Zincwarrior
Diamond Member
Catholic Priest harassed male students at Notre Dame. They need to drop the hammer on this guy.
Notre Dame Students Abused by Priest in ‘Weighing Scheme,’ Report Finds
Notre Dame Students Abused by Priest in ‘Weighing Scheme,’ Report Finds
An investigation commissioned by Notre Dame found that the Catholic university could have done more to respond to allegations of sexual misconduct.
A new report details allegations of sexual abuse at the University of Notre Dame.Credit...Evan Jenkins for The New York Times
A blistering report issued last week accuses the University of Notre Dame of failing to take action against a former priest despite years of alleged sexual misconduct against students while he was a dorm rector and while he worked at nearby Holy Cross College.
The investigation, which was led by the law firm Debevoise & Plimpton at Notre Dame’s request, found that Rev. Thomas King conducted a coercive “weighing scheme” at Notre Dame during the 1980s and 1990s. As part of the scheme, he expressed worry over the health of male students and insisted that they go to a locker room and undress to be weighed.
“Once in the locker room he would direct students to undress fully before they stepped onto a scale,” the report said. “Multiple individuals, some of whom were weighed, were sexually touched or assaulted by Fr. King, both at Notre Dame and after he left.”
The law firm’s 25-page report concluded that Notre Dame, one of the nation’s leading Catholic universities, should have done more to respond to allegations of sexual misconduct in the case of Father King. The report noted that witnesses said they had complained to university employees about him as far back as the 1990s.
The report also noted that these instances were not the first time that the university had to confront allegations of sexual abuse by priests, and listed two other instances when priests had been accused.
The law firm interviewed staff in two separate departments that supposedly received the complaints, but no one could remember having received them, the report said. In other cases, the report said, university employees who heard the complaints did not understand the sexual implications of the “weighing.”
