VATICAN CITY (AP) — A prominent U.S. archbishop is asking the Vatican for answers about the status of an investigation into alleged sexual misconduct against his predecessor.
St. Paul and Minneapolis Archbishop Bernard Hebda wrote a remarkable letter to his flock on Friday in which he revealed that in 2016 he had sent the Vatican a new allegation of improprieties with minors against retired Archbishop John Nienstedt.
Nienstedt was forced to resign in 2015, after Minnesota prosecutors charged the archdiocese with having failed to protect children from a predator priest who was later convicted of molesting two boys.
He was one of the first U.S. bishops known to have been forced from office for botching sex abuse investigations. But Nienstedt also faced allegations he engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior with adults, which he denied.
