KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Pope Francis accepted the resignation Tuesday of a U.S. bishop who pleaded guilty to failing to report a suspected child abuser, answering calls by victims to take action against bishops who cover up for pedophile priests.
Bishop Robert Finn, who led the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph in Missouri for nearly 10 years, resigned under canon law that allows bishops to resign early for illness or some “grave” reason that makes them unfit for office. Finn, 62, is 13 years shy of the normal retirement age of 75.
In 2012, Finn was convicted of one misdemeanor count of failure to report suspected abuse and was sentenced to two years of probation, in the case of Rev. Shawn Ratigan, whose computers were found to contain hundreds of lewd photos of young girls.
Finn is the highest-ranking church official in the U.S. to be convicted of not taking action in response to abuse allegations.
