PENNSYLVANIA
We Are Central PA

By: Chris Miller
Posted: Mar 06, 2017

Johnstown, Cambria County, Pa – There has been a call for change and responsibility after a grand jury report revealed decades of child sex abuse inside the Altoona-Johnstown Catholic Diocese.

In that report, at least 50 priests and other church leaders were accused of sexually assaulting children in their parishes dating back four decades.

Monday, the U.S. District Attorney for Western Pennsylvania and the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown held a news conference to lay out new reforms within the church to better protect children.

Many victims and their supporters have criticized the diocese for what they call a lack of response. Bishop Mark Bartchak said the changes took time because he and other church leaders were committed to finding a detailed and comprehensive approach.

The reforms were detailed in what the Bishop called a “Memorandum of Understanding”.

…