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71 Clergymen: Updated list of priests & brothers accused of child sexual assault published
By Zoe Zellers
BALTIMORE (WBFF) - In an effort to improve transparency and encourage more victims of childhood sexual abuse by priests and religious brothers to come forward, the Archdiocese of Baltimore has published a list of those who have been accused of abuse in the past. The list, originally published in September 2002, included 57 men. It did not include those accused after their deaths or cases where an investigation "concluded that the facts did not indicate sexual abuse had occurred." The list below also includes priests and religious brothers who have been accused since 2002 of child sexual abuse after that list was originally published, totaling 71 clergymen. All allegations have been reported to law enforcement and to the Archdiocese's Independent Child Abuse Review Board. If allegations against a person were investigated and not deemed credible, that subject's name was not included in the list. According to the Archdiocese of Baltimore, "None of the individuals listed here are in ministry in the Archdiocese of Baltimore; some have died and some have been laicized--all have had their faculties to function as a priest in the Archdiocese of Baltimore removed." Priests of the Archdiocese of Baltimore have no parenthetical after their names. Priests and brothers from religious orders or other dioceses have that noted in parentheses after their names. To learn more about the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, click here. Priests and Religious named in the September 2002 Disclosure (in alphabetical order): Avant, James (Capuchin) LeFevre, Francis Ball, Bruce E. (Diocese of La Crosse, WI) Lorento, Anthony (Pallotine) Banko, John (Diocese of Trenton/Metuchen, NJ) Loskarin, George Bauernfeind, Thomas Mardaga, Ronald Blackwell, Maurice Martin, Kenneth (Diocese of Wilmington) Brett, Laurence (Diocese of Bridgeport) Maskell, A. Joseph Brinkmann, Frederick (Redemptorist) Maurer, Arthur (Josephite) Bugge, Gerald (Redemptorist) McGrath, Francis (Diocese of Trenton) Carney, John Melville, Raymond (Diocese of Portland, Maine) Carroll, Douglas (Pallotine) Michaud, Ronald Cox, Brian Mike, John Deakin, Richard (Capuchin) Murphy, Timothy (Trinitarian) Dimitroff, Donald (Christian Brother) Newman, Robert (Sons of Charity) Dowdy, James O'Toole, Henry (Redemptorist) Duggan, John (Jesuit) Pecore, Dennis (Salvatorian) Duke, Frederick Rochacewcz, Thomas (Redemptorist) Emala, Walter (Diocese of Memphis) Rouse, Charles Farabaugh, Kenneth Rydzewski, Thomas Gallagher, Joseph Simms, William Gerg, Joseph (Benedictine) Smith, David Haight, Mark (Diocese of Albany) Smith, Thomas Hammer, John (Diocese of Youngstown and Saginaw) Spillane, Michael Helowicz, Marion Stroup, Edmund Hopkins, Robert Sweeney, Francis (Paulist) Knapp, Paul (Redemptorist) Toohey, Jerome Kruse, Joseph Toulas, James (Redemptorist) LaMountain, Michael (Diocese of Providence) Tragesser, Gerald LaPorta, Ross Wehrle, William (Jesuit) Lee, Thomas B. (Archdiocese of Seoul, Korea) Additional Allegations (in order of disclosure): Barnes, Michael Bevan, Thomas Bonacci, Louis (Jesuit) Coyle, Charles (Jesuit) Cristancho, Fernando (Diocese of Istmina-Tado, Colombia) Dean, Alfred (Josephite) Girard, Steven Kolodziej, Michael (Franciscan) Lentz, Robert Lippold, John Murray, J. Glen (Jesuit) Salerno, Michael (Pallotine) Smith, Richard Wielebski, John
In response, SNAP's outreach director, Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, released the following statement: "While we're glad Baltimore Catholic officials are again listing predator priests on the archdiocesan website but wish they would do the same on local parish websites. We're sad that this has taken so long to do and believe they can and should do much more to protect kids. We strongly suspect that this list is incomplete. "We also suspect Archbishop William Lori will use this list to try and persuade lawmakers that reforming Maryland's archaic, predator-friendly statute of limitations, claiming 'Now, there's no need to let victims expose pedophiles in court because we're listing them ourselves.' If he tries this, he'll of course be dead wrong and dreadfully disingenuous. "Still, most bishops refuse to take this minimal step to warn parents, police, prosecutors, parishioners and the public about child molesting clerics they've recruited, educated, ordained, trained, shielded and often still protect. So this is progress. We hope DC Archbishop Donald Wuerl - and about another 140 or 150 US bishops - soon do likewise. "No matter what lawmakers or church officials do or don't do, we urge every single person who saw, suspected or suffered child sex crimes and cover ups in Catholic churches or institutions to protect kids by calling police, get help by calling therapists, expose wrongdoers by calling law enforcement, get justice by calling attorneys, and be comforted by calling support groups like ours. This is how kids will be safer, adults will recover, criminals will be prosecuted, cover ups will be deterred and the truth will surface." SNAP is the world's oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. Founded in 1988, SNAP has over 20,000 members.
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