An open letter to Archbishop Nienstedt

The recent criminal charges filed against the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis compel me to write to you, via the newspaper. I have hoped and prayed for many months that you would step down as head of the archdiocese. But now I feel both morally and ethically obligated to communicate my views to you and our community before more pain and harm is suffered by the members of the archdiocese, our Catholic Church and you.

You and other persons now stand criminally accused of wrongdoing by the Ramsey County attorney. As you know, the complaint specifically alleges that you participated in criminal conduct. Although only the archdiocese has been actually charged as a criminal defendant, an organization such as the archdiocese, like any corporation, can only commit a criminal offense based on the conduct of persons in that organization, such as you and the others named in the complaint.

The archdiocese (and anyone named in the complaint) is, of course, presumed to be innocent of any criminal offense at this stage of the state's prosecution. Absent a plea agreement between the county attorney and the archdiocese, the government will have to present evidence to prove its charges in a court of law in one or more hearings and, ultimately, a trial. Based on my 20 years of experience as a former federal prosecutor here in Minnesota, I can tell you that any such hearings and trial will be a disaster for the archdiocese, its members, the church and you. This is true regardless of the outcome of the case.

For some time now, you have ignored calls for you to step down as head of the archdiocese. Whatever the reasons for your remaining in office, this no longer matters. The criminal complaint and its allegations virtually assure that either you will be leaving your position on your own initiative or you will be removed from it. It is time for you to accept that the status quo cannot continue. The archdiocese more than ever needs new leadership to put its legal troubles behind it and, more important, to allow genuine healing to begin, including for the victims of clergy abuse.

There are many reasons for you to step down immediately. Here are just a few of them:

First, it will help stop the bleeding. The entire archdiocese has been suffering spiritual death caused by a thousand cuts due to a failure of leadership. Although the wrongdoing did not begin with you, it continued under your watch and you remained willfully blind to it.

Second, you may be able to spare the church and yourself further embarrassment or worse, relating to the alleged personal misconduct for which you have been under internal investigation. Given the nature of the charges against the archdiocese, Ramsey County will be entitled to seek, and likely obtain and then use, evidence uncovered in that internal investigation in the existing criminal case, to the extent that it pertains to your knowledge and intent involving the current charges.

Third, the archdiocese will be spared yet more legal and investigative expenses and demands that already have diverted precious church resources (time, money and goodwill) from the church's important missions, such as helping those in need. Have you thought about how many hungry could have been fed and how many homeless sheltered with the huge amounts of time and money that have been spent representing, defending and investigating you?

Finally, you should step down now because it has been and remains the right thing to do, by your own choosing and in a spirit of seeking reconciliation. If you truly care for the church and love the archdiocese and its members, you will resign your office.

Hank Shea is a former assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Minnesota and serves as a senior distinguished fellow at the University of St. Thomas School of Law, where he teaches criminal law and ethics courses. The opinions expressed here are solely his own.