MINNESOTA
Minnesota Public Radio
Madeleine Baran Apr 21, 2015
Pope Francis on Tuesday accepted the resignation of Kansas City Bishop Robert Finn, who had failed to report a priest who had possessed child pornography. Finn pleaded guilty.
Is the clergy sex abuse scandal in Kansas City similar to the scandal here?
Yes, in general terms. Both Twin Cities Archbishop John Nienstedt and Bishop Robert Finn in Kansas City have been accused of covering up clergy sex abuse.
However, in Kansas City, the cover-up led to a criminal charge against Finn for failing to immediately tell police about a priest caught with child pornography. The case ended when Finn pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge. He was sentenced to two years’ probation in 2012, according to the Associated Press.
Nienstedt has not been criminally charged for his handling of clergy sex abuse. Nienstedt’s role in protecting accused priests was revealed in an investigative series by MPR News in 2013. The reports showed Nienstedt had authorized secret payments to priests accused of sexually abusing children and failed to warn parishioners of sexual misconduct by the Rev. Curtis Wehmeyer — a priest who went on to sexually abuse at least two children of a parish employee. Wehmeyer pleaded guilty and is now in prison. MPR News has also reported that Nienstedt gave several false statements in a sworn deposition taken in 2014 as part of a clergy sex abuse lawsuit.
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