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Clergy Sex Abuse Survivors File Federal Lawsuit Against Vatican—Press Conference Today at 1 PM in St. Paul, MN

By Elin Lindstrom May 14, 2019

Transparency Demanded Revealing All Crimes and Secret Files

 

(Saint Paul, MN) – At a press conference today, Tuesday, May 14, 2019, five survivors and the law firm of Jeff Anderson & Associates will:

  • Announce a lawsuit filed against the Vatican in Federal Court on behalf of five sexual abuse survivors. The survivors took the action and are going public in response to Pope Francis’ recent papal pronouncement.
  • Request the Federal Court to order the Vatican to:
    • Release all the identities of thousands of offenders known exclusively by the
      Vatican and held in strict secrecy;
    • Release the files and pertinent histories of the thousands of offenders;
    • Release the identities of the top officials accused of sexual abuse worldwide,
      including the histories of each known only by the Vatican;
    • Report all evidence held secretly in its possession in the papal office of clerical
      crimes to law enforcement worldwide.
  • The Wehmeyer survivors were sexually abused by former Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis priest Curtis Wehmeyer, who Archbishop John Nienstedt protected for years. These survivors were Doe 1, 2 and 3 in the criminal case against the Archdiocese. They will speak publicly for the first time about their reason for taking this bold action involving Nienstedt and the Vatican allowing him to remain at large and in good standing.
  • Survivor Manuel Vega will speak about his abuse by Fr. Fidencio Silva-Flores, a Missionaries of the Holy Spirit order priest in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles who is still at large. Vega is a former police officer and U.S. Marine who speaks Spanish and lives in California.
  • Survivor James Keenan was sexually abused by Fr. Thomas Adamson in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. Keenan is an outspoken leader in enforcing accountability and transparency in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

When
Today: Tuesday, May 14, 2019 at 1:00 PM (CST)

Where
Jeff Anderson & Associates
366 Jackson Street
St. Paul, MN  55101

The news conference will be live-streamed on YouTube and Facebook. Also follow us at Twitter.

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