI approved it January. Because Strittmatter made the request, the removal falls short of defrocking, which is imposed. The archdiocese hopes the move brings "peace, comfort or satisfaction" to the men who have accused Strittmatter, spokesman Dan Andriacco said. Church officials requested in 2002 that Strittmatter be banned from the priesthood. He retired that year after being removed from his position as associate pastor of St. Albert the Great Parish in Kettering. The archdiocese took away the job after a graduate of Elder High School in Cincinnati said Strittmatter had been involved in sexual misconduct in the late 1970s. Strittmatter was principal at the Catholic school from 1970 to 1982. Strittmatter, 73, was ordained a priest in 1957 and also had served at churches in Cincinnati and Delhi Township. Since 2002, he has been on administrative leave from the archdiocese and barred from working as a priest, the archdiocese said. Strittmatter and the archdiocese were sued by 28 men following the priest's suspension. The men accused Strittmatter of molesting them in the 1970s and 1980s. Many of the lawsuits were dismissed because the statute of limitations had expired. But in September, the Ohio Supreme Court agreed to hear an appeal of a lower court ruling that dismissed the accusations. The statute of limitations also has prevented prosecutors from pursuing criminal charges. The archdiocese has acknowledged that Strittmatter abused children. Konrad Kircher, a lawyer who represents many of the accusers, said church officials should have acted sooner. "It wasn't that the diocese suddenly realized it was the right thing to do," he said. "They suddenly realized the public wasn't going to let them get away with this." Strittmatter will continue to receive his pension. He could not be reached for comment by The Cincinnati Enquirer.
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