BishopAccountability.org
	Priest Accused of Abuse Quits Boys Ranch The Associated Press, carried in Seattle Post-Intelligencer April 22, 2006 http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/267685_priest22.html Spokane - A priest has resigned as director of a Roman Catholic-run home for troubled boys that is being sued by former residents who claim he abused them during the 1970s and '80s. The resignation of the Rev. Joseph Weitensteiner, 73, director of the Morning Star Boys' Ranch for all but 10 years of its 50-year history, was announced in a statement Thursday. The statement said Dan Kuhlmann, managing director since Weitensteiner went on medical leave in July, will remain in that capacity. A Morning Star spokesman said Weitensteiner, widely known as Father Joe, was not available to talk to reporters Thursday. In a letter to supporters, Weitensteiner wrote that his life had been "inexorably intertwined" with Morning Star, which has had 1,300 boys in residence over the years. "As the ranch prepares to celebrate its golden jubilee, the boys we serve today are as much or more in need of your help and understanding as our boys were 50 years ago," he wrote. In the announcement, Bishop William Skylstad said he was "profoundly grateful" to Weitensteiner. Eight former residents sued Morning Star last year, claiming they were subjected to sexual and other abuse. Two men claimed that Weitensteiner molested them in separate incidents in the 1970s and 1980s during boat trips on Lake Coeur d'Alene in northern Idaho, a charge the priest has vehemently denied. The ranch said Weitensteiner passed a lie detector test.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.