Is your NorCal priest on the list?

The allegations are gruesome:

The Rev. Watt was accused in a lawsuit of taking an altar boy in the mid-1970s to gay bars in San Francisco, getting him drunk, sexually abusing him and telling him, “don’t tell your parents or I’ll cut your balls off.”

Watt is one of 14 NorCal priests who is accused for the FIRST time PUBLICLY under California’s AB 218, a landmark law that allows men and women sexually abused as children in the state to use the civil courts for justice—no matter the abuser or when the abuse occurred. The window portion of the law expires on December 31, 2022. Many survivors have only until then to come forward and use the courts.

Sixty-six priests are named over all.

The newly named clergy include:

  • Fr. James Corley
  • Fr. Sidney Hall
  • Fr. John A. Lynch
  • Fr. John Francis Scanlon
  • Fr. William Dodson
  • Fr. Henry Hall
  • Sis. M. Rosella McConnell
  • Fr. Joseph Watt
  • Fr. Elwood Geary
  • Fr. Domingos S. Jacque
  • Br. U Benedict Reams
  • Fr. Robert Gemmet
  • Fr. Robert H. Lewis
  • Fr. Christian Sandholdt

Other previously accused clergy include:

Fr. William Allison

Fr. Donald E. Broderson

Fr. James Corley

Fr. Bernard Dabbene

Fr. Raymond Etienne

Fr. Gerald Funcheon

Fr. Martin Greenlaw

Fr. William Hold

Fr. Robert H. Lewis

Msgr. John T. McCracken

Fr. James McSorley

Fr. Jorge Moreno

Fr. Francisco Javier Ochoa

Fr. Jose Antonio Pinal

Br. U Benedict Reams

Fr. Eric Swearingen

Fr. Joseph Watt

Fr. William Dodson

Fr. George Crespin

Fr. Raul Carvajal

Fr. Thomas Bettencourt

Br. William C. Farrington

Br. Adrian Furman

Br. Joseph (Jesse) Gutierrez

Fr. Domingos S. Jacque

Fr. John A. Lynch

Msgr. Michael J. McGinty

Fr. Hector David Mendoza Vela

Fr. George Moss

Fr. Patrick O’Shea

Fr. Robert Ponciroli

Fr. Christian Sandholdt

Fr. Gary Timmons

Fr. Gerald Wertz

Br. Salvatore Billante

Fr. James A. Clark

Fr. John Crews

Fr. Pearse P. Donovan

Fr. Don D. Flickinger

Fr. Elwood Geary

Fr. Sidney Hall

Fr. Austin Peter Keegan

Fr. Robert Marsicek

Fr. Joseph McGovern

Fr. Vito Mistretta

Fr. Leonel Noia

Fr. Ted Oswald

Fr. Jesus Prieto

Fr. John Francis Scanlon

Fr. Gary B. Tollner

Fr. Anthony Bolger

Fr. Edmond G. Cloutier

Fr. John Crowley

Fr. Donald Eagleson

Fr. Francis (John) Ford

Fr. Robert Gemmet

Fr. Henry Hall

Fr. Stephen M. Kiesle

Sis. M. Rosella McConnell

Fr. Patrick McHugh

Fr. Anthony Moreno

Fr. Maurice Joseph O’Brien

Fr. John Pierson

Fr. Joseph Pritchard

Fr. Simon Twomey

Fr. William Storan

According to Jeff Anderson and Associates, Br. Billante is identified in at least 11 lawsuits and Stephen Kiesle is identified in at least nine.

It’s hard to come up with a way to close a post like this … except to say: if you were abused, please come forward. It’s safe. And you can stop the cycle of abuse.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *