MINNESOTA
Star Tribune
By Jean Hopfensperger hopfen@startribune.com
The Catholic Diocese of Crookston has released the names of six priests credibly accused of sexual misconduct with minors. The action means all Minnesota dioceses have released lists of accused priests that have been kept secret for a decade.
Five of the six priests on Crookston’s list are dead. The sixth, the Rev. Joseph Jeyapaul, is facing extradition from his home in India to face charges that he sexually assaulted two teenage girls while he worked in the Crookston diocese between 2004 and 2005.
Bishop Michael Hoeppner oversees the diocese serving Catholics in 14 counties in northwestern Minnesota. He did not issue a statement about the list.
Advocates immediately urged the diocese to post the list prominently on its website and make it easily accessible to the public.
“We strongly suspect it’s an incomplete list,” said David Clohesey, national executive director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP). “And we strongly suspect that Catholic officials took this step because they feared that a judge would soon order them to do so.”
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