PENNSYLVANIA
Church Militant
by Joseph Pelletier • ChurchMilitant.com • September 19, 2016
HARRISBURG, Pa. (ChurchMilitant.com) – The majority of Pennsylvania’s dioceses are being subjected to a sweeping state grand jury investigation into both clerical sex abuse and the subsequent cover-ups allegedly perpetrated by Pennsylvania Church hierarchy.
Subpoenas from the state attorney general were issued late last week to the dioceses of Erie, Allentown, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Greensburg and Scranton demanding all six dioceses hand over any documentation regarding sexual abuse committed by Pennsylvania clergy as part of a broad investigation into the matter. The archdiocese of Philadelphia was excluded from the probe, having already been the subject of three grand jury reports since 2003, which unearthed unreported claims of abuse at the hands of hundreds of priests. The remaining diocese, Altoona-Johnstown, is currently under investigation and has been since the release of an individual grand jury report in March.
Most of the dioceses in question have expressed their willingness to cooperate with authorities. “I could not agree more [with the probe],” stated Pittsburgh bishop David Zubik. “We are absolutely committed to protecting children from abuse.”
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