PASCACK AND NORTHERN VALLEY AREAS, N.J.—Only a week after a group of attorneys released a report naming 311 New Jersey priests, nuns, and other clergy accused of sexual misconduct—many of which were newly identified—Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law May 13 that lets victims of child sexual abuse sue their abusers long after the alleged abuse occurred.
Of the 311 newly revealed accused priests, 14 had served in Pascack Valley and Northern Valley venues—some as long ago as the 1950s.
To make it easier for sexual abuse victims to seek justice, Murphy signed a long-delayed and long-debated law May 13 that allows victims of child sexual abuse to sue their abusers up until age 55, and also within a seven-year window of realizing that childhood sexual abuse caused them harm.
The Catholic Church long opposed the bill, citing an increase in new, possibly suspect sexual abuse claims and financial impacts.
Previously, state law allowed sexual abuse victims two years after an incident to pursue litigation, and a victim of child sexual abuse previously had to be under age 20 to file a lawsuit against a perpetrator.
Moreover, the new law allows previous sexual abuse victims barred by a statute of limitations to sue abusers and the institutions that protected them to file a lawsuit to seek damages for two years from the date of the law’s effect.
New Jersey is the 11th state to pass a law extending the time allowed for sexual abuse victims to bring a lawsuit.
The law, which takes effect Dec. 1, had been kicking around for 15 years but received new momentum after release of a Pennsylvania attorney general report that found more than 300 priests abused more than 1,000 victims in Pennsylvania dioceses over a 70- year period.
Newark archdiocese reacts
Victims advocates praised the state’s new law and the Catholic Church said it continues to administer its own compensation fund for victims.
“We continue to focus on transparency and accountability and to reinforcing established reporting and prevention policies and programs to protect minors and support victims in our parishes, schools and ministries,” said an Archdiocese of Newark press release.
“We commend Gov. Phil Murphy, Sen. Joseph Vitale, Assemblywoman Annette Quijano, NJ SNAP leader Mark Crawford, and the hundreds of survivors and advocates who made this dramatic reform of the statute of limitations in New Jersey possible. The new law will be one of the best in the nation, granting all sexual abuse survivors the opportunity to access the justice system,” SNAP said.
New Jersey SNAP is the New Jersey chapter of Survivors Network of Those Abused By Priests.
The new state law is certainly a boon to victims of the 311 newly identified names in the report— many of the names come from lawsuits, legal settlements, news reports and other public accounts of alleged abuse over previous years, said the attorneys who released them.
The abuse report, released May 6 by the Minnesota-based law firm Jeff Anderson & Associates and Greg Gianforcaro, details clerics that have been publicly accused of sexual abuse in New Jersey, including assignment history, locations, years served, and current status, if known.
The Anderson report does not detail specific allegations or numbers of victims.
Boy Scouts suffered, too
The release of 311 names of priests, nuns, monks and other clergy follows another Jeff Anderson & Associates report weeks ago that named 52 former New Jersey Boy Scouts of America troop leaders accused of sexual abuse.
These alleged Boy Scouts of America sex abusers were taken from court cases and publicly released documents of “Ineligible Volunteer Files” long maintained by the Scouts, known better as the “Perversion Files” by Scout leaders nationwide.
The two law firms releasing names of alleged sexual abusers have represented sexual abuse victims in numerous cases and sponsor ongoing media advertising campaigns to solicit victims for possible litigation.
Pascack Valley clergy
Six clergy identified in “The Anderson Report—Sexual Abuse in the Archdiocese and Dioceses in New Jersey” served at Catholic facilities or institutions in the Pascack Valley.
They included Rev. James T. Benedetto, Church of Assumption, Emerson, 1971–1972. He retired in 2006. His status is unknown.
Brother John H. Dagwell was accused of sexual abuse of a minor at Montvale Parochial School in 1986, the report says. He was sentenced to probation and reportedly left the Congregation of Xaverian Brothers in 2002. His status and location are unknown.
Brother George Donnelly, prior to 1984, worked at St. Joseph Regional High School in Montvale. No further information is provided.
