Lawsuit Against Greensburg Catholic Diocese Alleges Former Priest Molested Woman For Nearly Four Years
GREENSBURG (KDKA) -- From the steps of the Westmoreland County Court House Attorney Richard Serbin blamed the Greensburg Catholic Diocese and one of its former priests for what happened to his client, who he refers to as "Jane Doe," and says it would not have happened if the Diocese had stepped in.
"This woman I am representing was sexually molested from ages ten and a half to around 14 by her priest, Father George Pierce of the Diocese of Greensburg," he said.
Father Pierce died in 2009.
The lawsuit alleges the Diocese knew of Father George Pierce's sexual interest in children no later than 1972.
He was known to the Greensburg Diocese and the Bishop as a child rapist.
WATCH: Attorney Richard Serbin Holds News Conference Discussing Lawsuit
LIVE NEWS: News conference being held outside the Westmoreland County Courthouse regarding alleged abuse coverups in the Diocese of Greensburg. https://cbsloc.al/2Ncx2LK
Posted by KDKA-TV | CBS Pittsburgh on Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Pierce was moved from his assignment at Saint Gertrude Church in McIntyre to Holy Family in Seward after numerous outraged parishioners complained about sexual crimes against another child.
"As horrific as his deeds were, those that allowed him to continue including the Bishop of this Diocese, in my opinion, were more heinous, more evil," Serbin said.
According to the suit, Father Pierce did not have a psychiatric evaluation until 1997 where it was determined he had a sexual disorder involving children.
The Diocese was advised that his ministry be limited to adults and that it be supervised but that recommendation was ignored.
Attorney Serbin says if the Diocese had stepped up to the plate and taken responsibility this would not have happened to his client.
"She was subjected to the most heinous types of acts, including vaginal rape using foreign objects, including the head of a screwdriver," he described.
Serbin says his client has been offered a little more than $88,000 in compensation by the Greensburg Diocese.
"That's what she gets for four years of being sexually molested," he said. "She is not interested in that. She wants to expose what has happened."
It was not until 2004 that the Vatican dismissed Father Pierce from his clerical role die to sexual allegations that he admitted to….this was 32 years after his sexual crimes against children first came to the attention of the Diocese.