New List Names Accused McHenry, Kane County Clergy Among Hundreds

MCHENRY COUNTY, IL — Several priests from McHenry County and Kane County are included in a new list released Wednesday by attorneys representing victims of sexual abuse by priests. The list names roughly 400 accused priests, about twice as many as have been previously identified by Illinois' six Catholic dioceses. Called the Anderson Report, the document claims to "reveal the horrifying scale of priests sexually assaulting minors to the present day." It includes priests who were assigned to parishes in the Archdiocese of Chicago, Diocese of Belleville, Diocese of Joliet, Diocese of Peoria, Diocese of Rockford and Diocese of Springfield, as well as religious clergy and lay persons accused of abuse.

Crystal Lake

• Fr. Mark A. Campobello: St. Thomas the Apostle Church, Crystal Lake (2001); unknown (2011-2019)
• Fr. John C. Holdren: St. Thomas Church, Crystal Lake (1974-1980); died in 2018
• Fr. Thomas J. Job: St. Thomas Church, Crystal Lake (1974-1980); unknown (2010-2019); also St. Joseph, Libertyville (1983-1986)

Algonquin

• Fr. James Gaynor: St. Margaret’s, Algonquin ( 1964-1965); St. Mary, McHenry (1980-1983); died in 1991

Geneva

• Fr. Mark A. Campobello: St. Peter Church, Geneva (1995; 1998-1999); unknown (2011-2019)
• Fr. John C. