An Allegheny County jury on Monday acquitted a Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese priest who’d been accused of sexually abusing a child in the 1990s. The Rev. Robert Cedolia, 71, was found not guilty of indecent assault and corruption of minors. He was accused of assaulting an 8-year-old boy in 1998 at Our Lady of Joy in … Read more
A Roman Catholic priest from the Diocese of Greensburg pleaded no contest Monday to charges of sexually assaulting an altar boy multiple times between 2004 and 2007 at a Fayette County church, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office. Andrew Kawecki, 66, was charged by state AG’s office in August 2020 with multiple offenses after … Read more
A former priest-administrator at several Roman Catholic parishes in Allegheny County has been charged with twice sexually assaulting an 8-year-old boy who was preparing for his first Holy Communion, police said. The Rev. Robert J. Cedolia, 70, was charged with aggravated indecent assault, corruption of minors and related offenses for alleged sexual assaults that occurred … Read more
Authorities on Wednesday arrested a Roman Catholic priest from the Diocese of Greensburg on charges that he sexually assaulted an altar boy on multiple occasions from 2004 to 2007, beginning when the alleged victim was 11. The Rev. Andrew Kawecki surrendered to agents of the office of Attorney General Josh Shapiro in Fayette County, where … Read more
Twenty-eight people initiated legal actions against the Diocese of Pittsburgh on Thursday, cresting a wave of recent claims filed across the state against Roman Catholic dioceses in advance of Friday’s two-year anniversary of a landmark grand jury report into sexual abuse by priests. Pittsburgh attorney Alan Perer said he was filing Thursday on behalf of … Read more
Nine plaintiffs filed suit Wednesday against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, alleging past sexual abuse by seven of its priests. The lawsuit was filed in Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas by eight individuals and the estate of a ninth, all identified by initials. They are represented by Harrisburg attorney Benjamin Andreozzi, who has … Read more
Judge shuts-down Bishop Zubik’s attempt to raid needy children’s fund to pay for sexual abuse A judge has denied a petition by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh to use an $8 million-plus fund for needy children to help pay compensation for victims of sexual abuse by priests. Allegheny County Orphans’ Court Judge Lawrence J. … Read more
An attorney for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh raised the prospect of bankruptcy in a court hearing Friday over whether the church can use a trust fund for needy children, worth more than $8 million, toward compensating victims of sexual abuse by priests. Attorney Robert Ridge said during a hearing in Allegheny County Orphans … Read more
Hours of testimony and legal jousting led to a quick conclusion Wednesday afternoon when a judge ordered three Franciscan priests to stand trial on charges of conspiracy and endangering the welfare of children for their oversight of a sexually abusive friar. Blair County District Judge Paula Aigner made the ruling without elaborating after a prosecutor … Read more
The office of state Attorney General Josh Shapiro is pressing its opposition to a bid by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh to draw money from a $8 million-plus trust fund, dedicated to needy children, to pay compensation to adult victims of sexual abuse. State law does not “allow a charitable trust to be terminated to … Read more