Feds: Child exploitation focus of Pennsylvania church probe

PHILADELPHIA — Two years ago, a federal prosecutor in Pittsburgh considered filing a racketeering lawsuit against a Roman Catholic diocese over its handling of child sex-abuse complaints, but left office before he could make the bold move.

A colleague in Philadelphia is now sending grand jury subpoenas to dioceses throughout Pennsylvania as he tries to build a federal criminal case centred on the wholesale exploitation of children.

U.S. attorney William McSwain of Philadelphia has a head start on the work, given the sweeping state grand jury report released this summer, which found that 301 priests molested more than 1,000 children over seven decades. McSwain, a Harvard Law School graduate and former marine sniper, was appointed by President Trump and took office just four months ago.

All but one of the state’s eight dioceses confirmed Thursday they have received the federal subpoenas sent last week, and largely sounded willing to comply.

Meanwhile, the Buffalo diocese has confirmed it responded to a subpoena by turning over requested documents.

“This is a monumental moment for clergy sexual victims everywhere,” said Mitchell Garabedian, the Boston-based plaintiffs’ lawyer who played a major role in uncovering the scandal in the Boston archdiocese in 2002.