List of Clergy Members Accused of Abuse in the Diocese of Harrisburg
Agudelo Cano, Alexander Dario
The Harrisburg Catholic diocese accused seventy-one priests, including Father Agudelo Cano, of sexually abusing or having inappropriate contact, including indecent behavior with children.
Current Status: Seminarian (2018)
Allen, Francis (Scotty) II
In 1989, a woman reported to the diocese that Allen had sexually molested her son during the 1970s. The woman reported the allegation again in 2002. In 1994, a different woman spoke with the diocese, saying that Allen had sexually assaulted her child between 1974 and 1975 when he was in the fifth grade.
Current Status: Died 10/2011
Allen, John G.
Ordained: 1970
Reports indicate that the diocese had concerns about Reverend Allen’s behavior back in the 1970s. Reports suggest that Allen sexually molested multiple young males between the 1970s and 1990s. The church reassigned the priest in 2002 after he was confronted with a credible allegation that he had sexually molested a boy for years starting about 1979 when the victim was between fourteen and eighteen years old.
Current Status: Arrested 3/2019
Bach, Francis
Ordained: 1962
Father Bach was first accused of sexual assault involving minors in 1994 with incidents that date back to 1969 when a male victim was 13 years old. By 2002, the Diocese of Harrisburg learned other victims coming forward with their allegations. The priest took early retirement and resigned in May 1994.
Current Status: Died 3/2010
Barajas Arias, Luis Jesus
Ordained: 1982
The Diocese of Harrisburg hired Barajas Arias to serve the Spanish-speaking parishioners. In 1989, the Parish Monsignor was informed that parishioners were concerned about Barajas Arias’ repeated past accusations of child molestation. The church raised thousands of dollars to cover the Reverend’s transportation costs back to Columbia.
Current Status: Current Status Unknown
Beeman, James W.
Ordained: 1953
Former Lexington Bishop Gainer asked the Vatican not to defrock Beeman to avoid “risking public knowledge of his crimes” after the priest admitted repeatedly raping very young girls.
Current Status: No living a life of prayer and penance
Bolen, John P.
Ordained: 1926
The Diocese claims the victim’s 2018 allegations of child sexual abuse against the now-deceased Monsignor are credible.
Current Status: Died 7/1966
Bostwick III, John Raymond
Ordained: 1969
Accusations of indecent behavior from the early 1980s arose in March 1996 involving Father Bostwick and a boy between 12 and 14 years old. In 2002, another victim notified the Diocese of Harrisburg of inappropriate touching occurring in 1987.
Current Status: Removed from ministry 1996
Bradel, Frederick R.
Ordained: 1947
The Diocese of Harrisburg found a sexually abused survivor’s allegation of the priest’s inappropriate behavior credible, several years after his death.
Current Status: Died 1997
Bradley, Joseph
Ordained: 1944
The Diocese of Harrisburg credibly accused Monsignor Bradley of sexual assault after his death.
Current Status: Deceased
Chiasson, Ronald
Ordained: 1976
The victim was twelve years old and an altar boy when he met Reverend Chiasson in the 1970s at Saint Margaret Mary Catholic Church. The priest eventually sexually abused the boy when the two were on an out-of-state trip.
Current Status: Died 1999
Cramer, Donald
Ordained: 2001
In 2012, the Department of Homeland Security investigated Father Cramer while he was in an online chat room communicating with individuals criminally charged for possessing child pornography. The priest mentioned he wanted to travel to Mexico to “rent” boys.
Current Status: Removed from priesthood 11/2014
D’Allesandro, Patrick
Ordained: 1980
The diocese found credible evidence years after the priest’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor.
Current Status: Deceased
DeChico, Philip
Ordained: 1974
The diocese found credible evidence years after Reverend DeChico’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor. The priest was the Principal at Lebanon High School (1986 through 1996)
Current Status: Guide 2006
Dougherty (Daughetry), Raymond E.
Ordained: 1944
The diocese found credible evidence years after Reverend Dougherty’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with two minors. The priest claimed that another Reverend repeatedly raped an altar boy in the early 1960s at St. Joseph’s.
