In 2006 a 46 year old woman sued the Episcopal Diocese of Florida for $5 million in damages related to abuse by a deacon at the former St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Jacksonville, Florida. The deacon was identified as Episcopal priest Joseph Noll, who died in 2002 at age 83. Noll was ordained to the priesthood in 1970.
The lawsuit alleged the diocese should have known that Noll was unfit, dangerous and a threat to the health, safety and welfare of the victim. The suit alleged that Noll sexually penetrated the minor with a candle, showed her photographs of naked men, undressed her, and groped her. Diocesan spokesman Episcopal priest Kurt Dunkle would not comment on the allegations. Dunkle was later dean of General Seminary in New York.
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