Father William Wehrle
Archdiocese of Baltimore/Denver/Jesuits
Ordained: 1950
Died: 1995
Assignment History:
- 1950-1951: Sacred Heart Parish (Woodstock, MD)
- 1951-1952: Our Lady of Martyrs Parish (Auriesville, NY)
- 1952-1960: Immaculate Conception Parish (Mechanicsville, MD)
- 1960-1966: St. Ignatius Parish (Hilltop, MD)
- 1960-1966: Sacred Heart (La Plata, MD) and St. Catherine of Alexandria (McConchie, MD)
- 1966-1971: Holy Trinity Parish (Washington, D.C.)
- 1971-1972: Jesuit Residence (Pittsburgh, PA)
- 1972-1973: Pittsburgh Hospital (Pittsburgh, PA)
- 1973-1974: St. Joseph Hospital (Omaha, NE)
- 1974-1976: St. Louis Parish (Denver, CO)
- 1976-1980: St. Therese Parish (Aurora, CO)
- 1980-1981: St. James Parish (Denver, CO)
- 1981-1985: St. Alphonsus Rodriguez Parish (Woodstock, MD) & Good Samaritan Hospital (Baltimore, MD)
- 1986-1993: St. Peter and Paul (Pittsburgh, PA)
- 1993-1995: St. Charles Lwanga (Pittsburgh, PA)
Summary of Abuse Allegations Against Father William Wehrle
Fr. William Wehrle was ordained a Jesuit priest and worked in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. In 2002, Fr. Wehrle was listed on the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Credibly Accused of Sexual Abuse of Minors list. In April 2023, Maryland’s Attorney General released a report alleging 156 Catholic clergy members sexually abused at least 600 children over six decades. The report lists the names of the abusers, including Fr. Wehrle.
According to the Attorney General’s report, Wehrle was the subject of several reports of sexual abuse made in 1985. The abuse occurred at St. Alphonsus Rodriguez in Woodstock and involved multiple young girls from the parish. According to documents from Wehrle’s personnel file, Wehrle faced multiple allegations, and removed from his position at the Holy Trinity church in Washington, DC, Wehrle was then reassigned to Denver, where there were more allegations of Wehrle engaging in inappropriate photography of young girls, before being sent back to Baltimore. When local accusations were brought forward in 1985, Fr. Wehrle was removed from his assignment in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and was transferred to the Diocese of Pittsburgh, where he continued in ministry until his death.
The Jesuits released a statement in 2018 that Wehrle has been accused of sexually abusing children from the 1960s until 1982, with multiple allegations in Denver and Washington, D.C. Wehrle appears on the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s list of clergy credibly accused of sexual misconduct and by the Jesuits in 2018.Fr. Wehrle died in 1995.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Maryland. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Maryland, contact our office today. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse nationwide. We can help. Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.