Posted on 01/23/2004 1:00:19 PM PST by Theodore R.
Hart faces new abuse allegations
By Cara Eastwood rep4@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle
CHEYENNE - Retired Wyoming Bishop Joseph Hart was named in a sexual abuse lawsuit Wednesday, along with two other Catholic clergymen who had served with him in Kansas City.
The suit adds new accusations to those made in 2002 that Hart vehemently denied.
The suit alleges the three Catholic priests molested minors when they worked together from the 1960s to the 1980s. According to the lawsuit, some of the abuse allegedly took place at a lake home north of Kansas City and at church facilities, sometimes after liquor was given to the victims.
The 210-page lawsuit names Hart along with Monsignor Thomas J. O'Brien and Father Thomas M. Reardon. Nine male plaintiffs make a series of allegations against the priests, ranging from inappropriate tickling to supplying drugs and alcohol and forcing sex on the victims when they were young boys.
The lawsuit also names the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph and its current leaders as defendants, asserting that the diocese failed to monitor its priests.
"It's apparent that the plaintiffs and the SNAP group were desperately reaching to include a bishop - even a retired bishop - in their lawsuit," said Cheyenne attorney Jack Speight, who has represented Hart in the past.
One of the plaintiffs, Michael Hunter, is the leader of the Kansas City chapter of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP.
"It makes their story and lawsuit seem more shocking and more outrageous than suing a retired Kansas priest and a man who hasn't been a priest for over 20 years," Speight continued.
Current Diocese of Cheyenne officials declined to comment on the lawsuit, and Hart was not available for comment.
Hart's Kansas lawyer, Larry Ward, issued a statement on his behalf, saying the claims in the lawsuit are baseless. Hart is confident that his involvement in the case will be dismissed in the future, the statement said.
While serving as auxiliary bishop to the Diocese of Cheyenne, Hart is accused of sexual improprieties at parishes in Kansas City and of supplying alcohol to minors.
The suit also accuses Hart of taking a plaintiff, Kevin Hunter, on an extended trip to the West and having sex with him.
The lawsuit alleges that Hart brought boys from Wyoming to Kansas City and engaged in improper behavior like watching one of the plaintiffs change in and out of swimming trunks.
"Defendant Hart was overheard arguing with Defendant Reardon over which one would get a particular boy for the weekend," the lawsuit reads.
While Hart continues to deny the allegations, plaintiff's attorney Rebecca Randles said, "We have done considerable investigation, and these allegations are not baseless and can be proved in a court of law."
In July 2002, an investigation by Cheyenne Police and Natrona County District Attorney Kevin Meenan found no evidence to support similar allegations made against Hart by a Wyoming man.
In April 2002, a relative of the 39-year-old alleged victim informed law enforcement of the accusations. Hart coerced him into exposing himself when he was 13 or 14, the man said. When investigators tried to verify his allegations, however, the victim did not cooperate. After several months, the investigators recommended the case be closed for lack of evidence.
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