NEBRASKA
Lincoln Journal Star

By ERIN ANDERSEN | LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR

A Catholic bishop who was the first American priest convicted of not notifying police of suspected child abuse in a timely manner is now the chaplain at a Lincoln convent.

But Lincoln’s bishop said Robert Finn paid for his mistake by completing two years of probation and deserves mercy.

Finn became chaplain of Lincoln’s School Sisters of Christ the King convent in December after serving as bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph for 10 years.

He cited personal reasons when he resigned as a bishop in April in the aftermath of a child pornography scandal involving one of his priests, Father Shawn Ratigan, and a subsequent Vatican investigation into Finn’s effectiveness as a leader.