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Judge tosses lawsuit against former MTC president accused of sexual abuse — but a fraud claim against the LDS Church survives

A federal judge has tossed much of the lawsuit filed by a former missionary who alleged she was sexually assaulted by a Missionary Training Center leader in 1984.

Attorneys for former MTC President Joseph L. Bishop and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints asked the judge to dismiss the suit, filed in April, arguing McKenna Denson had missed a legal deadline years ago to make her claims.

Denson’s attorney Craig Vernon told U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball in Salt Lake City that while Denson was reportedly sexually assaulted by Bishop in 1984, she didn’t know about his alleged sexual addiction or “lifelong” predation until December 2017, when she clandestinely recorded him discussing his past confessions to Mormon officials.