Current Status: Deceased
Driscoll, C.SS.R., Joseph H.
Ordained: 1922
The diocese found credible evidence years after the Navy chaplain’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor.
Current Status: Died 1976
Fisher, Paul R.
Ordained: 1977
In 2011, Reverend Fisher admitted to visiting websites with images of unclothed minors, which were downloaded and recovered from his computer. In 2016, law enforcement determined the photos were not criminal images.
Current Status: Installed as pastor at Saint Rose of Lima – York 6/2016
Hackman, Donald (Tim)
Ordained: Deacon 1983
In 1999, the diocese received a resignation letter from Deacon Hackman one month before an undercover law enforcement officer received child pornography mailed by Hackman. The Deacon was found guilty in federal court for sending child pornography.
Current Status: Convicted in Federal Court
Hager, Joseph
Ordained: 1934
The diocese found credible evidence years after Monsignor Hager’s death from a sexual abuse survivor that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor.
Current Status: Died 4/1992
Haney, Thomas Ronald
Ordained: 1958
The diocese found credible evidence years after Father Haney’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor. A sexual abuse survivor accused the priest of inappropriate touching and comments toward a child.
Current Status: Died 6/2012
Harrisburg Priest #1, Unnamed
This priest was a part of the PA Grand Jury Report and listed as Harrisburg Priest #1 with information redacted due to ongoing litigation.
Current Status: Unknown
Harrisburg Priest #2, Unnamed
This priest was a part of the PA Grand Jury Report and listed as Harrisburg Priest # 2. Additional information was redacted due to ongoing litigation.
Current Status: Unknown
Haviland, William T.
Ordained: 1962
In 2018, Father Haviland was among fourteen priests who had served at The Assumption of the Blessed Mother Church that was accused of engaging in sexual abuse with a minor.
Current Status: Died 2/2017
Herber, C.PP.S., John
Ordained: 1968
In 1997, the church received information from a parishioner involving Father Heber (a visiting priest) and sexual misconduct that had occurred when the victim was seven years old. The victim first told her father in 1990 about what happened, eight years after the incident of molestation was reported to the Missionaries of the Precious Blood Order.
Current Status: Deceased
Hower, Phillip A.
Father Hower filed a RICO lawsuit in 2004 against the church making claims Church officials were blocking his ordination because he blew the whistle on homosexual priests. The church settled the case in 2005. Evidence in the 2018 PA Grand Jury Report stated that the priest’s sister talked to the diocese about how Reverend Hower had molested her son when he was between 5 and 7 years old in 1998 while in the Tucson diocese.
Current Status: Never Ordained
Hudak, Francis
Ordained: 1955
The diocese found credible evidence years after Monsignor Hudak’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor.
Current Status: Died 2005
Kayda, Kevin L.
Ordained: 2013
In September 2013, the diocese received a report from a parent indicating that the priest was engaged in inappropriate sexual activity on Facebook with their minor daughter. After a confrontation and a forensic examination of the priest’s computer, pornographic photographs of adolescents were found. Evidence revealed the priest had visited online child porn websites. Kayda left the note before committing suicide in October 2013.
Current Status: Death by suicide 10/2013
Koychick, George J.
Ordained: 1949
In 2016, the diocese released information of credible evidence involving Reverend Koychick and a 2003 allegation of child sex abuse occurring in the 1970s. The church notified the police and prohibited Koychick from functioning as a priest.
Current Status: Deceased
Kujovsky, Thomas J.
Ordained: 1957
Allegations arose of pornography found in Monsignor Kujovsky’s room had images of a nude altar boy. Later, an animated pornography book showing child sex abuse was found in his room. The District Attorney’s Office determined the priest’s activity was not criminal.
Current Status: Died 3/2015
Labuda, Kevin
In 2010, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported that Reverend Labuda had only been at the diocese as a seminarian for two weeks when he was asked to leave. The priest then worked as a church business manager at Immaculate Conception Church in Connellsville before being sentenced to 2 to 4 years in prison for beating a priest with the ax handle. Labuda’s name was also on the diocese list of allegations of sexual abuse with the child.
