Buffalo Catholic whistleblower came forward because of victims, ‘allegiance to the common good’

BUFFALO (NY)
WKBW

October 28, 2018

By Charlie Specht

Without Siobhan O’Connor, the Diocese of Buffalo may have pulled off one of the greatest cover-ups in the history of the Catholic Church.

“I am a very ordinary person and I found myself in rather extraordinary circumstances and the way I look at it is, I was the right person in the right place at the right time, and God gave me the strength to do the right thing,” she said.

O’Connor served for three years as Buffalo Bishop Richard J. Malone’s personal secretary. She’s deeply religious and once studied to become a Catholic nun. But while working at Malone’s side, she began to see the ugly underbelly of how the diocese handled sexual abuse.

She went public earlier today as the key whistleblower and source in 7 Eyewitness News’ three-part investigation into Malone’s handling of sexual abuse, telling the legendary news program “60 Minutes” that she felt morally compelled to provide key documents describing a cover-up of allegations under Malone’s watch.

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