WEST VIRGINIA
Charleston Gazette
By Erin Beck
Staff writer
A Minnesota priest resigned after a Catholic clergy review board investigated allegations from a mission trip to West Virginia.
Joseph Gallatin rubbed the chest and stomach under the shirt of a 17-year-old Minnesota boy in 1998, according to a statement from the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.
In a more than 100-page affidavit submitted Tuesday, Jennifer M. Haselberger, the former chancellor of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, said she repeatedly raised concerns that Gallatin admitted he found the act sexually pleasurable and had admitted sexual attraction to boys as young as 12.
Her sworn statement, which alleges the archdiocese covered up warnings about approximately 40 priests over a five-year period, was submitted as part of a sexual abuse lawsuit.
In a statement from the archdiocese, spokesman Jim Accurso said, “Her recollections are not always shared by others within the archdiocese. However, Ms. Haselberger’s experience highlights the importance of ongoing constructive dialogue and reform aimed at ensuring the safety of children.” He also said the archdiocese had conducted a review of its response to sexual abuse allegations and has begun implementing some of the recommendations.
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