Current Status: Sentenced to 2 to 4 years in state prison in 2010
Lawler, Thomas F.
Ordained: 1955
Credible evidence shows multiple accusations of sexual abuse involving Reverend Lawler throughout his priesthood. The priest was relocated numerous times during his career before staying at Sacred Heart in Lewisburg for over a decade. One victim notified the diocese in 2002 that the priest had sexually assaulted him in 1963 when he was ten years old. Another victim reported in 2014 that the priest had sexually abused him in 1985 until the priest’s death in 1987, starting when the boy was only thirteen years old.
Current Status: Died 1987
Logue, Robert
In 2018, the diocese released Deacon Logue’s name among credibly accused priests, volunteers, and laypeople associated with sexual abuse of underage children. A 1968 memo revealed that a thirteen-year-old boy accused the deacon of asking him to expose his genitalia. The deacon “admitted his tendencies.”
Current Status: Unknown
Long, Arthur J.
Ordained: 1955
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence involving Reverend Long and solicitation of a child for sex. The report indicates that the priest was soliciting for a sexual relationship with an adult that began when the victim was underage. In 1987, the diocese received complaints that Father Long was engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior from a young girl that began four years prior when she was thirteen years old. Long admitted to having sex with four or five girls since he had been reassigned to Baltimore. The church allowed Long to work in the Baltimore archdiocese between 1991 and 1992 until new allegations of inappropriate behavior arose.
Current Status: Deceased
Luck, David H.
Ordained: 1987
The deacon, while at St. Paul’s and Ann’s, faced allegations of sexually abusing a boy. The diocese sent Reverend Luck to St. Luke’s in Maryland for treatment in 1989 before removing him from ministry in 1990. In 2019, news arose of an alleged rape involving the priest and a fifteen-year-old boy and fondling an eleven-year-old boy during the 1980s. The priest had allegedly told individuals he fantasized about sex with underage children and thought he was a pedophile. Reports in 2019 indicate he lives in a residential neighborhood.
Current Status: Laicized 2006
Maher, Robert J.
Ordained: 1937
In 2016, the diocese revealed credible allegations that Monsignor Maher had sexually abused children in the 1960s. At that time, the Reverend resided in an orphanage for girls and resigned from that post in 1975. More recently, allegations of sexual abuse arose involving at least fifteen underage boys that occurred at St. Vincent’s in Hanover. More allegations arose after he died in 1990.
Current Status: Died 6/1990
Mahoney, Daniel Joseph
Ordained: 1952
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving Reverend Mahoney and an underage minor.
Current Status: Died 7/2007
Marsico, Guy D.
Ordained: 1973
In 1994, the diocese was informed that a man was alleging sexual abuse that occurred in 1982 involving Reverend Marsico when the victim was a thirteen-year-old boy. The church reassigned the priest to St. Leo the Great in Rohrerstown and then to Saint Rose of Lima in York. After a diocesan investigation, Marsico was removed from active ministry and ordered by the church to pay for the victim’s medication and therapy. The diocese refused to pay a settlement stating it was unaware it knew of the sexual abuse when it occurred. The victim provided testimony to the Pennsylvania Grand Jury in 2016.
Current Status: Working as a Harrisburg travel agent (2011)
McGinley, Anthony J.
Ordained: 1945
In 2018, the diocese released Reverend McGinley’s name among credibly accused priests, volunteers, and laypeople associated with sexual abuse of underage children. Assigned to Harrisburg parishes before 1970.
Current Status: Died 8/2006
Mercado, Ibarra C.
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving Reverend Mercado, who was accused of “French kissing a twelve-year-old girl on the grounds of the Lebanon VA Hospital.”
Current Status: Unknown
Murphy, Neil J.
Ordained: 1957
The diocese found credible evidence years after Reverend Murphy’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor that occurred at Saint Rose of Lima in York between 1954 and 1961.
