Sex Abuse Lawsuits: Seven Boys in One Little Village Claim Church Cover-up

By Steve Orr
Democrat & Chronicle
December 12, 2019

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The Vatican conducted a recent investigation into the western New York diocese and Malone’s handling of abuse cases. Matthew Leonard, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

Lawsuits filed under the Child Victims Act all date from a five-year period when the convicted abuser was associate pastor in Dansville, NY.

After his time in Dansville, Emo was moved around half-a-dozen postings in 14 years.

When police uncovered more complaints of sexual abuse, statute of limitations made prosecution impossible.

When the Rev. Eugene G. Emo was arrested in 1996 for molesting a developmentally disabled man, some of his parishioners said they weren’t surprised. They had suspected for years that Emo had an unholy attraction to boys and vulnerable men.

But those parishioners accused Rochester diocesan leaders of covering up for Emo for years, transferring him from one church to another after people began to talk.

In one case, salacious photos and a pair of handcuffs had been found in Emo's quarters, and money was missing from the parish's till. The diocese's response was to whisk Emo away with no explanation and, a year later, send him to another church 50 miles away.