The Minnesota Appeals Court affirmed on Wednesday that Archbishop John Nienstedt should appear in court to testify against child sexual abuse charges filed against the archiodese in St. Paul and Minneapolis, the Star Tribune said. This was the response of the Appeals Court with regard to the motion of the achdiocese and the Diocese of Winona in line with the lawsuit filed by a former altar boy who claimed that he was a victim of former priest Tom Adamson.
In the latest development of the lawsuit, Ramsey District Judge John Van de North issued a ruling that Nienstedt and a former vicar general, the Rev. Kevin McDonough should testify under oath about child sexual abuse cases in their former and current jurisdictions.
The Star Tribune said the state church officials were alarmed at Van de North's ruling and said that the court has overstepped its authority when the judge ordered depositions and disclosure of the names of the priests who had allegedly done or under investigation regarding reported sexual misconduct since 2004.
Lawyer old the abused victim, Jeff Anderson, welcomed the Appeals Court decision and said, "They [church attorneys] asked for extraordinary and special treatment, and the Court of Appeals said no. We are delighted we can now move forward and get to the bottom of this sorrowful and serious problem."
In a written statement, St. Paul and Minneapolis archdiocese spokesman Jim Accurso said, "We appreciate that the Court of Appeals considered our appeal and issued a timely opinion today. We look forward to continuing to work with the courts to resolve the litigation."
According to Anderson, Nienstedt is set to be deposed on April 2, while McDonough is scheduled to provide his sworn testimony on April 16.
The Star Tribune said that the lawsuit was spurred due to the temporary lifting of the limitations statute on older abuse cases in Minnesota. More than a dozen sexual abuse cases had been filed since John Doe 1 filed his case against Adamson.
