Father Leonard Colston: Clergy With Credible Claims Against Them Concerning Sexual Abuse of a Young Person

Father Leonard Colston

Father Leonard Colston was born in 1936 and was ordained in 1980. The Diocese of Duluth added Fr. Colston’s name to its list of clerics credibly accused of child sexual abuse.

According to the Diocese of Duluth, Fr. Colston worked in the following locations:

· 6 6/1979 – 5/17/1980 – Deacon: Asst. at St. Michael’s Church, Duluth

· 6/18/1980 – 10/14/1981 – Asst. Pastor: St. Francis Church, Brainerd

· 10/14/1981 – 9/9/1983 – Administrator: St. Louis, Floodwood, & missions

· 9/6/1986 – Resigned from the Diocese of Duluth

· Deceased – 11/4/2004

Efforts to unseal the secret documents regarding clergy sexual abuse in the Diocese of Duluth began with the first lawsuit filed in June 2013. Since then, survivors have taken numerous actions to make the files public.

In October 2015, a jury verdict was handed down against the Diocese of Duluth in a child sexual abuse case in Ramsey County involving Fr. James Vincent Fitzgerald. On December 7, 2015, the Diocese of Duluth filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

More information on the Diocese of Duluth bankruptcy can be found at:www.andersonadvocates.com/Bankruptcy