A Tarrant County judge on Friday dismissed the lawsuit filed by a group of Carmelite nuns against Fort Worth Bishop Michael F. Olson after accusing the bishop of illegally accessing electronic communications.
In doing so, Judge Don Cosby agreed with the bishop's lawyers that the underlying issue was a church matter and not a legal matter.
Olson had accused the head nun, Rev. Mother Teresa Gerlach of the Discalced Carmelite Nuns of Arlington, of breaking her vow of chastity by having a relationship with a priest outside the diocese. He dismissed her for the alleged wrongdoing June 1.
The nuns argued the bishop illegally seized Gerlach's phone and electronics on April 24 to find information related to the alleged affair.
Cosby heard arguments from each sides' attorneys in the case Tuesday. While Olson took the stand, his lawyers played an audio recording of an April meeting between Olson, Gerlach and other nuns.
In it, Gerlach allegedly admitted to a consensual affair with a Montana priest from the Transalpine Redemptorist.
"Bishop, at the time, I was having seizures, and I was in a very difficult position, and I think my brain just got really messed up," Gerlach says in the recording.
"I see," Olson says. "Well, I understand it even more so then why you shouldn't be prioress, right?"
Olson also said in his testimony Gerlach's caretaker Sister Francis Therese told him the phone relationship involved "sexting."
Matthew Bobo, the nuns' attorney, released a statement Friday in response to the judge's ruling:
"This decision indicates that anyone who goes into a Catholic Church in Texas can be required to turn over his mobile device, the Church can make a copy of all of its contents, keep them for an indefinite period of time, trounce private citizens’ constitutionally-protected civil liberties, and that the Catholic Church may do all of this without any practical justification whatsoever," the statement reads.
The nuns also sued Olson for defamation after he publicly accused them of possessing marijuana paraphernalia.
Because Olson's lawyers argued the drug use investigation was also a church matter, that accusation was dismissed.
The Arlington Police Department also announced Friday it had closed its criminal investigation into the allegations. The department said it consulted with the Tarrant County district attorney and determined there was no probable cause to file criminal charges against either the bishop or the nuns.
"We are grateful for Judge Cosby’s ruling today in dismissing the nuns’ lawsuit," Bishop Olson wrote in a statement Friday. "The decision vindicates our steadfast belief that this is a private Church matter that does not belong in the courts. This matter will continue to proceed through an established canonical process."
