Community Corner
3 Priests Suspected of Child Abuse Worked in Whitefish Bay: Church Records
Franklyn Becker and David Hanser were associate pastors at Holy Family Parish in the 1970s, and Marvin Knighton was associate principal at Dominican High School in the late 1990s.
Three priests whose names appear on a list of priests removed or restricted from ministry because of substianted allegations of sexual abuse of minors worked in Whitefish Bay parishes, according to records released Monday.
The release, partly motivated by the archdiocese's Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, includes about 6,000 pages of documents — from personnel files of priests accused of sexual abuse to depositions of high-ranking archdiocese officials, including former archbishop Timothy Dolan.
Among the names listed are Franklyn Becker and David Hanser, who were associate pastors at Holy Family Parish in the 1970s, and Marvin Knighton, who was associate principal at Dominican High School in the late 1990s.
The documents were selected by the abuse survivor attorneys, archdiocese chief of staff Jerry Topczewski told Patch. Though the records were released as part of a bankruptcy agreement, Topczewski stressed that releasing the files can be part of the healing process for abuse survivors.
"Ultimately, we want them to know that the church loves them," Topczewski said. "And the church owes them a debt of gratitude for having the courage to come forward."
But according to press releases from SNAP Wisconsin, the local arm of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, the documents have some major implications for the archdiocese.
In one press release, SNAP Wisconsin Director John Pilmaier suggests that archdiocese officials were involved in a “criminal conspiracy” with the practice of re-assigning known offenders to churches and schools after they underwent treatment for pedophilia.
According to the press release, a group of experts with the American Psychological Association compared the practice to “giving an alcoholic a job in a bar.”
Here is what the records have to say about the priests assigned to local churches:
Marvin Knighton
Knighton was associate principal at Dominican High School from 1998 to 2002. There have been no allegations of sexual assault from during his time there, but there were allegations that he was involved with boys at Pius XI High School when he was a faculty member there.In 2001, he was appointed consultant in the Office for Child and Youth Ministry.
There were numerous sexual abuse reports made in 2002, after which charges were filed, three settlement agreements were made, followed by a conviction in 2007.
He was officially dismissed from the clergy in January 2011.
Franklyn Becker
Becker was associate pastor at Holy Family Parish from 1972 until 1974. In 2010, one instance of abuse by Becker was reported by a survivor who was a student at Holy Family at the time.In 1982, Becker was chaplain on a Caribbean cruise, and he brought a seventh grade boy along — with his mother's permission. According to the records, Becker later said that he had "no physical contact with the boy," though "they shared the same bed."
Becker's timeline is an extensive, 17-page account of the sexual abuse allegations against him. He worked at several other parishes until he was restricted from all public ministry in 2002.
No charges have been pressed against Becker.
David Hanser
Hanser was associate pastor at Holy Family Parish from 1978 until 1982. There have been no allegations of abuse against him from his time there, but there have been reports that he took teenage boys to his cottage, along with other reports of sexual abuse.In Hanser's file, there are numerous mentions of his therapist assuring the archdiocese that he "does not present any risk to any age person with whom he might work."
Hanser retired in 2002, and he was laicized in 2005.
Allegations Treated Differently Now
According to Topczewski, "no priest today can serve in ministry if there's a substantiated allegation of sex abuse."He told Patch that allegations are immediately reported to the police. If the district attorney determines that an allegation cannot be prosecuted, he said the church conducts its own investigation, headed by an independent review board and often facilitated by retired Milwaukee police detectives.
The complete documents can be viewed at the Jeff Anderson & Associates website.
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