UK cardinal contests 'inappropriate' acts claims - KAIT-Jonesboro, AR-News, weather, sports

UK cardinal contests 'inappropriate' acts claims

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LONDON (AP) - The Vatican says it is looking into allegations of "inappropriate behavior" by Cardinal Keith O'Brien, Britain's most senior Catholic cleric.

The claim come as O'Brien and other cardinals prepare to gather at the Vatican for a conclave to choose the next pope.

O'Brien, who heads the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland, is being counseled by lawyers after the British newspaper The Observer reported that three priests and a former priest have filed complaints to the Vatican alleging that the cardinal approached them in an inappropriate manner. The paper did not cite the names of the priests, but it said their allegations date back to the 1980s.

A spokesman for the Scottish Catholic church says O'Brien contests the claims. A spokesman for the Vatican says the complaints were channeled through the office of the papal nuncio - the Vatican's ambassador - in London. The pope has also been informed.

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