PENNSYLVANIA
PennLive
By Ivey DeJesus | idejesus@pennlive.com
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg on Tuesday was in the news amid a report regarding child sex abuse within its ranks.
A report by The York Daily Record indicated that the diocese named 15 priests who have been accused of sexually abusing children and who had worked in the 15-county diocese.
The YDR report specifically names the Rev. Raymond Prybis, who once served at St. Joseph’s in Dallastown. Prybis was accused of abuse during his time at a Boston-area parish before he was transferred to York County. The report cites a personnel file released by the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis in January 2015. Prybis did not have a credible allegation of abuse against him while at St. Joseph’s, the YDR reported.
Many of the clergy members’ names cited in the YDR report have appeared in reports by PennLive and The Patriot-News, both of which have over the years published reports regarding allegations of sexual abuse against priests from the diocese – as well as the respective response from the diocese to those allegations.
Those reports include accounts involving:
* Guy Marsico, a former priest assigned to St. Leo the Great Catholic Church in Rohrerstown, Lancaster County. (No criminal charges were ever leveled against Marsico).
* The 2004 report from the diocese confirming it had received credible reports of sexual abuse of 64 minors by 22 priests since 1950 and had spent $1.9 million in settlements, legal fees and counseling. None of the 22 priests were in active ministry at the time.
* In April 2002 the diocese received a “credible allegation” of sexual misconduct with a minor against John Allen, senior pastor at St. Margaret Mary Alacoque Church in Penbrook. The allegation stemmed from an incident more than 20 years earlier. Allen resigned from the priesthood within 12 hours. Prosecution was not possible because the statute of limitations had expired.
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