Current Status: Deceased
Noel, James E.
Ordained: 1954
The diocese found credible evidence years after the priest’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor. Reverend Noel was assigned to St. Mary’s in Lebanon during the early 1950s into the 1960s.
Pease, Joseph M.
Ordained: 1961
In 1995, Reverend Pease was accused of sexually assaulting an underage child around 1982. The church kept the priest in the ministry but removed him in 2002 after credible accusations arose of him sexually abusing and adolescence three decades before. Two other possible victims came forward to accused Pease as of 2007; the Vatican had not ruled on his case after the diocese asked the Vatican to consider imposing a “life of prayer and penance.” The PA Grand Jury reported that the priest abused victims throughout his career, likely at ten parishes.
Current Status: The Bishop requested laicization
Procopio, Charles
Ordained: 1956
The diocese found credible evidence in 2018, years after the Procopio’s death, that he participated in unacceptable sexual behavior with minors, including “inappropriate touching and kissing minors.” One accusation involved molestation in 1965 of seventh and eighth-grade girls at Sacred Heart of Jesus in Harrisburg. The female victims reported the priest’s inappropriate behavior to the principal, who took no action. Others reported Procopio’s sexual abuse incidents to Father McAndrew, who told the chancery that Procopio modestly touches the girls. The church kept Procopio in ministry. He retired in 1995.
Current Status: Deceased
Quiroz Reyes, Guido Miguel
Ordained: 1944
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving Quiroz Reyes. The evidence showed that the priest had multiple allegations of sexual abuse involving children. He had been assigned to Apostolate for Spanish Speaking People in Lancaster, PA between 1976 and 1980 before relocating to the diocese of El Paso, Texas. By 1984, he had been reassigned to the Diocese of Victoria, Texas.
Current Status: Did 5/2008
Redacted #3 Unnamed
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving an unnamed priest.
Current Status: Name and information redacted due to ongoing litigation
Redacted #4 Unnamed
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving an unnamed priest.
Current Status: Name and information redacted due to ongoing litigation
Rolko, Stephen M.
Ordained: 1957
The diocese found credible evidence years after the Rolko’s death that the priest participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor. Between 1975 and 1993, Rolko served as pastor of Holy Trinity in Columbia, PA.
Current Status: Died 12/1993
Rush, James
Ordained: 1979
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving Deacon Rush. In 2015, two possible victimized women accused the Deacon of inappropriate behavior that had “crossed the boundary lines.” The church confronted Rush and allowed him to retire and continue ministering with “explicit permission.” In 2016, the priest was accused of an inappropriate relationship with a girl when she was fourteen years old. The victim alleges the behavior included kissing and hugging, holding her hand and saying she was his “girlfriend.” The diocese determined that the Deacon’s behavior was not abuse but “grooming.”
Current Status: Died 2016
Scala, Thomas
Ordained: 1973
In 2018, the diocese released the Reverend’s name among credibly accused priests, volunteers, and lay people associated with the sexual abuse of underage children. Between 1977 and 1986, Scala served as a chaplain at St. Joseph’s Hospital (Lancaster). Between 1989 and 1994, he was pastor of St. Columba in Bloomsburg.
Current Status: Died 10/2018
Schlager, Bryan
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving Schlager. The seminarian was accused of inappropriately communicating with several children. In 2010, he was listed as studying at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.
Current Status: Unknown
Sempko, Walter A.
Ordained: 1950
In July 2019, a filed lawsuit alleges that Father Sempko sexually assaulted the victim, who was a St. Joseph’s altar boy in the early 1960s. The priest died at ninety-four years of age.
Current Status: Died 10/2017
Shank, Herbert J.
Ordained: 1967
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving Shank. Multiple allegations of sexual abuse involving boys arose. One victim stated that Shank started sexually abusing him in the 1980s when he was twelve years old and an altar boy at St. Patrick’s in Carlisle. The victim says that sexual assaulting and lasted over 1.5 years. Another victim reported that the priest sexually assaulted him in 1971/74 and took videos and pornographic photographs of him assaulting altar boys. The church sent Shank for treatment in 1994 to the Institute of Living. The church turned his case over to the District Attorney’s Office in 1995.
