From May 2003: Father Bryan M. Kuchar's first trial ended in mistrial after jurors couldn't agree on a verdict
Submitted on November 9, 2018
A hearing scheduled for today, May 30, should set a new trial date for a St. Louis archdiocesan priest accused of sexually abusing a minor.
Father Bryan M. Kuchar’s first trial ended in a mistrial May 22 in the courtroom of Circuit Judge John Ross when the jury couldn’t agree on a verdict. Jurors deadlocked after 14 hours of deliberations May 21-22, court officials said.
In a prepared statement on May 22, the archdiocese said, “Like others who have followed this matter closely, we had hoped that the trial would bring at least one facet of the matter to a close. The inability of the jury to reach a verdict indicates the difficulties in arriving at a conclusive decision in such cases. We hope that, for the good of all concerned, closure in this case can be reached in a timely way.”
Prosecutors plan to retry Father Kuchar on six counts of second-degree statutory sodomy, a Class C felony. He remains free on $15,000 bond.
Father Kuchar, ordained in 1993, is still a priest but remains removed from his assignments and cannot say public Mass while the case is pending. Archdiocesan officials emphasized that Father Kuchar doesn’t have the faculties of the archdiocese.
The archdiocese is paying for a portion of Father Kuchar’s legal defense, said Jim Orso, a spokesman for the archdiocese.
Father Kuchar, 37, was arrested April 11, 2002, after a 22-year-old man alleged Father Kuchar had sexually abused him in 1995. The alleged victim was 14 when the abuse was said to have occurred.
In accordance with archdiocesan policy, Father Kuchar after his arrest was removed from his positions as associate director of the archdiocesan Office of Vocations and part-time associate pastor of St. John the Baptist Parish in South St. Louis.
At the time of the alleged incident, Father Kuchar was associate pastor of Assumption Parish in Mattese. In 1996, he joined the staff of Rosati-Kain High School in the Central West End and was a part-time associate pastor of St. Timothy Parish in Affton.
Father Kuchar became a part-time associate pastor of the Parish of the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis in 1997 before being assigned to the Office of Vocations in 1999.
During the trial, Father Kuchar wore clerical garb, including the Roman collar.
Father Kuchar originally admitted the allegations to police but later recanted, saying he was pressured into admitting crimes he did not commit. Once he recanted his confession, Father Kuchar could once again wear his Roman collar, Orso said. Father Kuchar formally pleaded not guilty to the charges.
