Sexually Abused By A Priest In The Archdiocese Of Philadelphia? Talk To A Lawyer Today.
Our law firm is offering free, confidential evaluation of clergy sexual abuse claims involving priests of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. We have been handling clergy abuse cases for many years. Contact us today at 954-641-2100 to learn more.
The facts are clear: the Archdiocese of Philadelphia engaged in the coverup of the sexual abuse of children for decades.
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia has been home to some of the most notorious priests alleged to have committed child sexual abuse in the nation. Thanks to not one but two landmark grand jury reports released in the last 15 years those facts are now coming to light. Of course, they would not have been possible without the strength and courage of the countless survivors who came forward to call the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to account.
Both the civil lawsuits that have been filed against the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the extensive grand jury reports into the practices of the Archdiocese have exposed a culture of sexual abuse, cover-up, and efforts by church to protect the reputation of the Archdiocese at the expense of its most vulnerable: the children in its flock. The grand jury reports each reveal mountains of evidence of sexual abuse of minors committed by dozens of priests in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, as well as the shocking steps taken by church leaders to cover up the sexual abuse of children. These findings led to the arrest and eventual conviction of several church leaders for endangering children for the first time in our nation’s history.
According to the 2011 report, Msgr. William Lynn, who was the Archbishop’s Secretary for Clergy from 1992-2004 and was responsible for investigating allegations of sexual abuse during that time, was particularly culpable. The Grand Jury stated, “the rapist priests we accuse were well known to the Secretary of the Clergy, but he cloaked their conduct and put them in place to do it again.” Lynn was later convicted of endangerment of a child and sentenced to three to six years in prison. He testified on his own behalf at his trial, explaining that he reassigned one accused priest to another parish (where the priest abused more kids) because the case “just fell through the cracks.”
We Have Identified 138 Catholic Priests Accused Of Sexually Abusing Minors In The Archdiocese Of Philadelphia
Through our own investigation, we have identified a staggering 138 priests publicly accused of sexually abusing children in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The following list of priests includes habitual offenders and other priests who allegedly committed abuse. In some cases, priests were alleged to have abused children at multiple parishes and were transferred from assignment to assignment even after the allegations first came to the attention of the leaders of the Archdiocese:
- Fr. Edward V. Avery
- Fr. William G. Ayres
- Fr. Philip R. Barr
- Fr. James Behan (Oblates)
- Fr. Michael C. Bolesta
- Fr. John F. Bowe
- Fr. H. Cornell Bradley (Jesuit)
- Bishop Michael J. Bransfield
- Fr. James J. Brennan
- Fr. Robert L. Brennan
- Fr. Leonard W. Broughan (Carmelites)
- Fr. Craig F. Brugger
- Fr. James Brzyski
- Fr. George Cadwallader
- Fr. Raymond J. Cahill
- Msgr. Hugh Campbell
- Fr. John A. Cannon
- Fr. Paul A. Castellani
- Fr. Pasquale R. Catullo
- Fr. Gerard W. Chambers
- Fr. Michael A. Chapman
- Fr. Arthur B. Chappell (Augustinian)
- Fr. John A. Close
- Fr. Richard J. Cochrane (Augustinian)
- Fr. James J. Collins
- Fr. John “Jack” Connor
- Deacon Michael F. Conroy
- Fr. James J. Coonan
- Fr. George Costigan (Christian Bros.)
- Fr. Nicholas V. Cudemo
- Fr. John J. Delli Carpini
- Fr. Edward M. DePaoli
- Fr. Joseph DiGregorio
- Fr. Richard D. Dolan
- Fr. Michael J. Donofrio
- Fr. John Dougherty
- Fr. William J. Dougherty
- Msgr. Philip Dowling
- Fr. Peter J. Dunne
- Fr. Ernest Durante
- Fr. Thomas J. Durkin
- Fr. James M. Dux
- Fr. Charles Engelhardt (Oblates)
- Fr. Francis Feret
- Fr. Mark Fernandes
- Fr. J. Michael Flood
- Fr. Peter Foley
- Msgr. Leonard Furmanski
- Fr. Francis J. Gallagher
- Fr. Joseph J. Gallagher
- Fr. Joseph P. Gallagher
- Fr. Stanley M. Gana
- Fr. Armand Garcia
- Fr. Stephen Garrity (Jesuit)
- Fr. Mark Gaspar
- Fr. Joseph Gausch
- Msgr. Francis Giliberti
- Msgr. John E. Gillespie
- Deacon Charles Ginn
- Fr. David Givey
- Fr. Joseph Glatts
- Fr. Thomas J. Grumm
- Fr. Mark J. Haynes
- Fr. James T. Henry
- Fr. Gerard J. Hoffman
- Fr. Daniel Hoy
- Fr. John F. Hummell
- Fr. James M. Iannarella
- Fr. Richard G. Jones
- Fr. William T. Joseph
- Fr. William Killian
- Fr. Thomas M. Kohler
- Fr. Matthew J. Kornacki
- Fr. Albert Kostelnick
- Fr. Edward Kuczynski
- Fr. Dexter Lanctot
- Fr. David Lawlor (Norbertine)
- Fr. Raymond Leneweaver
- Fr. John R. Liggio (Augustinian)
- Fr. Joseph Logrip
- Fr. Christopher Lucas
- Fr. Joseph Macanga
- Fr. Steven Marinucci
- Fr. Nilo Martins (Brazil)
- Msgr. George J. Mazzotta
- Fr. Joseph McCafferty
- Fr. William McCandless (Oblates)
- Fr. Michael McCarthy
- Fr. John F. McCole
- Fr. Charles McColgan
- Fr. Andrew McCormick
- Fr. John “Jack” McDevitt (Oblates of St. Francis de Sales)
- Fr. James McGinnis
- Fr. James E. McGuire
- Fr. Joseph M. McKenzie
- Fr. Richard J. McLoughlin
- Fr. John F. Meyers
- Fr. Donald Mills
- Fr. Joseph Monahan
- Fr. John Mulholland
- Fr. John J. Murray
- Fr. Michael Murtha
- Fr. Zachary Navit
- Fr. Henry J. Nawn
- Fr. Charles Newman (Franciscan)
- Fr. John P. Paul
- Fr. Steven Perzan
- Fr. Leonard Peterson
- Fr. Terrance Pinkowski (Franciscan)
- Fr. Theodore Podson (Piarist Fathers)
- Fr. Robert Povish
- Fr. Richard Powers
- Fr. John Reardon
- Fr. Francis P. Rogers
- Fr. Thomas Rooney
- Fr. Gerald J. Royer
- Fr. Robert Ryan
- Fr. Joseph F. Sabadish
- Fr. William L. Santry
- Fr. Martin J. Satchell
- Msgr. Charles J. Schaeflein
- Fr. John P. Schmeer
- Fr. Thomas F. Shea
- Fr. David Sicoli
- Fr. Charles Siegele
- Fr. Raymond Smart
- Fr. Edward J. Smith (Norbertine)
- Fr. Thomas J. Smith
- Fr. Louis Steingraber
- Fr. Michael W. Swierzy
- Fr. Peter Talocci
- Fr. Carmen F. Taraborelli
- Fr. Joseph W. Thomas
- Fr. Francis X. Trauger
- Fr. Aloysius Vath
- Msgr. David E. Walls
- Fr. Sylwester Wiejata
- Fr. Thomas J. Wisniewski
Horowitz Law represents 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.
Contact us at 954-641-2100 by using the online form to discuss your options today.