The Rev. John T. Sweeney, a Roman Catholic priest with the Diocese of Greensburg, pleaded guilty Tuesday morning to indecent assault on a minor under 14 years old.
Father Sweeney, 74, answered “Yes, your honor” several times as he was questioned by the judge to affirm his plea and details involved in the case.
He was wearing an open-collar shirt, not clerical garb, during his appearance before Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio in Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court.
Father Sweeney admitted to performing a sex act on a 10-year-old boy during the 1991-92 school year. The victim was present in the courtroom on Tuesday and approved of the plea agreement, according to Senior Deputy Attorney General Daniel Dye.
The charge is a first-degree misdemeanor, which was pleaded down from a previous felony charge.
Judge Bilik-DeFazio ordered a presentencing investigation. The crime is punishable by up to five years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.
Father Sweeney was a pastor at St. Margaret Mary Parish in Lower Burrell at the time of the abuse, which occurred during the 1991-92 school year.
Although pleading to a reduced charge, Father Sweeney admitted to the central accusation, forced oral sex, which the judge described in graphic anatomical terms in asking the defendant about it.
“Yes, your honor,” he said when asked if he admitted to the facts of the case.
Lower Burrell police started the investigation of Father Sweeney after receiving an anonymous report and then one from a U.S. marshal who identified himself as a relative of the victim. The police referred the case to the statewide grand jury.
According to the criminal complaint, the school principal sent the boy to see Father Sweeney due to misbehavior on a school bus. The priest directed the victim to perform oral sex on him, warning the boy that he would be in trouble if he didn’t comply, according to the criminal complaint.
Afterward, Father Sweeney had his secretary bring the boy milk and cookies, according to Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro.
Father Sweeney is out on bond pending his sentencing, which should take place within 90 days, Mr. Shapiro said.
Father Sweeney is the first priest convicted as a result of a statewide grand jury investigation into sexual abuse by priests in six Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania. A priest in the Diocese of Erie has charges pending.
The state Supreme Court on Friday authorized the release of a redacted version of the grand jury report on the clergy abuse. The court said the report identifies more than 300 “predator priests.”
Mr. Shapiro had a press conference after the hearing and appeared with Father Sweeney’s victim, a man in his 30s who indicated he wished only to be identified by his first name, Josh. He serves in the U.S. Coast Guard, and Mr. Shapiro praised his bravery in coming to the courthouse.
“Josh is a hero to come forward to tell his difficult truth about Sweeney because of his concern that other children could be harmed if Sweeney were not held accountable,” Mr. Shapiro said. “Once a victim finds the courage to come forward, law enforcement should take action. For his crime, Sweeney has pleaded guilty before the court in Westmoreland, and before the citizens of the commonwealth, to the sexual abuse of a child.”
Josh said he came forward after seeing the Oscar-winning movie “Spotlight,” about the exposure of the Archdiocese of Boston’s cover-up of sexual abuse by priests. He said he felt some closure upon hearing Father Sweeney admit his guilt and added, “The main purpose of today was so more victims could come forward.”
He said the trauma of the assault deeply affected the course of his life.
Mr. Shapiro asked anyone with information about sexual abuse by Father Sweeney or any priest to contact the Office of Attorney General’s Clergy Abuse Hotline at 1-888-538-8541.
He also noted that on Monday, he had announced additional criminal charges involving a Cambria County pediatrician, Johnnie Barto, now accused of sexually abusing about 30 minors.
He said sexual predators will face “a full public accounting” regardless of their social status or power.
While the 40th statewide grand jury has completed its term, Mr. Shapiro said his office has “many mechanisms at our disposal” to pursue such leads.
The Greensburg diocese said it first learned of the allegation against Father Sweeney from the Westmoreland County district attorney’s office in September 2016. That’s when it removed him from ministry and forbade him from presenting himself in public as a priest and from unsupervised contact with minors. He officially retired at the end of 2016.
“This allegation dates to the early 1990s, and Father Sweeney’s file contained no prior allegations of sexual misconduct of any kind,” the diocese said in a statement.
“The people of the Diocese of Greensburg pray for all of the survivors of child sexual abuse,” it said, citing in particular “the person who courageously came forward and did the right thing by reporting this abuse.”
It urged anyone who suspects abuse of a child or vulnerable adult to contact the PA Childline at 800-932-0313.
Peter Smith: petersmith@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1416; Twitter @PG_PeterSmith.
First Published: July 31, 2018, 2:08 p.m.
Updated: July 31, 2018, 2:21 p.m.
