MINNESOTA
Mankato Free Press
By Dan Nienaber
dnienaber@mankatofreepress.com
NEW ULM — Two men on a list naming 12 Diocese of New Ulm priests who have faced credible allegations of molesting children have filed court motions saying their names should be removed because the allegations against them are false.
Both priests, one retired and one still working in the diocese, said their names are on the list because the diocese made a confidential cash payment to a person who accused them of sexually assaulting him or her in 1971. The allegations came to light in 1991 during a therapy session through a “recovered memory,” the motions said.
The priests, who are only identified in their motions as Priest No. 1 and Former Priest No. 2, both said the allegations against them involve a “15 minute incident in a church basement.”
The priest who is still working said he was made aware of the allegations when he was called in 1991 by William O’Connor, an attorney for the diocese who died in 2008. After meeting with O’Connor, the priest said he was given the impression the claim was without merit and nothing further would be done, according to his motion.
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