Father Hugh Lang
Diocese of Pittsburgh
Ordained: 1956
Retired (voluntarily): 2006
Suspended: August 2018
Arrested: January 2019
Assigned as Follows:
- 1956-1958: Our Lady of Fatima (Hopewell Township, PA)
- 1958-1965: St. Mary of the Mount (Pittsburgh, PA)
- 1965-1976: Mon Valley Catholic High School (Monongahela, PA)
- 1976-1981: Assistant Superintendent, Diocesan Department of Catholic Schools
- 1977-1984: Administrator, St. Patrick (Pittsburgh, PA)
- 1981-1988: Superintendent, Diocesan Department of Catholic Schools
- 1988-1989: Sabbatical at University of Notre Dame (South Bend, IN)
- 1989-2006: St. Therese of Lisieux (Munhall, PA)
- 2006: Retired
- 2018: Administrative leave
Summary of Allegations Against Father Hugh Lang:
Father Hugh Lang was ordained a priest in 1956, who served in the Diocese of Pittsburgh. According to media reports, the Diocese of Pittsburgh received its first allegation of sexual abuse against Father Hugh Lang in August 2018 following the release of the statewide grand jury report. The victim first made contact with the Attorney General's clergy abuse hotline.
On January 25, 2019, Lang was charged by Allegheny County prosecutors for the allegation. According to media reports, Lang allegedly assaulted the then-10 year old altar boy at St. Therese of Lisieux in Munhall in June 2001. Police say that, under the guise of punishing the child for his supposed misbehavior, Lang brought the boy to the St. Therese rectory basement, forced him to undress, and then took a Polaroid photo of the naked boy. Lang told the boy that if he did not behave better, Lang would show the boy's photo to others. Police say that Lang then forced the child to engage in forcible sexual contact of both the boy and the priest.
Lang was charged with sexual abuse of children involving photography or other imaging, aggravated indecent assault, unlawful contact with minors, corruption of minors, indecent assault, and indecent exposure. The use of the plural forms of "children" and "minors" suggest that the prosecutor is aware of crimes committed against multiple children, but they have publicly discussed only one victim.
In late 2019, he was convicted of molesting an 11 year old boy as retaliation for the boy making a joke at the priest's expense in 2001 during a summer camp at St. Therese in Munhall. In February 2020, a judge sentenced Lang to a sentence of 9-to-24-months, but delayed the sentence 30 days to allow time for Lang's new lawyer to challenge the statute of limitations on the underlying charges and have the entire case dismissed.
In March 2020, a new trial judge vacated Lang's conviction on the grounds that the former judge committed reversible error by allowing certain evidence to be admitted at trial, and ordered a new trial for Lang on all charges. The prosecutor's office later announced it would be appealing the judge's decision and would ask the appellate court to reinstate Lang's conviction. The matter remains on appeal.
Lang was not identified in the 2018 grand jury report. His name first became public when the Diocese of Pittsburgh added him to its list of priests under investigation following the August 2018 release of the state grand jury report.
Lang is still living and is believed to be residing at St. Anne in New Castle, Pennsylvania.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Pittsburgh. 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 Diocese of Pittsburgh may have legal options, but filing deadlines will apply so do not delay in reaching out to us.
Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.