Appeals court upholds priest sex abuse lawsuit dismissal

A federal appeals court says an Illinois man cannot sue the Vatican or Archdiocese of Chicago over allegations of sexual abuse dating back decades.

The U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals released its opinion Wednesday upholding a lower court ruling in the case of Charles Anderson, who claimed he was abused by priests and other church employees in the 1950s and 60s.

Anderson filed his lawsuit in 2011, while he was serving time in Shawnee Correctional Center for armed robbery. He claimed he had been abused by a priest at a Lisle orphanage and later by a priest and other employees at Maryville Academy.

A federal district court dismissed the lawsuit because the statute of limitations had run out and the Vatican had not been served successfully in the case.