On Monday, I learned that Michelle Soldo, an attorney from St. Paul, Minnesota, is conducting an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct by Father Timothy Backous.<\/p>\n
After\u00a0viewing a draft of this post earlier today Ms. Soldo wrote, in part, that she is “an experienced and independent fact-finder with no vested interest in the outcome of any investigation I conduct.” While that may be,\u00a0Ms. Soldo’s findings are reportedly\u00a0provided only to those associated with Saint\u00a0John’s Abbey.\u00a0<\/span>This is not a recipe for truth and transparency.<\/span><\/p>\n[Note: If you have information regarding sexual or any other misconduct Father Backous or any other individual, please\u00a0contact law enforcement, an attorney or a therapist\/advocate before working with anyone associated with the Saint John’s Abbey.]\n <\/p>\n In her email,\u00a0Ms. Soldo also\u00a0requested that I\u00a0present any information I\u00a0have to corroborate the allegations against Father Backous and suggested that by writing this post, I was interfering in an “independent\u00a0fact-finding investigation.”<\/span><\/p>\n The trouble is\u2026 we’ve been here before.<\/p>\n I presented information to Ms. Soldo\u00a0two years ago regarding Fathers Mel Taylor and Dan Ward. \u00a0I even suggested then\u00a0that persons with knowledge of misconduct contact the abbot or me for Soldo’s contact information. \u00a0\u00a0[\u00a0View<\/a>\u00a0]\n The effort failed miserably. Victims were misled. Perpetrators were NOT held accountable. My faith in the Abbey’s investigative process has yet to be restored.<\/p>\n Background<\/strong><\/p>\n In approximately\u00a0October of\u00a02012, I was connected with Ms. Soldo, who had been\u00a0contracted by St. John’s Abbey and\/or its attorneys\u00a0to investigate claims of sexual misconduct by Father Dan Ward and Father Mel Taylor. In 2011 and\u00a02012, five\u00a0victims provided statements to me regarding sexual misconduct by these priests. I arranged for four of them\u00a0to speak with Ms. Soldo, based on an email from an attorney from Saint John’s who wrote:<\/p>\n Since you have acted to facilitate this investigation, we are prepared to share with you a summary of the information the alleged victim(s) provide(s).<\/em><\/p>\n Despite repeated requests, no such summary was ever provided to me.<\/p>\n Finally, in late January of\u00a02013, I met with Ms. Soldo [ Web Site<\/a>\u00a0] in her St. Paul office. \u00a0She shared that she found all four of the victims she interviewed to be credible. Despite her findings,\u00a0Father Mel Taylor and Father Dan Ward have yet to\u00a0be held fully accountable\u00a0for their misconduct.<\/p>\n Backous<\/strong><\/p>\n After hearing that Ms. Soldo\u00a0is now investigation the Father Timothy Backous matter, and that my name had been used in at least one these discussions, I wrote an email to Ms. Soldo on Monday.<\/p>\n Regarding our January 25, 2013 meeting: <\/span><\/p>\n I was relieved when you shared that you found all four victim accounts\u00a0<\/span>to be credible.\u00a0<\/span>I believe that we commented on the fact that the victims simply wanted\u00a0the truth revealed. One of us [may] have used the word “refreshing.” I\u00a0<\/span>believed, based on our conversation, that the truth would be shared\u00a0<\/span>and that these men would be held accountable.\u00a0<\/span><\/em>The trust that I, and especially these victims, placed in you was violated.<\/em><\/p>\n Regarding the use of my name:<\/p>\n Please make no mistake. I do not support you, your efforts, or have\u00a0<\/span>any confidence that what you are doing is a step toward the truth – or\u00a0<\/span>in any manner an effort to support the victims of sexual abuse.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n The Archdiocese<\/strong><\/p>\n In a July 15, 2014 story posted at MPR.org [ View<\/a> ] Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis whistleblower\u00a0Jennifer Haselberger claimed t<\/span>he Archdiocese oversaw faulty private investigations of abuse claims. “The way in which the Archdiocese sought information from potential complainants was one factor that led me to the opinion, which I shared on several occasions with Chancery leadership, that when the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis ‘investigated’ something, it was always done in such a way as to ensure that we concluded the investigation with less clarity than we began with,” she said.<\/p>\n Is the abbey any different?<\/p>\n Next<\/strong><\/p>\n One former choir member told me that he recently told an\u00a0investigator, who he identified as Soldo: “that I remember that [victim]\u00a0left quite abruptly and that we knew that it was because of inappropriate behavior from Fr Tim.”<\/p>\n What\u00a0will the investigator’s\u00a0report to the Abbey say about Father Backous – and what will the Abbey do with the information?<\/p>\n As demonstrated in the Ward\/Taylor matters,\u00a0the information will likely be processed by \u00a0Abbot John Klassen, the Abbey’s PR machine \u00a0and its damage control department.<\/p>\n In other words, little or nothing.<\/p>\n I urge caution.<\/p>\n Patrick J Marker On Monday, I learned that Michelle Soldo, an attorney from St. Paul, Minnesota, is conducting an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct by Father Timothy Backous. After\u00a0viewing a draft of this post earlier today Ms. Soldo wrote, in part, that … Continue reading
\nJuly 16, 2014<\/p>\n[Note: If you have information regarding sexual or any other misconduct Father Backous or any other individual, please\u00a0contact law enforcement, an attorney or a therapist\/advocate before working with anyone associated with the Saint John’s Abbey.]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"