St. John's Abbey releases monk personnel files

By Ben Rodgers
St. Cloud Times
January 19, 2016

http://www.sctimes.com/story/news/local/2016/01/19/st-johns-abbey-releases-monk-personnel-files/79005198/

St. John's Abbey Church.

COLLEGEVILLE — St. John's Abbey announced Tuesday it released the personnel files of 18 monks who have been accused of sexual misconduct against minors.

The release of the personnel records is a part of a 2015 settlement of a sexual abuse lawsuit brought against the abbey and one of the 18 accused monks.

The monks whose files were released include Allen Tarlton, Richard Eckroth, Tom Gillespie, Finian McDonald, Robert Blumeyer, Cosmas Dahlheimer, Fran Hoefgen, Othmar Hohmann and Bruce Wollmering.

According to the abbey, nine of the monks whose files have been released are now deceased, and two have left the abbey. The other seven live at the abbey under a campus safety plan, according to the abbey's statement issued Tuesday.

The files that were published on Tuesday were released to Jeff Anderson & Associates law firm, who would publish the files in their entirety. According to a release from the law firm, nine of the 18 files were released in 2015.

The release from the law firm also stated that the released files show that seven of the 18 monks accused were allowed to work in other dioceses after the abbey reported abuse. The files show Hoefgen served in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Hohmann served in the dioceses of Duluth and St. Cloud, Schulte served in the dioceses of Crokston and St. Cloud, Moorse served in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and Maiers served in the dioceses of Duluth and St. Cloud.