ST. LOUIS (MO)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
By Jennifer S. Mann jmann@post-dispatch.com 314-621-58040
ST. LOUIS • The Archdiocese of St. Louis has complied with a judge’s order and turned over the names of priests who were accused of sexually abusing minors over a 20-year period, along with the names and contact information of victims.
Because the list is under a court-ordered seal, available only to the judge and lawyers involved in the litigation, it is unclear exactly how many individuals’ names have been released.
Ken Chackes, lawyer for a woman whose suit prompted the disclosure, said he could not comment because of the protective order.
The disclosure is part of 2011 suit filed on behalf of a then-19-year-old woman who claims she was sexually abused from 1997 to 2001 by the since-defrocked Rev. Joseph Ross. The woman’s lawyers are trying to show the Archdiocese had a pattern of ignoring sexual abuse complaints, allowing future abuses to occur.
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