Priest admitted sexual addiction prior to abuse allegations, records show

09:57 Priest admitted sexual addiction prior to abuse allegations , records show 0 Comments

Roman Catholic priest charged with sexually abusing two boys in the 1970s told the Archdiocese of Louisville in 1985 that he was a sexual addict, but church officials put him in treatment instead of removing him because they believed he was involved with men, not boys, according to court records released Tuesday.

In addition, the Rev. James R. Schook admitted to church officials in the mid-1990s that he had given a man money in exchange for sex, according to the records. The archdiocese referred him to a counselor.

Schook was removed from the ministry last year by the archdiocese after several men complained that they were abused by Schook when they were teenagers in the 1970s.

He now faces three counts of sodomy in the second degree and four counts of sodomy in the third degree in Jefferson Circuit Court. Six of the charges involve incidents with a boy from 1971 to 1974. The seventh involves an incident with a second boy between 1974 to 1975.

He has pleaded not guilty, and his attorney, David Lambertus, declined to comment.

He remains a priest but has been forbidden to do public ministry or present himself as a priest.

Brian Reynolds, chancellor and chief administrative officer of the archdiocese, said Tuesday that Schook’s confession three decades ago about his sexual addiction was not enough to remove him from ministry then because there were no claims of illegal activity.

He also said there had been no complaints about sexual abuse of children nor any other allegations after Schook finished his treatment — until 2009.

Schook’s sexual encounters with men became known after he had two car wrecks in late 1985 and later entered a residential treatment program at Our Lady of Peace, according to the archdiocese records.

Reynolds told police in a 2009 interview that Schook received counseling and treatment that included a 12-step sexual addiction program.

According to court records, a former Trinity student said he told a counselor at the high school in 1985 that he had been abused by Schook while on a camping trip. The former student also said he told the counselor, who is not named in the records, about other teens who were abused.