Notorious pedophile ex-priest involved in Crookston diocese lawsuit

By Emily Gurnon
Pioneer Press
September 24, 2014

http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_26599334/notorious-pedophile-ex-priest-involved-crookston-diocese-lawsuit

Convicted former Catholic priest James Porter stands during break in testimony April 14, 2004, in Bristol County Superior Court, in Taunton, Mass.

Linda Carroll, 51, of Aitkin, Minn., holds a photo of herself Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2014, at the St. Paul office of her attorney Jeff Anderson. Carroll is suing the Diocese of Crookston for abuse she suffered by the Rev. James Porter in 1969-1970.

"In the Roman collar, he has a chance to meet kids."

That was the conclusion in 1973 of a senior Catholic official from Massachusetts regarding the Rev. James R. Porter. The official, the Rev. Msgr. Hugh A. Gallagher, was writing in favor of Porter's dismissal from the priesthood.

In fact, Porter had plenty of chances to meet children -- in Oakdale and Bemidji, Minn., in Massachusetts and other locations, becoming one of the most notorious priest pedophiles in the United States.

One of those children was in second grade when she and a brother were molested by Porter during his 1969-70 assignment at St. Philip's Catholic Church in Bemidji.

Linda Carroll, now 51, of Aitkin, on Wednesday became the first Minnesota woman to disclose her identity as a survivor of Porter, who was largely known to sexually abuse boys, according to her attorney, Jeff Anderson.

Anderson filed a lawsuit Tuesday on her behalf in Polk County, naming the Diocese of Crookston, Minn., the Servants of the Paraclete (which treated Porter for pedophilia) and the Diocese of Fall River, Mass., as defendants.

"I want anyone out there who's had to go through this to do something about it, because you're not alone and there's a lot of people that will help," Carroll said, struggling to contain her tears. "I've suffered from depression my whole life, and I'm done -- not standing in the shadows and not ashamed and not going away.

She said church officials in Crookston and elsewhere should be more forthcoming about what they know of abusive priests.

The Diocese of Crookston in January released its list of priests "credibly accused" of child sexual abuse.

Carroll's lawsuit, filed in Polk County with her identity listed as Doe 24, incorrectly stated that Crookston did not make those names public. Anderson admitted the mistake and said Wednesday that he believes Crookston knows of other accused priests whose names it should release.

Carroll's suit alleges the dioceses of Crookston and Fall River created a "public nuisance" by failing to warn communities about the presence of accused molesters and disclose their histories.

Anderson has pursued public nuisance as a legal strategy throughout Minnesota, with mixed results.

In a much publicized case, Ramsey County District Judge John Van de North ruled that the public nuisance claim in a suit involving the former Rev. Thomas Adamson can go forward. That trial is scheduled to start Nov. 3.

The Rev. David Baumgartner, vicar general of the Diocese of Crookston, issued a statement Wednesday that said his "heart goes out" to the plaintiff and any other Porter victims, but that the public nuisance claim is ill-suited to cases involving Porter, since his crimes are well-known.

Carroll is one of more than 100 victims who have filed lawsuits over sexual abuse by Porter, including more than 21 from Bemidji.

Porter was forced out of the priesthood in 1974. He was convicted of molesting a 15-year-old Oakdale girl who babysat for his children in 1987 after he married. He also pleaded guilty to sexually abusing 28 children in Massachusetts in the 1960s and 1970s. He died in a secure hospital in 2005 at the age of 70.

Carroll's brother, James Grimm, also alleged abuse against Porter in a 1992 lawsuit. He and a group of other Bemidji men won a $10 million settlement.