Father Charles H. Eckermann
Diocese of Syracuse
Ordained: 1956
Elevated to Monsignor: 1973
Died: 2016
Assigned as follows:
- 1958 – 1963: St. Brigid (Syracuse, NY)
- 1964: St. Cecilia (Solvay, NY)
- 1965 – 1966: St. Joseph (Syracuse, NY)
- 1967 – 1976: Bishop Ludden Faculty House (Syracuse, NY)
- 1972 – 1976: Bishop Ludden High School (Syracuse, NY)
- 1977 – 1984: St. John the Baptist (Syracuse, NY)
- 1985: St. Mary of the Assumption (Binghamton, NY)
- 1986: On sabbatical leave
- 1987 – 1988: Our Lady of Pompeii (Syracuse, NY)
- 1988: Office for Planned Giving (Syracuse, NY)
- 1989: Office for School Development (Syracuse, NY)
- 1989 – 2001: St. Ann (Manlius, NY)
- 2002 – 2007: Blessed Sacrament (Syracuse, NY)
- 2013 – 2014: Presbyteral Council
Summary of Abuse Allegations Against Father Charles H. Eckermann:
According to media reports, two retired Syracuse police officers said they warned the Diocese of Syracuse in 1984 that Father Charles H. Eckermann repeatedly solicited male prostitutes. At the time, Eckermann had just been appointed principal of Bishop Ludden High School. The appointment was immediately rescinded and Father Eckermann was assigned to a parish in Binghamton by the Diocese of Syracuse.
Eckermann retired voluntarily in 2001.
In April 2014, Eckermann was permanently removed from ministry and sentenced to a life of prayer and penance by the Vatican as a result of a credible allegation of child sexual abuse. The victim said Eckermann raped him more than a dozen times in a basement storage room in the rectory at St. Ann’s Church in Manlius in 1988 and 1989, when the boy was 15 to 16 years old.
According to the victim, Father Eckermann regularly threatened him with a gun, saying he would hurt the boy’s family if he resisted or told anyone. The lawsuit claims the frequent, violent sexual abuse often left him bloody and in pain. When he was 15, the man says he told another priest about the abuse. That priest slapped him in the face and told him to never say another word about it.
The victim said he first told the Diocese of Syracuse in February 2013. His attorneys reportedly told the DA in April 2015 about the abuse in 2015 as well. No action was taken on the report.
Father Eckermann died in October 2016, at the age of 85.
His name appears on the Diocese of Syracuse’s list of clergy credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors, published in December 2018.
In February 2019, a second lawsuit was filed against the Diocese of Syracuse naming Eckermann as the alleged abuser.
In June 2020, Eckermann was named in four civil lawsuits filed against the Diocese of Syracuse, days before the Diocese filed for Chapter 11 federal bankruptcy protection.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Syracuse in New York. The Diocese of Syracuse filed for federal bankruptcy protection in June 2020. Anyone sexually abused by a priest or employee of the Diocese of Syracuse may be entitled to file a claim against the Diocese in these bankruptcy proceedings, but very strict filing deadlines apply. Most victims of abuse in the Diocese of Syracuse will never be able to take any legal action if they miss this bankruptcy filing deadline, so it is important that you contact us immediately to discuss your potential case. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse in New York and nationwide. We can help.
Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.