Updated

The head of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis is defending his handling of a sex abuse scandal.

Archbishop John Nienstedt says he won't resign, despite criticism that he and other local Roman Catholic Church leaders concealed allegations about abusive priests.

In an interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday, he also again dismissed allegations of sexual misconduct of his own.

Nienstedt said he doesn't believe he has mismanaged the scandal. He said he was shown memos about problem priests, but didn't fully grasp the scope of the troubles until last fall, after a former archdiocese employee went public with her concerns.

Nienstedt has been under pressure since his top adviser on church law, Jennifer Haselberger, resigned last year and publicly accused church leaders of mishandling several cases.