BALTIMORE (MD)
WBAL-TV, NBC-11 [Baltimore MD]
April 6, 2023
By Tommie Clark
One name stands out among the rest in the Maryland Attorney General’s report on child sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore.
The name is seen nearly 200 times throughout the over 450-page report — Father Anthony Joseph Maskell. He is not only accused of abuse, but for helping other priests do the same.
No. 87 under the long “List of Abusers” is Maskell. He was one of the primary subjects of the Netflix docuseries “The Keepers,” about a Baltimore Archbishop Seton Keough High School teacher found dead in 1970.
Ordained in 1965, Maskell spent 30 years working for the Catholic Church in Maryland, including as a counselor for students at Catholic schools.
According to the report, at least 39 people have reported that they, or people they know, were sexually abused by him. The archdiocese has been aware of Maskell’s conduct toward children as early as one year into his career with the church.
The report says Maskell was transferred from one institution for asking Boy Scouts about their sexual fantasies. He also received allegations of sexual harassment from young women.
He eventually went on to be named chaplain at Keough. Victims said Maskell performed sexual acts on girls at the high school.
The report details victim accounts with similar themes, including drugging, rape, vaginal exams, and threats, including with a gun. His acts sometimes involved other adults, including another priest and counselor at the school, Father Edward Neil Magnus. The report says Magnus would participate in and be present for abuse with Maskell.
Victims said Maskell threatened to expel them “if they did not obey him.”
Sixteen different victims provided detailed accounts of being abused by Maskell while students at the school in the late 1960s and 1970s.
The report also documents abuse of younger children while Maskell served in other roles, including a 9-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy.
After continued allegations, he was removed from priestly ministry in Baltimore in 1994. Documents show that the Archdiocese reached settlements with 15 of Maskell’s victims.
The archdiocese continued to provide financial support to Maskell through at least 2000. He died in 2001.
RECENT TIMELINE
Maryland Attorney General’s
Church Sex Abuse Investigation
In the 1990s, the Archdiocese of Baltimore received complaints of sexual abuse involving some of its priests dating back decades.
Our sister station, WCVB, reported the clergy sex abuse scandal exploded in Boston in 2002 after The Boston Globe revealed that dozens of priests had molested and raped children for decades, while church supervisors covered it up and shuffled abusive priests from parish to parish.
In 2018, a sweeping Pennsylvania grand jury report accused senior church officials of systematically covering up complaints involving more than 1,000 children who were molested by roughly 300 Roman Catholic priests since the 1940s.
More victims in Baltimore came forward thereafter, leading the diocese to publish the names of dozens of clergy members accused of child sexual abuse dating back to the 1950s. The Maryland attorney general’s opened an investigation in 2018 that ultimately revealed decades of child sexual abuse and leadership’s efforts to cover it up.
The following is a timeline of the events that followed.
June 1, 2017
The Netflix documentary series “The Keepers” reveals a long-standing and baffling cold case, focusing on a Baltimore County police investigation into the disappearance and killing of Sister Cathy Cesnik. – Story
June 2, 2017
“The Keepers” focuses on a killing and years of molestation at a Baltimore high school, and it has helped to bring more victims to light. – Story
June 6, 2017
The story of young women who say they were abused at Archbishop Keough High School in the late 1960s through the early 1970s is highlighted in “The Keepers.” – Watch: Victim speaks out to 11 News
Aug. 16, 2018
Baltimore sexual abuse victims hope release of grand jury report in Pennsylvania will lead to action in Maryland. – Story
Sept. 25, 2018
Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh launches a review of sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. – Story
Nov. 9, 2018
11 News I-Team Exclusive: Baltimore Archbishop William Lori addresses church sex abuse scandal: “We have to be held to the same high standard we hold our priests and lay employees and volunteers to. We should have the same standards and the same consequence.” – Watch
April 24, 2019
The archdiocese announces an additional 23 names of deceased priests and brothers previously and credibly accused of child sexual abuse to the diocese’s online list. – Story
Nov. 17, 2022
Frosh files a motion to release an investigative report of child sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. – Story
Nov. 18, 2022
Court issues ruling, redacted report can be released after redacted copy is prepared.- Story
Feb. 24, 2023
Sexual abuse survivors call on report to be released, investigation expanded. – Story
March 15, 2023
Court receives redacted report for review. – Story
April 4, 2023
Judge authorizes report’s release. – Story
April 5, 2023
Attorney General Anthony Brown’s office released the report, which reveals decades of child sexual abuse and the archdiocese leadership’s efforts to cover it up. The report lists 156 current or former Catholic clergy, seminarians, deacons, teachers at Catholic schools, others as having abused hundreds of children.
Read the Report | Victims | List of Abusers |
Exclusive: Lori responds | Signs to watch for
The same day of the report’s release, the Maryland House bill that would eliminate the statute of limitations on child sex abuse cases, the Child Victims Act of 2023, was approved and sent to the governor. – Previous Report on the Bill