This press conference announces a lawsuit filed by John Doe 26 against Father Jerome Kern and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. During the conference, it is alleged that Father Kern was a serial offender with at least ten known victims and that church officials had received multiple reports of abuse dating back to the late 1960s. Despite these reports, officials allegedly moved him between several parishes instead of removing him from ministry, and abuse continued in multiple locations. Survivors and their families reported the abuse to church officials and law enforcement, but they were allegedly misled and promised action that was never fully carried out.
One survivor who spoke at the press conference described reporting the abuse years later and being shown a church file documenting multiple abuse reports against Kern, yet he was told to pursue other channels and the abuse history was not fully disclosed. The survivor also described being publicly discredited and accused of lying, and later learning that promises made during a legal settlement that Kern would be removed from ministry were not kept. The press conference emphasizes the impact of concealment and transfers on continued abuse and encourages other survivors to come forward, report abuse to law enforcement, and seek accountability to help protect others and begin healing.