A Catholic priest who admitted to transferring nearly $517,000 of parish funds into his personal bank account had been sentenced to seven years in state prison, church officials said Tuesday. The Rev. Douglas J. Haefner, the longtime pastor of St. Matthias Parish in Somerset, admitted to taking the money due to “compulsive behavior” during an … Read more
A tip to the state clergy abuse hotline resulted in the arrest Friday of a retired New Jersey priest who was charged with sexually assaulting a girl in the late 1990s, officials said. The Rev. Brendan Williams, 78, of Lawrence, became the second priest to be charged by the New Jersey Clergy Abuse Task Force, which was formed by … Read more
A disgraced Roman Catholic priest who admitted to sexually assaulting a teenage girl three decades ago will be sentenced Monday in Superior Court in Middlesex County. Thomas P. Ganley, 63, pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a girl who was a member of the youth group he led in the 1990s. The priest’s case was the … Read more
While in some ways a hopeful step, a four-day meeting in Rome earlier this year called by Pope Francis to respond to the sexual abuse crisis that has impacted the lives of countless victims and undermined the moral authority of the Catholic Church was sadly bereft of concrete reform. There is still ample opportunity for … Read more
New Jersey will investigate allegations of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy, following a report by a grand jury in Pennsylvania that found more than 1,000 victims there over 70 years. New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said he’s forming his own task force, which could use subpoenas and other investigative methods to uncover evidence that … Read more
In his 60 years as a priest, former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick racked up enough honors, awards and honorary degrees to fill a trophy case. McCarrick was given at least nine honorary degrees by colleges and universities, including Saint Peter’s, Fordham, Georgetown and Notre Dame. He also had a New Jersey high school and a Maryland … Read more