Priest has pics of nude boys, Bishop Sevilla says no problem

"A Catholic priest who was investigated in Yakima on suspicion that he viewed child pornography resigned Thursday from the Archdiocese of St. Louis.

The Rev. Darell Mitchell decided to leave both his pastoral assignment in St. Louis and the archdiocese, according to a statement from the archdiocese.

"It's a tragedy," said Monsignor John Ecker, vicar general of the Catholic Diocese of Yakima. "There was no need for it."

Ecker said that Mitchell told him he wasn't sure what he would do next.

"He's very upset," said Ecker.

Mitchell left Yakima in 2004 while under criminal investigation for having photos of nude boys on his computer. About a dozen photos of boys, elementary school-age to teens, all naked, were turned over to police by the diocese. (Snip)

Mitchell was assigned last June to a St. Louis parish that has an elementary school. When SNAP members notified parishioners there last month about the incident with the photos in Yakima, an outcry arose among parents.

"Nobody thought it was a mistake to place him there," Ecker said. "He was never any danger to children."

Ecker explained that Bishop Carlos Sevilla of Yakima knew Mitchell was being assigned to a St. Louis church with a school and that the Archdiocese knew "every detail" of Mitchell's background.

The Archdiocese of St. Louis issued a statement Thursday saying that Sevilla had certified "without qualification that there is nothing in Father Mitchell's background or service that would raise questions about his fitness for ministry."