The court dropped the sexual abuse charges against Father Leo Riley, a former Port Charlotte priest accused of sexually assaulting four victims during his time at an Iowa church in the 1980s.
The decision comes after a pair of motions were filed:
- Motion to dismiss the charges, since the statute of limitations expired
- Motion to suppress evidence due to the unethical and unconstitutional conduct by the state
According to court documents, the latter motion was scheduled for a hearing on Monday but was canceled. The case was dismissed shortly after.
On April 24, Father Riley, 68, was arrested on multiple counts of capital sexual battery in connection to his previous role at a church in Dubuque, Iowa.
Four victims from Iowa claimed that Riley sexually abused them as altar boys in the mid-80s, and one from Port Charlotte publically shared that Riley physically and sexually abused him in the early 2000s.
In May, Riley made his first court appearance and was placed on a $500,000 bond after being charged with five counts of sexual abuse on Monday.
Riley denied the charges and passed two separate polygraph examinations by former FBI Special Agents, Riley's attorney said.
With the charges officially dismissed, the state of Iowa stated that the victims would not have the opportunity to testify against Riley, emphasizing that the law should be changed in the future for similar cases.