PENNSYLVANIA
PennLive
By Ivey DeJesus | idejesus@pennlive.com
on June 21, 2016
A priest who was named a child predator in a grand jury report on widespread clergy sex abuse in the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese was on Tuesday named as a defendant in a civil lawsuit filed by two women who claim he molested them as children.
The women filed the lawsuits in Blair County court against the Rev. Charles F. Bodziak, the diocese and several church officials.
PennLive does not name victims of sexual abuse, however, Renee Rice and Cheryl Haun, the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, have decided to be named by the media in their hope of helping other victims come forward, said their attorney Richard Serbin.
According to the lawsuit, Bodziak sexually abused the women – who are sisters – over a period of years beginning when they were between the ages of 7 and 9. The priest, the lawsuit states, allegedly plied the girls with alcohol to facilitate his crimes.
Bodziak was removed by Bishop Mark Bartchak in January in the wake of findings from a grand jury investigation launched by the Attorney General’s office into reports of widespread clergy sex abuse in the diocese. He was named a child predator in that investigation. No priests have been charged as a result of the grand jury report, as the statute of limitations had expired for each case mentioned in the investigation report.
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