MINNESOTA
Star Tribune
Article by: JEAN HOPFENSPERGER and CHAO XIONG , Star Tribune Staff Writers Updated: April 22, 2014
Attorney Jeff Anderson shows video of deposition of archbishop on clergy abuse cases. Archdiocese releases its own copy.
The sworn testimony of Archbishop John Nienstedt in a clergy sex abuse case was made public Tuesday morning by St. Paul attorney Jeff Anderson, who said the Catholic Church continues to tolerate and hide predatory priests.
“The methods they have employed in the past are being employed in the present,” Anderson said during a news conference. “We’re alarmed, we’re sad and we’re scared.”
Nienstedt’s pledge that the church would protect children and the public are untrue and “have been broken,” Anderson added.
The archdiocese has not yet released a statement, but it released a copy of Nienstedt’s testimony about the time Anderson began his news conference. It has previously stated that children’s safety is its highest priority, and that Nienstedt had expressed regrets for “mistakes made in the past.”
On Tuesday, Anderson showed a short video clip of Nienstedt’s deposition, in which the archbishop said he recently learned about previous abuse committed by a priest, the Rev. Kenneth LaVan, even though LaVan’s abuse of two girls was known.
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