With Failed Appeal, Archbishop Forced to Testify About Role in Sex Abuse Cover-Up

After years of claiming ignorance and dodging questions, it appears that Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt will finally be forced to answer questions about his role in the decades-long sexual abuse cover-up within his archdiocese. Earlier this week, the Minneapolis Court of Appeals rejected Nienstedt’s attempts to prevent his upcoming deposition, due April 2.

The court also ruled that former Vicar General Kevin McDonough, who has already resigned in disgrace for his role in the cover-up, will have to testify on April 16.

The ruling supports Ramsey County District Judge John Van de North’s original ruling from earlier this year, forcing McDonough and Nienstedt, one of the nation’s most vocal anti-LGBT Catholics, to testify, as well as allow investigators access to evidence pertaining to sex abuse.

As Jeff Anderson, the plaintiffs’ attorney, said, “Our reading of this [order] and the language in it is that they have ruled that we are able to move forward with discovery … [and] that the trial court was right.”

The archdiocese’s spokesman, Jim Accurso, did not dispute the ruling, and it appears the depositions will go ahead as scheduled.

In addition to testifying, Van de North also ruled that the church would be forced to compile a list of church officials accused of sexual abuse – including Nienstedt – since 2004. The list, submitted last month, can be kept under seal, but the church has recently come under fire after a Minnesota Public Radio report showed that the archdiocese’s previous public list of those “credibly accused” wasn’t even half of those the church believed may have abused parishioners and children.

Meanwhile, a hearing Thursday will focus on the transfer of a list comprising 40 priests credibly accused from the archdiocese to the county. The archdiocese has asked to delay handing over the list, which is due on March 31, by 90 days. According to a memo filed Monday by archdiocese attorneys, “This is an exhaustive, time consuming and extremely expensive and burdensome process.” Attorneys for the plaintiff argued that the request was simply “another attempt for them to keep their secrets and delay information from coming out.”

 

Image of John Nienstedt via YouTube

Casey Michel is a graduate student at Columbia University, and former Peace Corps Kazakhstan volunteer. His writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Slate, and Talking Points Memo, and he has contributed multiple long-form investigations to Minneapolis’s City Pages and the Houston Press. You can follow him on Twitter.