Archdiocese Hires Criminal Defense Attorney

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has hired a criminal defense attorney to continue investigating whether Archbishop John Nienstedt was involved in sexual misconduct.

Auxiliary Bishop Lee Piche says attorney Peter Wold has been retained to continue the investigation completed by the Greene Espel law firm in July. Piche says Wold has been hired to "help with some of the remaining details" in the Nienstedt investigation. He declined to discuss those details.

Wold has recently met with at least one man who filed affidavits in the investigation earlier this year. Archdiocese whistleblower Jennifer Haselberger, a former top adviser to Nienstedt, says about 10 men have accused him of sexual misconduct while they were seminarians or priests.

Nienstedt has previously said the accusations were "absolutely and entirely false."