Lawsuit accuses Minnesota bishop of suppressing abuse report

Updated: May 10, 6:25 a.m. | Posted: May 9, 10:46 a.m.

The Catholic Diocese of Crookston, Minn., and a bishop are facing a lawsuit brought by a man who said the bishop threatened him with retribution if he reported sexual abuse by a priest.

Ron Vasek, of Tabor Township, Minn., said the abuse occurred in 1971. He said that in 2010, while he contemplated becoming a deacon in the diocese, he told the bishop he'd been abused by a priest. In the lawsuit, filed in Polk County District Court, Vasek claims the bishop coerced him to sign a letter asserting that no abuse ever happened.

Vasek said Tuesday that the bishop told him that if he didn't sign the document, it would hurt his dream of becoming a church deacon and impair the career of his son, who is a priest in the diocese. At a news conference in St. Paul Tuesday, Vasek said he feels compelled to speak out now and refute the letter.

"I signed that letter to protect my son because I knew how evil a man the bishop could be, if he wanted to be," Vasek said.

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But in a statement Tuesday the Diocese of Crookston said the bishop "categorically denies that he in any way forced, coerced or encouraged Mr. Vasek to not pursue his allegations." The statement said the diocese encourages the reporting of abuse. It said Vasek's abuse claims were reported to law enforcement in 2011, but did not say who made the report.

The diocese said it plans to conduct an investigation into the allegations, and would have no further comment about Vasek's allegations until it is complete.

The accused priest declined to comment. He retired in 2010, and his name does not appear on a list of clergy who the diocese said had been accused of abuse. In 2014, the Diocese of Crookston released the names of six accused priests after similar releases by other Minnesota dioceses in response to public pressure from victims and parishioners and, in some cases, court orders and pending litigation.

During the news conference Tuesday, the Rev. Robert Schreiner, a priest in the Crookston diocese, spoke in support of Vasek, who had confided in him with the claims of abuse.

"I believed him," Schreiner said. "As the account unfolded with each horrifying revelation and event and name, my heart would sink lower and my mind would flinch, not wanting to believe it. But at no point during his testament that night, nor since, did my intuition click with the thought that 'that doesn't ring true' or 'that just doesn't sound right.'"

The Diocese of Crookston includes 14 counties in northwestern Minnesota and has 35,000 Catholics in 66 parishes.

Editor's note (May 9, 2017): Due to a production error, a previous version of this story included the name of the accused Crookston priest. It is MPR News' practice not to name those who have been accused, but not charged, with a crime. The story has been updated.