WHEELING (WV)
The Intelligencer/Wheeling News-Register
July 10, 2012
By HEATHER ZIEGLER Associate City Editor , The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register
WHEELING – Prosecutors in Philadelphia are continuing to review allegations that Bishop Michael J. Bransfield fondled a Catholic high school student in the 1970s, according to a report published Sunday in a Philadelphia newspaper.
Bransfield, a native of Philadelphia, is the leader of the Catholic Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston. He has denied all accusations.
Local diocesan spokesman Bryan Minor said Monday, “Our stance is that this is old news. Even though these are not new allegations against Bishop Bransfield, this story was still published by the (Philadelphia) Inquirer.
“Regardless of what news is reported or repeated in this matter, the diocese asks the community to please pray for our bishop, our diocese, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and all those affected by sexual abuse in any way,” Minor said.
The allegations came to light during a clergy sexual abuse trial involving the Rev. James Brennan held in Philadelphia this spring. In that case, a witness testified that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia priest who allegedly sexually abused him for years starting in the late 1970s had said a colleague, identified as Bransfield, also had sex with teenage boys.
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