Jury awards $7.6 million to survivor of sexual abuse by former Diocese of Winona-Rochester priest
“He feels that he has done something real to expose the problems in the diocese and in the Catholic church hierarchy,” said Jeff Anderson, who represented the plaintiff, “so that other kids will be protected.”
A sign for the Diocese of Winona-Rochester outside The Chancery of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester is pictured Tuesday, June 3, 2025, in Rochester. Joe Ahlquist / Post Bulletin file photo
Post Bulletin
July 1, 2025
By Olivia Estright
ROCHESTER — An Olmsted County jury awarded $7.6 million to a plaintiff who alleged sexual misconduct and filed a lawsuit against the Diocese of Winona.
The jury returned its verdict on Monday, June 30, after a weeklong trial to determine the damages.
The plaintiff, referred to as Doe 254, filed the complaint for a personal injury lawsuit in 2021 related to allegations of abuse in the 1970s. The case alleged three counts relating to negligence and demanded payment for the damages in excess of $50,000.
This case is a result of the Minnesota Child Victims Act of 2013, which lifted the statute of limitations on past claims of child sexual abuse for a three-year period that ended in August 2016. More than 100 claims of child sexual abuse by clergy arose after the act was passed.
Before the trial, the diocese’s attorneys filed a proposed statement that the diocese admitted negligence. The trial became an abbreviated one, focused on determining the damages owed to Doe 254.
Of the $7.6 million awarded, the jury determined that $7 million will compensate Doe 254 for past damages, including “past pain, disability, embarrassment, emotional distress.” The jury allocated $500,000 to compensate the plaintiff for future damages. The remaining $100,000 will cover the plaintiff’s health care expenses.
“The result of what the jury did yesterday was one of the best and greatest moments … that I’ve had,” said Jeff Anderson, who represented Doe 254. Anderson, of Jeff Anderson and Associates, has worked with survivors for 42 years.
During his opening statement, Anderson introduced the plaintiff as a 68-year-old Rochester man. When the plaintiff was 16, Joseph Cashman, a former priest of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, began sexually abusing him.
“Father Cashman sees opportunity. Father Cashman sees vulnerability,” Anderson said, according to court transcripts. “This priest is popular – he’s prominent among the kids, and the principal of the school. And he targets [Doe 254].”
The abuse occurred from 1973 to 1976.
Anderson said the result came “as one of great relief” to his client.
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