In 2002, St. Louis Archbishop Rigali assigned Auxiliary Bishop Dolan to investigate Roman Catholic priests accused of sexual misconduct in their archdiocese. During the investigation, Dolan spoke with parishes, victims, and the media about the scandals, and invited victims of clerical abuse to come forward. Commenting on his meetings with them, Dolan said: "...it is impossible to exaggerate the gravity of the situation, and the suffering that victims feel, because I've spent the last four months being with them, crying with them, having them express their anger to me." Dolan dismissed abusive priests, which earned him the ire of some St. Louis parishioners who remained loyal to their dismissed priests and referred to Dolan's investigation as a "witch hunt".