Florida School Official Accused of Abuse

Bradenton, Florida --

An assistant principal at a middle school was suspended Wednesday after a group representing people molested by Catholic priests accused him of being a former abuser.

Manatee County Schools Superintendent Roger Dearing said he was placing the assistant principal on paid leave until an investigation could determine if he is the same man who allegedly molested a child as a seminarian in the mid-1960s.

Dearing said the official has worked for Manatee schools for more than 30 years and is a respected school leader.

There are similarities in the background of the assistant principal and the former seminarian who had been accused, but never convicted, of abuse, Dearing said.

Efforts to reach the assistant principal Wednesday were not successful.

David Clohessy, national director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said an abuse victim came across the school official's picture recently on the Internet and notified the organization, which in turn alerted the school district."

Read the article at First Coast News | Florida State News dated 2/3/2005

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