Rev. Charles Grandstrand served 1990–2019 at Our Lady of Mercy in Park Ridge. Grandstrand, listed as pastor emeritus at the Park Ridge church, was not available for comment when Pascack Press/Northern Valley Press called May 15.
Requests for information on the allegations against Grandstrand emailed to an archdiocese spokeswoman were not answered by press time.
According to a 2010 report on BishopAccountability.org, Grandstrand was accused of molesting two boys in 1996 at Our Lady of Mercy School. After an investigation, no charges were filed by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office.
Then-Prosecutor John Molinelli said the allegations were investigated and no charges resulted.
Other named priests included the Rev. Eugene P. Hendricks, who served at Our Lady of Mercy in Park Ridge from 1995–1999, and the Rev. John J. Morel, who served at St. Andrew’s in Westwood in 1959.
Northern Valley clergy
Eight clergymen were found to have served in Northern Valley institutions over the years.
These included the Rev. Michael M. Walters, of Sacred Heart Parish, Haworth, who served there in 1992. Since 2017, his status is unknown.
The Rev. Maurice F. Meyers served at the Alpine Scout Camp from 1956-1957. He died in 1980.
The Rev. Michael G. Campanalonga served at St. Anthony, Northvale, 1966–1973. Since 1992 through 2019, his status is unknown.
The Rev. Kevin Michael O’Brien, a Carmelite priest, served at Immaculate Conception in Norwood in 1971.
The Rev. Francis T. Maione served at St. Pius X in Old Tappan 1982–1986. Between 2011 through 2019, his status is unknown.
Rev. Joseph B. DiPeri served at St. Cecilia’s Regional High School, Englewood in 1982. He died in 2007. The Rev. John E. Komar served at Englewood Hospital 1991–2006. Komar died in 2018.
‘Vulnerable members’
“Sexual abuse, particularly that of children, has long been a crime in New Jersey. However, diocesan and religious order officials chose and continue to keep these crimes hidden, allowing their priests continued and unfettered access to vulnerable members of society,” states the Anderson Report.
“Over recent decades, occasional bits of information about abuse within Catholic institutions has surfaced, but the Catholic Church’s strict policy of secrecy has kept important information and the full extent of the problem hidden from the public,” adds the report.
In New Jersey, the Catholic Church consists of one archdiocese in Newark, four dioceses, and approximately 580 parishes and 246 schools, staffed by 1,552 diocesan priests, 324 religious priests, 171 brothers, 1,928 sisters and 6,619 lay teachers. The 2018 Official Catholic Directory notes 3.5 million Catholics statewide.
In a statement, the Archdiocese of Newark said it was “committed to the ongoing support and healing of victims and the acknowledgement of those accused of the sexual abuse of minors.”
188 ‘credibly accused’ priests
Only three months ago, all five New Jersey Roman Catholic dioceses publicly released the names of 188 priests “credibly accused” of sexually abusing minors over decades, following a review begun as a result of a statewide probe initiated by New Jersey attorney general’s office.
Pascack Press/Northern Valley Press reported the names of priests who once served in local parishes and schools.
Victims advocate Crawford, president of the New Jersey chapter of Survivors of those Abused by Priests, said the lists were incomplete because they did not include priests/clergy who were from any extra Catholic orders—and because many citations of priests listed “multiple victims” but declined to name how many or where any of the abuse occurred.
“We know that the names the Catholic Church put out does not include all the religious accused of sexual abuse,” Crawford said May 15.
Crawford said the Church’s compensation fund provides a fraction of what a lawsuit would offer victims, though lawsuits take years.
“The Church is still not being honest about what occurred,” he said.
“The 188 names released are a self-serving disclosure by the Catholic Church to help clear out some previous cases before more names are released,” charged Crawford.
He said the Anderson report offers additional clergy names “and we hope those victims come forward to get help and healing. Otherwise, these victims will suffer in silence,” he said.
Last September, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal launched a task force to investigate sexual abuse by clergy and also established a 24/7 hotline (855- 363-6548) to report allegations of sexual abuse.
Grewal’s investigative report is yet to be issued.