"Unprecedented" Settlement Reached in Civil Case against Archdiocese

By Jennie Lissarrague
KSTP
December 18, 2015

http://kstp.com/news/stories/s3995962.shtml

[with video]

[the agreement]

Leaders of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis speak Friday about a settlement reached in a civil case on clergy sex abuse.

An "unprecedented" settlement agreement has been reached with the Ramsey County prosecutor in the civil case against the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.

Archdiocese officials appeared in Ramsey County District Court at 9 a.m. Friday for a hearing.

Prosecutors say the agreement in the civil case provides a framework for better oversight of the archdiocese over the next three years. Assistant Ramsey County Attorney Tom Ring says the goal is to create an environment where no child will again be abused.



Archdiocese attorney Joe Dixon says the settlement made public in court Friday must still be approved by a bankruptcy court, but both sides pledge to begin work immediately.

“This historic agreement ensures systemic change and creates a framework of accountability that increases oversight and transparency and ultimately supports a cultural shift in how the archdiocese protects children and responds to alleged abuse,” Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said.

Choi outlined several highlights of the settlement agreement during a news conference Friday:

The archdiocese agreed to be subject to the oversight of the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office and courts for three years as they continue to transform their organization’s culture.

The archdiocese agreed to implement important compliance standards that incorporate best practices from across the country along with new standards that don’t exist anywhere else.

The will set forward a clear standard of response so that it will no longer be possible for leaders to say that they didn’t know about suspected child abuse.

In the next three years, the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office will be “substantially” involved in two independent, outside audits to ensure compliance. The outcomes of those audits will then be shared with the public.

When allegations of misconduct, including child sex abuse, arise in the future, all allegations will now be addressed by the Ministerial Review Board rather than allowing one or two clergy members determine how best to respond. The board will be comprised primarily of laypersons who will evaluate the cleric’s fitness for ministry.

The archdiocese has also agreed to notify local law enforcement of the location of any cleric with a substantiated claim or pending credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor.

If ever necessary, the agreement also requires that the director of Safe Environments and the Ministerial Review Board have access to outside legal counsel so they don’t have to rely solely on the internal archdiocese legal counsel.

From now on, all clergy must report any arrests or citations that violate archdiocese policy.

Moving forward, when a cleric is found not guilty of criminal conduct or has been investigated without prosecution, the archdiocese will make an independent inquiry into the priest’s fitness for ministry.

"Under this agreement, the hierarchy of the archdiocese may no longer conceal or minimize clergy sex abuse,” Choi said. “It is my expectation that never again will the facts of this case be repeated, and the protection of children will forever be of paramount importance within this archdiocese.”

Criminal charges accusing the archdiocese of repeatedly ignoring misconduct by a former priest are still pending.

In the criminal case, the archdiocese was charged with six gross misdemeanors in connection to three alleged victims of former priest Rev. Curtis Wehmeyer. The charges include three counts of Contributing to Need for Protection or Services and three counts of Contributing to Status as Juvenile Petty Offender or Delinquency.

The charges in June came after a 20-month investigation that alleges the archdiocese did not do enough to protect victims.

Wehmeyer was convicted in 2013 of molesting boys. A 43-page criminal complaint alleges that church officials ignored complaints and reports about Wehmeyer's behavior.