Two More Priests removed for Sex Abuse of Children
Pastor Dale Morgan
Two More Priests removed for Sex Abuse of Children*
AP
CLEVELAND - Two more Roman Catholic priests have been removed from the
priesthood and who faced credible complaints of sexual abuse of
children, the Cleveland Catholic Diocese said Friday.
Gary Berthiaume, who was suspended from active ministry in 2002, and J.
Brendan McNulty, who was suspended in 2003, had asked to be removed from
the clerical state, the diocese said.
Berthiaume transferred to Cleveland after serving six months in a
Michigan jail for molesting two boys in the 1970s, diocese spokesman Bob
Polomsky said. More allegations surfaced when he worked in Cleveland.
McNulty was suspended while serving as pastor of Saints Philip and James
Church in Cleveland. The allegations involved sexual abuse of boys from
a large churchgoing family in the 1970s.
"We are deeply sorry of the pain suffered by survivors of abuse due to
action of some members of the clergy, as nothing is more important than
protecting children," the diocese said in announcing the Vatican move.
No phone listing could be found for Berthiaume or McNulty and they could
not be reached for comment. Polomsky said he didn't have contact
information on Berthiaume, who no longer lives in Ohio, or McNulty, who
still lives in the Cleveland area.
The diocese has about 780,000 Catholics in eight northeast Ohio
counties. It has 411 diocesan priests, including 85 who are retired and
35 assigned elsewhere, including missionary and military chaplain work.
___