IOWA
WCF Courier
WATERLOO | A former Dubuque man has come forward with abuse claims against a former Iowa Catholic priest who served parishes in Northeast Iowa.
Jeff Buchheit said he decided to go public with the allegations against Rev. Leo Riley to raise awareness of child sexual abuse.
“A child victim’s voice is so soft and far too easy to go unnoticed. Kids need to be protected and given the tools to protect themselves,” Buchheit said.
“The fear of revealing that I had been sexual abused and being dismissed or victimized again was paralyzing. It has haunted every aspect of my life,“ he said “I will no longer allow that fear to define me; that starts with me saying publicly that it did happen.”
Buchheit said he was a fourth-grade altar boy at Resurrection School in Dubuque in October 1985 when the abuse began. He said occurred before school while serving a morning mass with Riley.
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