A Louisville attorney who filed suit against the Vatican in connection with the Catholic Church sex abuse scandal is seeking a court order to question Pope Benedict in the case.Attorney William McMurry says he believes that as a longtime member of the church hierarchy, the pontiff has knowledge of an alleged cover-up of child sex abuse allegations brought against priests in the United States."The most important thing is how the 1962 directive by the Vatican to the bishops in the world to keep it quiet, to keep this information quiet, how that information was dissemenated, how it was enforced, who followed it and who didn't," McMurry said.McMurry is seeking class action status for his suit. A federal appeals court is considering whether the Vatican, as a sovereign power, is immune from such a suit.A Vatican attorney told the Associated Press that McMurry's request to interview the pope "is not appropriate."
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.