Calls intensify for bishop to resign position

By Bill Draper

Associated Press

Published: Friday, Sept. 7 2012 11:44 p.m. MDT

Bishop Robert Finn of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph appears in court during in a bench trial Thursday, Sept. 6, 2012 at the Jackson County Courthouse in Kansas City, Mo. Following a short non-jury trial, Jackson County Circuit Court Judge John Torrence convicted Finn of one misdemeanor count of failing to report suspicions of child abuse but acquitted him on another count of failing to report.

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Summary

Calls for Bishop Robert Finn's resignation intensified a day after he became the highest-ranking U.S. church official to be convicted of a crime related to the child sexual abuse scandal.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Calls for Bishop Robert Finn's resignation intensified a day after he became the highest-ranking U.S. church official to be convicted of a crime related to the child sexual abuse scandal.

Soon after a Missouri judge found Finn guilty Thursday of one misdemeanor count of failing to report suspected child sexual abuse to the state, unhappy Roman Catholics began discussing ways to get the bishop out of office on a Facebook page titled "Bishop Finn Must Go."

Among the posts was one that listed contact information for the Vatican and urged parishioners to voice their displeasure with Finn at the highest levels.

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