MINNESOTA
WTAQ
[Statement from the archdiocese]
[Letter from Archbishop John Nienstedt]
By David Bailey
MINNEAPOLIS (Reuters) – The Roman Catholic archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis on Tuesday said in a statement Archbishop John Nienstedt was stepping aside while authorities investigate an allegation that he inappropriately touched a boy’s buttocks during a 2009 group photo session.
The archdiocese, which has been under fire for its past handling of alleged clergy sex abuse cases, said in the statement Nienstedt stepped aside temporarily after consulting with Pope Francis’ papal nuncio, or ambassador, to the United States.
Nienstedt denied the allegations in a separate statement.
The announcements follow the archdiocese’s court-ordered release earlier in December of a list of priests it said had been “credibly accused” of child abuse.
None of the priests are still in ministry and many are deceased.
Child sex abuse litigation has cost the U.S. Catholic Church slightly over $3 billion in settlements since 2002, said Charles Zech, an expert in church finances and economics professor at Villanova University near Philadelphia.
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