Bishop Michael Bransfield
Archdiocese of Philadelphia
Ordained: 1971
Ordained As Bishop: 2005
Accused in sworn testimony: 2012
Resigned: 2018
Assigned as follows:
- 1971-1973: St. Albert the Great (Huntingdon Valley, PA)
- 1973-1979: St. Stanislaus (Lansdale, PA)
- 1973-1979: Lansdale Catholic High School (Lansdale, PA)
- 1979-1990: National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (Washington, DC)
- 1990-2005: Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (Washington, DC)
- 2003-2005: Catholic University of America (Washington, DC)
- 2003-2005: U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops (Washington, DC)
- 2003-2005: Knights of Columbus (Washington, DC)
- 2003-2005: Knights of the Holy Sepulchre (Washington, DC)
- 2003-2005: Papal Foundation (Philadelphia, PA)
- 2003-2005: St. Charles Borromeo Seminary (Philadelphia, PA)
Summary of Allegations Against Bishop Michael Bransfield:
Bishop Michael Bransfield was ordained a priest in 1971 and served in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. He served in multiple parishes throughout his career. According to media reports, in 2012, he was named as an abuser of boys in the testimony of one witness during the trial of Monsignor William Lynn, the former Secretary of Clergy for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
Another witness testified that Bransfield had a lewd conversation with him. Both men were testifying about abuse by Father Stanley Gana. The Prosecutor said that Bransfield had been accused in a separate instance of fondling a minor in the 1970s. He denied the allegations, and then resigned in September 2018 after Pope Francis ordered an investigation into allegations that Bransfield sexually harassed adults.
According to media reports, in July 2021, he was named in a letter addressed to the Most Rev. Mark Brennan, bishop of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, from two groups representing lay Catholics who seek further to be action taken in the wake of former bishop Michael Bransfield’s resignation.
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Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Pennsylvania, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia may have legal options, but filing deadlines will apply so please do not delay in reaching out to us.
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