Categories: U.S.

Former bishop who was cleared by Vatican of multiple sexual assault allegations dies at age of 91

close Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for August 25

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what’s clicking on Foxnews.com.

  • Retired Wyoming Bishop Joseph Hart, of Cheyenne, has died at the age of 91.
  • Hart was cleared by the Vatican after being accused of abusing multiple minors.
  • Hart’s successor was disappointed in the Vatican’s finding and pointed out that the Vatican’s ruling doesn’t mean Hart is innocent.

A former U.S. bishop cleared by the Vatican of multiple allegations he sexually abused minors and teenagers, after a review board under his diocese in Wyoming found that allegations against him were credible, has died.

Retired Wyoming Bishop Joseph Hart, of Cheyenne, died Wednesday, according to the Diocese of Cheyenne. He was 91.

Hart long maintained his innocence, denying all allegations of misconduct. In 2021, the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith cleared him of seven accusations of abuse and determined that five others couldn’t be proven with certainty.

AIR FORCE FINDS NO HARMFUL LEVELS OF CARCINOGENIC PCB CHEMICAL INSIDE WYOMING MISSILE LAUNCH FACILITIES

Two other cases involving boys who were 16 and 17 couldn’t be prosecuted because the Catholic Church didn’t consider them minors at the time of the alleged abuse. The Vatican decree didn’t address another alleged victim.

Hart’s attorney, Thomas Jubin, at the time called some of the allegations “specious,” based on second- and third-hand information and some accusers emphasizing that Hart didn’t physically touch them.

Rev. Joseph Hart dispenses communion during an outdoor Mass celebrated for participants of the Basque Festival in Buffalo, Wyoming, on Sept. 19, 1988. (AP Photo/Dean Wariner,File)

But the Vatican findings disappointed Hart’s successor, Wyoming Bishop Steven Biegler, who pointed out that they didn’t mean Hart was innocent, only that a high burden of proof hadn’t been met.

MAN INJURED IN GRIZZLY BEAR ATTACK WHILE SURVEYING WYOMING FOREST

Biegler stood by the findings of a diocese review board appointed after he became bishop that determined six claims were credible. The board included a judge who, as a prosecutor, pursued criminal cases of child sexual abuse.

Hart was a priest in Kansas City, Missouri, for 20 years before moving to Wyoming, where he served as auxiliary and then full bishop from 1976 until his retirement in 2001.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 

The first known allegations against Hart dated to the early 1960s and were made in the late 1980s. At least six men have come forward in the past several years to say Hart abused them in Wyoming.

Hart’s previous diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph reached court settlements years ago with at least 10 victims. Prosecutors in Wyoming decided in 2020 not to proceed with charging Hart.

Share

Recent Posts

A tiny grain of nuclear fuel is pulled from ruined Japanese nuclear plant, in a step toward cleanup

close Video Fox News Flash top headlines for November 7 Fox News Flash top headlines…

1 hour ago

British doctor jailed for trying to kill mother’s partner with fake COVID jab

close Video Fox News Flash top headlines for November 6 Fox News Flash top headlines…

1 hour ago

Menendez brothers: What George Gascon’s election loss means for upcoming resentencing

close Video Los Angeles County DA George Gascon defeated by challenger Nathan Hochman District Attorney-elect…

1 hour ago

South Carolina pastor arrested after confrontation with protesters over wife’s death

close Video South Carolina woman Mica Miller calls 911 in final moments before her death…

1 hour ago

McCormick eyes ‘ruby red’ county to put him over the top in tight PA Senate battle

Longtime Democratic Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey and Republican challenger Dave McCormick are still wading through…

2 hours ago

Vance’s orbit reveals what role he will play in Trump’s second administration

Sources in Vice President-elect JD Vance’s political orbit say his role in Donald Trump’s upcoming…

2 hours ago