MINNESOTA
Lillie News
Allegations date to the early 1990s
The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office announced Feb. 11 that it would not pursue criminal charges relating to allegations of criminal sexual conduct alleged to have taken place at Saint John the Baptist Parish School in New Brighton in the early 1990s due to lack of evidence.
According to a report from Assistant County Attorney and Criminal Division Director Richard Dusterhoft, in the fall of 2006 the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis received an email alleging sexual abuse that took place in the sacristy at Saint John the Baptist Parish School, taking place between 1992 and 1994.
On Sept. 29, 2006, the Archdiocese reported the allegations to the New Brighton Public Safety, though New Brighton police closed the case little more than a week later on Oct. 6 because they could not contact the complainant, who lived abroad, the report says.
Later that month, the Archdiocese hired an independent firm to investigate the allegations, the report says. A lengthy document created by the firm dated March 20, 2007, stated it was unlikely the abuse could have taken place in the manner described by the complainant because of the layout of the sacristy, a lack of witnesses and a lack of opportunity for the suspect.
On May 21, 2013, the complainant contacted New Brighton police and said memories of the alleged abuse had come back in “a flood,” the report says. In a signed affidavit, the complainant described the abuse, including forced touching and oral penetration.
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