MINNESOTA
National Catholic Reporter
Brian Roewe | Feb. 19, 2014 NCR Today
A new report challenges the number of priests in the St. Paul-Minneapolis archdiocese with credible clams against them of sexual abuse of minors.
The archdiocese lists 39 priests with substantiated (sufficient evidence to believe allegation occurred) claims of abuse, but a story published Wednesday by Minnesota Public Radio found at least 70 priests since 1950 with allegations or suspicions of child sexual abuse.
MPR compiled its list from court records, private settlements, police reports and internal church documents, as well as numerous handwritten and emailed lists and memos stored at the chancery. According to MPR, the latter lists have never been viewed by local law enforcement, who have not asked the archdiocese for its files on alleged priest abusers.
From MPR:
“ … inside the chancery over the past 15 years, secret allegations of abuse have collected in filing cabinets, a vault and the basement archives.
“The MPR News investigation found that at least 21 priests named as suspected child abusers by other dioceses and religious orders had served in the Twin Cities archdiocese. At least four priests have been the subject of lawsuits for alleged child sexual abuse but haven’t been named on the archdiocese’s public list. Records show at least 10 clerics have been criminally investigated.”
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