New abuse allegations filed against deceased Waterloo priest

Waterloo, Iowa ---

A second lawsuit has been filed against the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque alleging sexual abuse by a deceased Waterloo priest who served as a pastor here in the 1950s and early '60s.

Deborah A. Gindhart of Indiana filed the suit in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids this week, alleging the Rev. Patrick McElliott abused her during the 1962-63 school year, when she was 13 years old and in the eighth grade at St. John's School.

It is the 11th sexual abuse lawsuit filed against the archdiocese within the past year. It is the second involving McElliott, pastor at St. John's parish from 1954 to 1963, who died in Waterloo in 1987.

All but one of the suits have been filed by Waterloo lawyers Chad Swanson and Tom Staack of the Dutton law firm. They also are representing Gindhart. The alleged incidents in all the suits occured from the early 1950s through the early 1980s. All the accused priests are either deceased or no longer functioning as priests within the archdiocese.

Read the article at WCFCourier.com Dated April 21, 2005

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