Pope immune from abuse lawsuit
2005-09-20 13:44
Rome - The United States government has told a Texas court that Pope Benedict XVI should be given immunity from a lawsuit accusing him of conspiring to cover up the sexual molestation of three boys by a seminarian, court documents show.
Assistant attorney general Peter Keisler said in Monday's filing that, as pope, Benedict enjoys immunity as the head of a state - the Vatican. He said allowing the lawsuit to proceed would be "incompatible with the United States' foreign policy interests".
- AP