PENNSYLVANIA
PennLive
By Ivey DeJesus | idejesus@pennlive.com
A former employee of a high school in the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese has been criminally charged with sexually assaulting a student.
The Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday announced criminal charges in connection to the sexual assault of a minor on a former employee of a high school in the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese.
Mark Pynes/PennLive
The Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday released the criminal complaint against John Bowman Thornberry, 28, a former employee of Bishop Carroll Catholic High School in Ebensburg, Westmoreland County.
Thornberry is accused of the sexual assault of an international exchange student. He is also charged with the attempted sexual assault of a second international exchange student.
The alleged incidents occurred while Thornberry worked as a house parent in a residence hall for students at the school.
“This is a disturbing case of a trusted school official violating the very students he was obligated to watch over and care for,” Attorney General Kathleen Kane said in a written statement. “It is unacceptable for anyone to harm a child.”
The Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown earlier this year was the focus of a grand jury investigation into systemic clergy sex abuse. The two-year investigation uncovered the widespread sexual assault of hundreds – possibly thousands – of children across the diocese, and its coverup by church officials.
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