Joseph A. Griffin

Ordained:
Diocese: Diocese of Scranton

From Report I of the 40th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania:

In September, 2009, the Diocese of Scranton was contacted by a 42-year-old male who reported that he was sexually abused by Father Joseph A. Griffin in 1967 when he was nine years old.  This occurred when Griffin took the victim and other boys on boat trips to Seneca Lake, NY and to a summer cottage at Lake Henry in the Poconos. The caller stated that Griffin touched him, rubbed his backside and slept with his arm around him.  The victim stated that he did not wish to pursue any action against the Diocese; rather, he just wanted the Diocese to be aware of what had occurred.

The victim contacted the Diocese again in 2011, just wanting to talk about what had happened to him.

Additional information regarding the widespread sexual abuse of children within the Catholic Dioceses of Pennsylvania and the systemic cover up by senior church officials is compiled in the Pennsylvania Diocese Victim’s Report published by the Pennsylvania Attorney General following a two-year grand jury investigation.  A complete copy of the Report is available on the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s website.