St. Louis Archbishop Sued By Teenage Girl's Family Over Sexual Contacts By Priest and Alleged Evidence Tampering

AP and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch report on a lawsuit filed recently in state court in Lincoln County, Missouri by parents of a teenage girl who was sexually fondled by a 29-year old priest. The priest, Rev. Xiuhui “Joseph” Jiang, has already been charged criminally with endangering the welfare of a child. (St. Louis Post Dispatch.)  The civil lawsuit  against the Archdiocese of St. Louis and Archbishop Robert Carlson alleges that the Archbishop "knew that Father Jiang was dangerous to children" and "that allowing Father Jiang access to minors as part of his duties as a priest would result in Father Jiang harming minors."  The suit also charges Carlson with attempting to tamper with evidence by asking for the return of a $20,000 check that Jiang had left on the plaintiff family's car in apology for his actions. Reacting to the lawsuit, the Archdiocese issued a statement saying: "These new allegations against the archdiocese and the archbishop are false and will be denied in an answer to the lawsuit filed in court."