St. Louis Priest Faces New Sexual Abuse Charges

By Jennifer Brinker
St. Louis Review
April 24, 2014

http://stlouisreview.com/article/2014-04-23/st-louis-priest-faces

Father Jiang

Father Xiu Hui "Joseph" Jiang was charged April 18 in St. Louis with two felony counts of statutory sodomy of a minor under the age of 14.

The allegation of abuse was reported through the Missouri Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline by a family who for the past year has been pursuing a claim against the archdiocese related to their child being bullied by other students, according to a statement from the archdiocese. The statement also noted that the family had not claimed their child had been abused by a priest until last week, when the allegations became public. Father Jiang voluntarily surrendered April 17 at the request of police, pending a decision on whether charges would be filed.

The archdiocese noted that the priest's canonical privileges have been revoked while the allegations are being considered. The archdiocese also said it is fully cooperating with law enforcement during the investigation.

In 2012, Father Jiang, a former associate pastor at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis Parish, was accused of a separate incident of misconduct with a high school aged minor in Lincoln County and was placed on leave at the time. Criminal charges against the priest were dismissed in November 2013, when the court determined that the evidence established the priest had never been alone with the child; a civil suit against the priest is pending.

The Archdiocese of St. Louis encourages all persons with reports of misconduct with a minor involving a member of the clergy or other church personnel to contact Deacon Phil Hengen, Director of Child and Youth Protection, at (314) 792-7704, the Missouri Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline at (800) 392-3738 or law enforcement officials.