Current Status: The church ordered him to resign in 11/1994
Sperber, Timothy
Ordained: 1978
In 2018, the diocese released Sperber’s name among credibly accused priests, volunteers, and laypeople associated with sexual abuse of underage children. In 2004, Sperber was charged with sexually assaulting an underage girl around 1979 while at St. Joan of Arc in Hershey. The victim stated she had spoken with the school principal who became angry with her and called her “a demon-child.” The church transferred Sperber to the Archdiocese of Miami in 1992. In 1998, the priest was “on leave.”
Current Status: (2018) Living in Port Charlotte, Florida and attending the Congregational United Church of Christ in Punta Gorda
Steffen, Carl J.
Ordained: 1958
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving Steffen. The evidence shows that the diocese was aware of Steffen’s alleged inappropriate sexual behavior as early as 1966 when the priest was a high school chaplain. The allegations indicate that Father Steffen was fondling underage boys. One female student stated the priest had spoken to her about intercourse, masturbation, and “certain aberrations of the sexual act.” The church transferred Steffen out of the parish. More accusations involving inappropriate sexual talk with minors were reported. A report in 1993 indicates that the priest had touched a ten-year-old boy’s genitals while he was hospitalized in 1968. The church stated there was insufficient evidence to take any action.
Current Status: Died 7/2015
Sukniac, John J.
Ordained: 1950
In 2018, the diocese released Suknaic’s name among credibly accused priests, volunteers, and laypeople associated with sexual abuse of underage children.
Current Status: Died 10/2004
Taylor, Francis J.
Ordained: 1954
The diocese found credible evidence years after Monsignor Taylor’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor. The Monsignor had served as assistant pastor at St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Harrisburg, principal at Lancaster Catholic High School, and taught at Harrisburg Catholic High School.
Current Status: Died 1997
Tokarick, John Jr.
In 2018, the diocese released the Seminarian’s name among credibly accused priests, volunteers, and laypeople associated with sexual abuse of underage children.
Current Status: Unknown
Vaughn, Frederick J.
Ordained: 1937
The 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report found conclusive evidence of sexual abuse involving Reverend Vaughn. In 2016, the diocese received multiple allegations against the priest involving sexually assaulting young girls. In 2002, the mother of two female victims alleged that Vaughn sexually assaulted them when they were approximately nine years of age between 1961 and 1966. Also, in 2002, two sisters said that the priest sexually assaulted them. One female reported the priest at sexually assaulted her between 1961 and 1974, from the time she was three until thirteen years of age. The other girl said she had been sexually assaulted by the priest beginning in 1958 when she was eleven or twelve years old. Other victims came forward. The priest retired in 1986.
Current Status: Died 12/1992
Vecera, James
The diocese found credible evidence years after Vecera’s death that he participated in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor.
Current Status: Died 1987
Zangari, Salvatore V.
Ordained: 1944
In 1980 and 1986, the diocese of Harrisburg received allegations that Reverend Zangari had “unwanted sexual misconduct” toward adult women. In 1986, the church sent the priest to St. Luke’s Institute in Maryland for evaluation. Zangari admitted he had fathered a child after his ordination with a former high school student. There is no evidence to shows that the diocese had any follow-up to his admission. In 2002, the Diocese Bishop revealed that the 1986 evaluation sufficiently proved that the priest had sexually abused minors. The church removed his faculties.
Current Status: Died 9/2004
Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC Home
Over the last two decades, the Roman Catholic Church has faced intense scrutiny in every state, especially Pennsylvania. Predatory priests have targeted victims in parishes, school, church-related functions, summer camps, and sports events. In Pennsylvania, more than 575 Catholic religious leaders have credible accusations that they sexually assaulted underage children and young adults. That number includes sixty Catholic clergy members in the Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg and Dauphin County accused of molestation.