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  Man Suing Local Archdiocese
St. Andrew's School, Defrocked Priest Also Named in Suit Alleging Sexual Abuse in 1976

By Kevin Corcoran kevin.corcoran@indystar.com
Indianapolis Star
September 9, 2005

A 40-year-old man living out of state filed a sexual abuse lawsuit Thursday in Marion Superior Court against the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, a defrocked Roman Catholic priest and his former parish school.

The suit, in which the plaintiff is not identified, alleges that then-Rev. Harry Monroe sexually abused him while he was a student at St. Andrew Catholic Church's school in 1976.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages from the archdiocese, which faces eight other sexual abuse lawsuits.

Patrick Noaker, the St. Paul, Minn., attorney handling this lawsuit and three others against the archdiocese, and archdiocesan officials say they do not know Monroe's whereabouts.

"The abuse was quite significant," said Noaker, whose client says his memories of the abuse returned in September 2003. "He had a form of amnesia or repressed memory."

Monroe was "relieved of ministry" in 1984 because of allegations of sexual misconduct, said Susan Borcherts, a spokeswoman for the archdiocese. The lawsuit alleges the archdiocese knew or should have known of the repeated sexual assaults and that unidentified officials looked the other way.

Archdiocesan records show Monroe also was assigned to St. Monica Parish in 1975; the former St. Catherine Parish from 1977 through 1979; and St. Patrick in Terre Haute from 1979 through 1981. He was placed on leave for a while in 1981 before being assigned to St. Paul in Tell City from 1982 through 1984.

Noaker said his client sued because he didn't think archdiocesan officials were taking his abuse claims seriously. However, Borcherts said the man canceled his meeting with archdiocesan officials three weeks ago.

Not all priest sexual abuse cases result in monetary settlements.

The archdiocese reached a settlement earlier this year with June Kochert in exchange for publishing statements from her and Archbishop Daniel Buechlein in The Criterion, the archdiocese's newspaper, Borcherts said.

Kochert sued the archdiocese in August 2002, saying church officials knew the Rev. John Schoettelkotte had molested her in the 1960s but had covered it up.

Call Star reporter Kevin Corcoran at (317) 444-2750.