Diocese of Harrisburg Accused Priests

Throughout the world, children of the Roman Catholic Churches have been subject to child sexual abuse at the hands of clergy members for centuries. Only recently have victims started to come forward and tell their stories.

The Diocese of Harrisburg is one of the biggest dioceses in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, covering fifteen counties throughout South Central Pennsylvania, including Adams, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Mifflin, Montour, Northumberland, Perry, Snyder, Union and York. In 2016, the Pennsylvania attorney general led a grand jury investigation looking into the sexual abuse at the Diocese of Harrisburg and other dioceses throughout the commonwealth.

The leadership members at the Diocese of Harrisburg claimed they were planning to release a list of accused priests within the Diocese in September 2016. However, they claim the attorney general told them not to do so, allegedly saying it would compromise the investigation.

The Philadelphia Inquirer claims the Diocese of Harrisburg and the Diocese of Greensburg attempted to shut down the investigation by blocking the grand jury probe of clergy members. The dioceses tried to argue that the grand jury lacked a legal justification for its inquiries.

Their attempts to block the investigation perfectly exemplify how the Diocese of Harrisburg engaged in the same tragic cover-ups that dioceses throughout the country commit and often condone. These dioceses created these cover-ups to protect their reputations rather than putting the safety of their church members and children first.

Unfortunately, the leadership at the Diocese of Harrisburg played a significant role in allowing child sexual abuse to become so prevalent for so long. Instead of helping victims when they reported abuse and promptly and appropriately punishing the abusers, the Diocese told victims to stay quiet and either never punished the abusers or simply transferred them to another diocese where they would abuse other children.

The grand jury report revealed more than 1,000 people, mainly children, who were sexually abused by clergy in six of Pennsylvania’s eight dioceses. On August 1, 2018, the Diocese of Harrisburg released a list of 71 names of clergy members credibly accused of sexually abusing children. In addition to releasing this list, Bishop Ronald Gainer also stated that the Diocese would be changing its confidentiality policies and would remove any men accused of child sexual abuse from any place of honor within the Church.

One case, in particular, involved a priest, Reverend Raymond Prybis, who was accused of child sexual abuse while he was in a Boston-area diocese before he was transferred to York County under assignment at the Diocese of Harrisburg. Another case recently closed sentenced John Allen to 5 years of probation for molesting two boys. He’s now deemed a sexually violent predator. Detectives arrested Allen in March 2019 for allegedly molesting children from 1997 to 2002 while they were serving as altar boys at the St. Margaret Mary’s Alacoque Church in Harrisburg. In August 2018, a former altar boy filed a lawsuit against the Diocese of Harrisburg for failing to protect him against Allen between 1999 and 2002.

In 2020, the Diocese made national headlines when filing for bankruptcy, showcased as the first and only Catholic diocese throughout Pennsylvania to file for bankruptcy following the 2018 40th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury report. As part of its bankruptcy settlement agreement, the Diocese of Harrisburg can potentially bar lawsuits against the Diocese, its insurers, and parishes from individuals with valid child sex abuse cases if they decline to join the bankruptcy proceeding. The deadline to file a claim against the Diocese passed on November 13, 2020.

The Diocese of Harrisburg set up a Youth Protection Page meant to protect children within the Diocese. It contains an unambiguous place for victims to report child sex abuse and bishop abuse.

Outside of bankruptcy restrictions, Pennsylvania law enables childhood sex abuse survivors to file civil claims against their abusers and the institutions allowing the abuse to happen until their 55th birthday. Pennsylvania currently doesn’t have a look-back window like other states, including New York and California, but could see an amendment to its constitution providing this sort of relief in late 2022 or early 2023. A look-back window would provide a two-year opportunity for all state citizens to file a civil claim, regardless of their current age or how long ago the abuse occurred.

If a clergy member at the Diocese of Harrisburg sexually abused you or someone you love, we encourage you to contact our dedicated and compassionate team of sexual abuse lawyers at Herman Law today for a free consultation to review your case and determine how to enact justice for your suffering.