Minneapolis, Minn., Aug 31, 2018 / 16:55 pm
Auxiliary Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis released Friday his account of a now-controversial 2014 investigation into allegations against Archbishop John Nienstedt.
"In retrospect, it was doomed to fail. We did not have enough objectivity or experience with such investigations. Nor did we have authority to act. Throughout our efforts, we did not know where we could turn for assistance, because there was no meaningful structure to address allegations against bishops," he wrote of the investigation.
Cozzens was part of a team charged with reviewing Nienstedt's handling of clerical sexual abuse allegations in the archdiocese, and investigating allegations of sexual misconduct toward seminarians on Nienstedt's part.
"In early 2014, Archbishop Nienstedt asked his subordinates to conduct a review of allegations against him. When affidavits containing serious allegations of misconduct by Archbishop Nienstedt with adults were brought forward, Bishop Piché and I tried our best to bring them to the attention of people who might have authority to act and guide the investigation. This included the then nuncio Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò," Cozzens wrote.