CALIFORNIA
Orange County Weekly
by GUSTAVO ARELLANO
Document No. 5 isn’t a secret diocesan record but a list of every Orange County priest ever accused of pedophilia since 1958 and the parishes that they once roamed. For easier access, we’re presenting it in groups of three, with each list containing three priests, the years in which they served and their parishes. Some fun facts:
*Year with the most accused pedophiles: 1976 (17)
*Parish with the highest tally: St. Edward, Dana Point (John Lenihan, Denis Lyons, Michael Pecharich, Henry Perez, Gerald Plesetz, Siegfried Widera)
*Priest with the most assignments: Daniel Murray, Eleuterio Ramos and Gerardo Tanilong: five each. Ramos, however, gets extra points for going to Tijuana after getting suspended here!
*Parishes that housed two or more accused pedophiles at the same time: St. Boniface, Anaheim (1994: John Lenihan, Daniel Murray, Gerardo Tanilong), St. Cecilia, Tustin (1976: Michael Harris, Gerald Plesetz), St. Edward, Dana Point (1996-2001: John Lenihan, Denis Lyons), St. John the Baptist, Costa Mesa (1987: Denis Lyons, Gary Pacheco), St. Pius V, Buena Park (1976: Arthur Fernando, Denis Lyons)