© 2024 St. Louis Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Other

Priest who lives in St. Louis gets 7 years for child porn

By AP/KWMU

Chicago, Ill. – A Catholic priest who has been living in the St. Louis area was sentenced in Chicago Tuesday to seven years for child pornography.

Rev. Daniel Schulte was never accused of physical abuse, but rather of downloading images on his computer.

The judge said Schulte, 54, will have to register as a sex offender once he's released.

He used to be a chaplain at a hospital near Chicago, but has been living with a St. Louis County-based religious order called Midwest Province of the Congregation of the Mission, which is also known as the Vincentians.

District Judge Blanche M. Manning also said Schulte must give up computers and never have unsupervised access to minors.

"He has victimized young children, possibly scarring them for life," Manning said, giving Schulte the maximum under federal guidelines. "The court cannot help but be appalled."

In a quiet voice, Schulte said he was sorry about "the children whose innocence I've stolen by downloading child pornography" and apologized for "the embarrassment and scandal I've caused for others."

His attorney, Patrick Cotter, pleaded with Manning to show mercy, saying that Schulte had never been accused of touching any children, merely of downloading images, and that his client had been sexually abused as a child.

Schulte remains a priest but could be defrocked later, said the Rev. Raymond Van Dorpe, assistant provincial at the mission in Earth City, Mo., where Schulte worked when he was charged. Schulte's Internet service provider had contacted the order with the suspicion that child porn had been accessed.

Other