NEW YORK (NY)
Crux
March 6, 2020
By Christopher White
As Bishop Edward Scharfenberger, the temporary leader of the Diocese of Buffalo, considers whether to reinstate a whistleblower priest, further questions have emerged about both whistleblower protections and potential conflicts of interest regarding the priest in question.
Father Ryszard Biernat last year secretly recorded private conversations with Bishop Richard Malone in which the now disgraced bishop raised serious questions about his handling of abuse cases and diocesan personnel matters – including a matter involving Biernat himself.
Last September, Biernat – who served as Malone’s secretary – released the audio recordings to Buffalo’s WKBW, in which he and Malone discuss a situation involving correspondence that suggests a romantic relationship between Biernat and a former diocesan seminarian who had recently resigned.
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