Records: Dolan Paid Problem Priests to Leave

 

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In a statement, Dolan called any suggestion he was trying to shield money from victims an "old and discredited" attack. Jerry Topczewski, chief of staff for current Archbishop Jerome Listecki, said the money was always set aside in a separate fund for cemetery care and moving it to a trust just formalized that.

Church law requires bishops to seek Vatican approval for any property sale or asset transfer in the millions of dollars. Dolan wrote in the letter that the transfer had been approved by archdiocese's Financial Council and College of Consultors.

The documents also show that Dolan oversaw a plan to pay some abusers to leave the priesthood. They included John O'Brien, who was convicted of fourth-degree sexual assault in 2000 in a case involving a 17-year-old. At least four other victims later came forward.

The archdiocese barred O'Brien from ministry and celebrating Mass. In 2003, it offered him $10,000 if he would voluntarily agree to leave the priesthood and another $10,000 when Vatican officials announced their decision about his future. O'Brien took the deal but was not officially defrocked until 2009. He did not immediately return a telephone message left for comment.

Jeff Anderson, the attorney representing most of the 575 plaintiffs with sex abuse claims in bankruptcy court, said cases like O'Brien's show that the church put predators before children. He and many victims find it especially heinous that the church paid a priest who had already been convicted of a crime, and they fault Dolan for that.

But Topczewski said the archdiocese had adopted the practice of paying priests leaving the priesthood years before Dolan took over. Most of the priests were not accused of wrongdoing, and the money helped them transition into their new lives, he said.

At least three priests accused of sexual abuse received payments when they left the priesthood before Dolan's arrival, according to the documents. Six more left under Dolan, with deals calling for them to receive $20,000 each.

Topczewski said the money covered the men's health care, but it also got "priests out quicker. That's what victims were asking for."

Another case shows just how difficult it was to get rid of priests who wouldn't go voluntarily. John C. Wagner was accused of making advances to students at the University of Wisconsin-Sheboygan when he was in campus ministry in the 1980s. Weakland tried in the 1990s to get Wagner to voluntarily leave the priesthood, but Wagner refused.

In 2005, as settlements with clergy sex abuse victims were piling up, Dolan wrote to the Vatican office in charge of the matter and recommended it kick Wagner out.

"The liability for the Archdiocese is great as is the potential for scandal if it appears that no definitive action has been taken," he warned, adding that. Wagner showed no remorse, and "his only concern has been his financial status."

Dolan said that if the Vatican agreed to dismiss Wagner, an archdiocese fund could pay for his needs until he was eligible for a pension. Dolan didn't receive a response until 2008, when he re-submitted his request along with details of new allegations against Wagner.

Archbishop Angelo Amato responded on behalf of the Vatican office and recommended Dolan ask Wagner to leave voluntarily, which Dolan did. Wagner's attorney rejected the request, saying the $20,000 payment that Dolan offered wouldn't cover the priest's expenses for the two years until his retirement. Wagner wasn't officially defrocked until 2012.

A working telephone number for him could not be found Monday, and he did not immediately respond to an email message.

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Associated Press writers Dinesh Ramde in Milwaukee, Rachel Zoll in New York, Michael Tarm in Chicago, Brian Bakst in St. Paul, Minn.; and Doug Glass in Minneapolis contributed to this report.

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