Lawsuit alleges (St Paul-Minneapolis) church officials knew priest abused children as early as 1969; kept him in ministry

Laura Yuen
Minnesota Public Radio
November 7, 2013

A new lawsuit alleges that top officials in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis allowed a priest to continue working with children despite reports that he sexually abused children as early as 1969.

The Rev. Jerome Kern was a "serial offender" who abused victims at three parishes over his 35 years in ministry, according to the lawsuit, filed by St. Paul attorney Jeff Anderson.

In a lawsuit filed Thursday morning against Kern and the archdiocese, Anderson's client — a man in his 50s named in court records as "Doe 26" — alleges Kern sexually abused him in the 1970s when the alleged victim was 12 to 16 years old. Despite numerous reports to archdiocesan officials over the years, the Catholic church moved Kern from parish to parish rather than barring him from ministry, Anderson said.

"Promises were made to the moms and to the kids that something would be done and he would be removed," Anderson said. "Instead, those promises were broken."

Kern was named in a previous sexual abuse lawsuit that was settled about 20 years ago. The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis said in a statement Thursday that it will "investigate and respond to the claims raised today."

Kern, now 72, did not return calls for comment. He worked at St. Mark in St. Paul, Our Lady of Grace in Edina, Immaculate Heart of Mary in Minnetonka and St. Peter in Forest Lake. He was removed from active ministry in 2002. The archdiocese said in a statement today that he has complied with a church-run monitoring program for problem priests.

"We are completely committed to ensuring the safety of children and young people who have been entrusted to our care," the archdiocese's statement said. "We are deeply sorry for any harm that has come from clergy misconduct. Eliminating any form of abuse is the highest priority for the Archdiocese."