BishopAccountability.org
	Supreme Court Upholds Dismissal of Complaints Associated Press, carried in the Akron Beacon Journal September 7, 2005 COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Ohio Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court ruling that dismissed sexual abuse accusations against a Cincinnati-area priest who was said to have abused boys over three decades. The court unanimously ruled that the statute of limitations had expired on allegations of sexual abuse between 1961 and 1987 and racketeering. In a 2003 lawsuit, a former server accused the Rev. Lawrence Strittmatter of repeatedly molesting him and sometimes forcing his way inside the boy's home. The man, now in his 30s, alleged that he was sexually abused while at Our Lady of Victory Church in Delhi Township outside Cincinnati in the early 1980s. The court combined his case with 21 others that alleged abuse by Strittmatter. None of the plaintiffs were identified in the case. The archdiocese of Cincinnati and Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk also were defendants. Strittmatter was placed on administrative leave in 2002 and is not permitted to perform any duties of a priest, said Dan Andriacco, spokesman for the archdiocese. The Vatican will consider his case, a process that could take years, he said. The archdiocese has acknowledged that Strittmatter abused children. The Ohio 1st District Court of Appeals ruled that the statute of limitations for the abuse allegations expired after two years and that the racketeering allegation had expired after five years. "Obviously, we're pleased that the Ohio Supreme Court agrees with our position in this case," Andriacco said.