While Mercer County District Attorney James P. Epstein is not taking as strong a stand on the release of information concerning priests who sexually abused children as his Erie counterpart, he would like to know if any of the alleged abuses occurred in Mercer County.

The Meadville Tribune reported that Bishop Donald J. Trautman said none of the priests recently removed from the ministry were believed to have served in Mercer or Crawford counties.

A diocese spokesman said he didn't know if the priests served in Mercer County.

Erie County District Attorney Brad Foulk called for the Catholic Diocese of Erie to turn over information on priests removed from their ministries because of sexual contact with children.

Bishop Trautman has refused to turn over information. He told the Erie Times News that he determined the statute of limitations had run out in each case.

"As I understand it, I am bound by law to keep private information on employees confidential," the bishop argued in a statement released last week.

With a series of rhetorical questions, Bishop Trautman asked if Foulk were going beyond his legal requirements in asking for the information, and suggested priests were being held to a double standard.

Foulk and the bishop met Monday and reviewed diocesan sex-abuse policies.

In a joint statement, Foulk said, "We feel the policies address the situation forthrightly and are in compliance with the law. After our meeting today, I feel that we do not believe that there are individuals who are in a position to cause harm and/or compromise the safety of our children at the present time."

Foulk and Bishop Trautman agreed to meet again.

Epstein said he will wait to see how the discussion plays out.

"I think he's entitled to a presumption of good faith," Epstein said of the bishop. "I'm not going to begin sending sheriff's deputies to Erie to serve subpoenas."

While the statute of limitations is generally five years for such cases, the General Assembly extended the statute for pedophilia cases to start the clock when the victim becomes an adult, Epstein said.

The bishop said he had removed from ministry "a couple" of priests who were on restricted ministry.

The priests had been accused of inappropriate sexual activity with children decades ago, and the diocese determined the accusations were credible.

The priests had undergone medical treatment and were placed on restricted ministry -- which does not allow them to have contact with children -- based on the advice of medical experts and the diocesan policy at the time, Bishop Trautman said.

There have been no allegations against the priests in the last 20 or 30 years, the bishop said, but he removed them from ministry in the wake of revelations from other dioceses across the country.

The bishop said he amended diocesan policy March 8 to remove them from ministry.

A week earlier, a diocesan spokesman told The Herald that a priest who had been put on a leave of absence by the previous bishop, Michael J. Murphy, for child sexual abuse had been taken out of active ministry by Bishop Trautman.

The allegation surfaced a few years ago, but the abuse dated to about 30 years ago.

The easiest way for a criminal investigation to be initiated is for a victim to come forward, Epstein said.

The church's handling of some past cases, in which settlements are made with victims and sealed by a court, begs the question of whether the arrangement is good public policy, Epstein said.

Epstein acknowledged that such agreements, which forbid the victim from speaking publicly about the case, might encourage victims to come forward because there is no threat that they will be identified publicly.

You can e-mail Herald Staff Writer Joe Pinchot at

jpinchot@sharon-herald.com