Our law firm is handling clergy sexual abuse claims involving priests of the Diocese of Metuchen in New Jersey. We have been representing victims in clergy abuse cases against Catholic Dioceses for many years and handled numerous compensation claims on behalf of abuse victims. Contact us today at 954-641-2100 or send an e-mail to [email protected] to find out if you are eligible for compensation from the Diocese of Metuchen.
The Diocese of Metuchen includes the New Jersey counties of Middlesex, Somerset, Huntedon, and Warren. Diocese officials report it includes at least 650,000 Catholics. Since its establishment in 1991 (from territory that had been the northern portion of the Diocese of Trenton), the Diocese of Metuchen has been home to some of the most notorious priests alleged to have committed child sexual abuse. Those facts are now coming to light and gaining public attention. Victims of abuse by priests and other clergy are now able to receive financial compensation for what occurred. Indeed, the Diocese of Metuchen recently announced plans for an independent compensation fund to support sexual abuse victims.
The Diocese of Metuchen’s list of Catholic priests who have previously been accused of sexual abuse include:
Father John M. Banko – He was removed from the active ministry in 2000 and later convicted of abusing multiples boys; Abused committed at St. Edward the Confessor Catholic Church in Milford. Also served in Hillsbrough Township and was Pastor at St. Charles Borromeo Church in Montgomery from 1982 to 1989.
Father John Butler – After working in Veirgnia and New York, his assignment schedule in New JErsey was as follows: 1970-1974: Saints Philip and James, Phillipsburg, NJ; 1974-1975: St. Barnabas, Bayville, NJ; 1975-1978: St. Thomas the Apostle, Old Bridge, NJ; 1978-1979: St. Robert Bellarmine, Freehold, NJ; 1980: Unknown; 1980-1984: St. John Vianney, Colonia, NJ; 1985-1986: Unknown; 1986-2002: St. John Vianney, Colonia, NJ; 2002: Removed from ministry on April 11, 2012 by Diocese of Metuchen after accused of abuse in Diocese of Rockville Centre.
Father John J. Casey – Former priest at St. Joseph parish in North Planifield and St. Peter the Apostle parish in New Brunswick
Father Michael J. Cashman – Irish-born priest who served at St. Ambrose Church in Old Bridge in late 1970’s and early 1980’s. Also worked at St. James Roman Catholic Church in Woodbridge. Previously served as associate pastor of Our Lady of God Counsel parish in West Trenton and then as an associate pastor of Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church in Spotswood.
Monsignor Raymond L. Cole – Former Pastor of St. Joseph in Hillsborough, New Jersey. In 2015 Cole, pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Millstone Borough, was found not guilty by a church tribunal of sexually abusing a child in South Amboy in the late 1970s.
Father Eugene Corbesero – (Consolata Society for Foreign Missions in Somerset, New Jersey). He also worked in Michgan, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and North Carolina.
Father Mark Dolak – accused of abuse of male and female parishioners; served at Our Lady of Peace school in Fords, New Jersey.
Father Kevin P. Duggan – served at St. James Parish in Woodbridge; also treat for alcoholism
Father George A. Farrell – served at St. Joseph in North Plainfield, New Jersey and St. Matthew in Edison; also served at churches and schools in Piscataway, New Brunswick and Sayreville. Taught at St. Pius X Regional High School in Piscatway and was campus minister at St. Peter the Apostle High School in New Brunswick.
Father John C. Giordano – worked at St. Luke’s Church in North Plainfield; retired in 2007; He was replaced by the Rev. Gregory Uhrig who was removed in 2010 following allegations he sexually abused a child in Pennsylvania 30 years earlier.
Father John Huels (Religious Order priest from the Servites) – also worked in Ottawa, Canada. Huels admitted in 2002 to abusing a boy at St. Joseph’s in Carteret NJ in the Trenton diocese.
Father Patrick J. Kuffner – Also worked at Sacred Heart School in Staten Island, New York. Pastor of Our Lady of Mount Virgin in Middlesex when he was suspended. Ordained in May 2002, served as parochial vicar at St. Bartholomew Parish in East Brunswick until 2005. He then became administrator and then pastor of Our Lady of Mount Virgin Parish in Middlesex. Before becoming ordained, Kuffner served as a transitional deacon at Queenship of Mary Parish in Plainsboro, New Jersey.
Father Gregory J. Littleton – Also served in Charlotte, North Carolina
Father Michael P. Santillo – Convicted of molesting multiple boys; Sentenced in November 1999 for molesting a 13-year-old altar boy in 1987 at the rectory of St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. Prior to resigining in 1992, Father Santillo worked in nine churches in the Metuchen and Trenton dioceses. When he was arrested in August 1997, he was an administrative assistant at St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church in Schenectady, New York/
Father John B. Spalding (Religious Order priest from Brothers of the Sacred Heart)
Father Gregory Uhrig – former pastor of St. Luke Roman Catholic Parish in North Plainfield; also served at St. John the Baptist in Whitehall, Pa., a suburb of Allentown, PA and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Readington Township in Hunterdon County
Father Tomas Adam Zielinski – pleaded guilty; served at Christ King Church in Manville, New Jersey/
The Diocese of Metuchen reports having paid out 1.5 million dollars to victims of clergy sexual abuse since its formation. According to a New York Times story in 2003, the Diocese of Metuchen paid $800,000 in 2003 to settle ten sexual abuse cases involving give priests — Father John M. Banko, Mosnignor Michael Cashman, Father John Butler (former pastor at St. John Vianney Church in Colonia, New Jersey), Father Mark Dolak, and Father Michael Santillo. A separate case accusing Father Cahsman of sexual abuse settled for $140,000 in 2007. The Diocese of Metuchen also paid over $53,000 toward settlements involving Cardinal McCarrick according to reports in 2018.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing sexual abuse victims of Catholic priests and other clergy of the Diocese of Metuchen. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abuse by a priest in New Jersey contact our office. Although many years have passed, people who have been sexually abused by priests of the Diocese of Metuchen can finally submit a claim for compensation. Contact attorney Adam Horowitz at 954-641-2100 or [email protected] to find out how to submit your claim today.