Father Richard Scherer
Diocese of Pittsburgh
Ordained: 1949
Retired: 1992
Died: 2007
Assigned as follows:
- 6/30/1949 – 6/09/1954: St. Charles (Donora, PA)
- 6/10/1954 – 3/03/1964: St. Anne (Castle Shannon, PA)
- 3/04/1964 – 2/02/1965: St. Coleman (Turtle Creek, PA)
- 2/03/1965 – 6/1965: St. Patrick (Canonsburg, PA)
- 6/1965 – 5/1968: Sick Leave
- 5/1968 – 1992: Holy Cross Hospital (Diocese of Miami, FL)
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations against Father Richard Scherer:
Father Richard Scherer was ordained a priest in 1949, who served in the Diocese of Pittsburgh. According to media reports, in Records from the Diocese of Pittsburgh revealed that in August 1991, a woman reported to the Diocese that she was sexually molested by Father Richard Scherer when she was a student at St. Anne. The abuse occurred between 1957 and 1961 at the church.
Records further revealed that in a letter dated October 24,1965, Scherer wrote of his “revelation” of his nervous breakdown resulting from the “relationship” with the woman. It should be noted that no other documentation was supplied to the Grand Jury regarding a description or explanation of the “relationship.”
In a letter dated January 17, 1966, Scherer wrote about his continued improvement in health, body, and mind and stated that the “severe feeling of guilt” had left him.
In a letter to the Diocese dated April 5, 1966, Father Tobin from Our Lady of the Snow/Clergy House Retreat located in Minnesota wrote that he had been counseling Scherer for three months; that Scherer was making progress in the tensions that plagued his priesthood; that Scherer suffered a nervous breakdown; and, that involvement with the “young lady” was part of his emotional escape.
Richard Scherer died in 2007 and is buried in Saint Wendelin Roman Catholic Church Cemetery in Carrick, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.
He was first named publicly as accused in a priest profile in the 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Pittsburgh. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Pennsylvania, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Diocese of Pittsburgh may have legal options, but filing deadlines will apply so do not delay in reaching out to us.
Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.