The criminal justice system may have finally caught up with former Archdiocese of Philadelphia Catholic priest, Francis “Frank” Trauger. The ex-priest was charged today with sexually assaulting two altar boys at St. Michael the Archangel in Tullytown, Pennsylvania. In one case, the abuse is reported t o have occurred bettween 1995 and 1997 when the victim was between 11 and 13 years old. The other child was 12 years old when he was abused in the early 2000’s. Both victims were abused by Trauger at St. Michael the Archangel in the sacristy, where altar boys and priest robe before mass. Trauger had worked at that parish from 1993 to 2003.
Trauger, now 74 years old, was ordained in 1972 and served in at least ten parishes in his thirty years as a priest. Trauger was removed from the priesthood in 2003. A grand jury subpoena of Trauger’s file revealed he was removed following an admission that he molested three boys. He was ultimately laicized in 2005. But during his years as a priest, Trauger was the subject of multiple abuse complaints ranging from molesting boys he took to a motel in the Poconos to stalking a student at St. John Neumann High School. Trauger was re-assigned multiple times in the Philadelphia region after the allegations he sexually assaulted boys. He ended up at the Tullytown parish in 1993 and was only removed after his files were subpoenaed by the grand jury in late 2003. He served in parishes in Philadelphia, Bucks, and Montgomery counties.
Adam Horowitz, an attorney representing dozens of victims of clergy sexual abuse in Philadelphia including victims of Frank Trauger, commended the young men for their courage in coming forward and called for reform to the civil statute of limitations to allow these victims to receive the justice they deserve and have the opportunity to expose not only Trauger but also those in the Archdiocese who were reckless in continuing to assign Trauger to parishes full of innocent children long after they were aware of his unlawful sexual behaviors.