Nov 13, 2006 10:45 am US/Mountain
Pueblo Diocese Calls Man's Claim Of Abuse Credible
PUEBLO, Colo. (AP) ―
A Denver man's claim that he was molested by a priest in the 1970s is credible, a spokesman for the Roman
Catholic Diocese of Pueblo said.
Matt Cortez, 45, has alleged he was sexually abused by
Andrew Burke while Burke was a priest at St. Pius X Catholic Church in Pueblo.
"I believe that what he said happened to him happened to him," said Monsignor Mark Plewka.
Others also have accused Burke of abuse. Cortez's nephew, now in his early 30s and living in Denver, alleges Burke molested him after Burke left the priesthood.
A 46-year-old prisoner who was a former altar boy at the church filed a lawsuit last year in Pueblo district court against the diocese alleging that during the early 1970s, Burke had him strip and blindfolded him, then placed a frozen cloth on his chest and masturbated over him.
Burke, 62, shot and killed himself at his home in September 2005 after reporters began asking about the allegations. Authorities said Burke's suicide note did not mention the allegations.
Burke left the priesthood in 1973. A police report indicated Burke had told the Vatican about his plans to leave the priesthood in a letter that mentioned an unspecified "psychosexual behavior disorder."
Cortez and the diocese had been negotiating a settlement, but an e-mail obtained by The Pueblo Chieftain showed that talks broke off in September.
In the e-mail Plewka sent to Cortez, the diocese rejected Cortez's requests for $1.8 million and public release of Burke's personnel file, the newspaper reported in Sunday editions.
Plewka said the diocese is obligated to keep employee files private.
The diocese also rejected Cortez's request for a public admission on a Web site or during a news conference that Burke sexually abused Cortez. In the e-mail, Plewka said such an announcement would serve no purpose to protect others from molestation because Burke is dead, the newspaper reported.
The message also said Burke denied any sexual abuse took place when first confronted with the accusations.
Cortez said the diocese has provided counseling but said he may still file a lawsuit.
The diocese also is dealing with allegations against a former teacher at Roncalli High School, a church-run school that is now closed. The diocese and the Marianist religious order have been named in at least 21 lawsuits by former students who allege former teacher William Mueller subdued them with ether and sexually abused them years ago.
The lawsuits allege the diocese knew of abuse allegations against Mueller and did not do enough to protect students. A separate federal lawsuit by an insurance company that contends it is not liable for any damages the diocese might have to pay alleges the diocese knew Mueller was likely to abuse minors.
The diocese has repeatedly said it did not know of the allegations until around the time that the first lawsuits were filed last year.
Plewka said the diocese takes allegations of abuse seriously.
"Our main concern is for justice for the person who claims they have been harmed, and also that healing and reconciliation be theirs," Plewka said.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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