STATEN ISLAND (NY)
Staten Island Advance
November 11, 2018
By Maura Grunlund
Sex allegations against a priest are complicated matters that can take several turns.
In some cases, criminal charges are filed. In others, punishments are decided by the church and not prosecutors.
Some priests have admitted guilt. Others have put up fierce legal fights to clear their name.
Some have resulted in settlements. Others have resulted in lawsuits filed against the church or even the accuser.
At least 15 priests with ties to Staten Island have been the subject of sex or pornography-related accusations over the years.
This slideshow highlights some of those cases and their outcomes.
Monsignor Charles Coen is one of four monsignors and a priest “who had an allegation of sexual abuse of minors brought against them in the Archdiocese’s Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program,” according to Catholic New York, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of New York.
A native of Dublin, Ireland, Coen was assigned to St. Joseph-St. Thomas R.C. Parish in Pleasant Plains for about 10 years beginning in 1975. Previously, he served at St. Paul’s R.C. Church in New Brighton, according to Advance records.
Coen taught and conducted Irish music for children during his time on the Island, according to Advance records.
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