SPRINGFIELD (MO)
Springfield News-Leader
By Giacomo Bologna
October 8, 2018
The Springfield-Cape Girardeau Catholic Diocese identified three priests Monday who allegedly sexually abused children four decades ago.
Two of those priests — the Rev. John A. Brath and Monsignor John J. Rynish — have been dead for several years. The third, the Rev. Fred Lutz, retired from active ministry in 2011, the diocese said in a press release.
Brath died in 2014 and Rynish died in 2001, the release says.
Each priest allegedly sexually abused a minor sometime in the 1970s, the release says.
All three had stints in Springfield and the surrounding area during the 1970s, according to the release.
Under Missouri law, it’s almost certain that the statute of limitations to file a civil suit against these priests has passed.
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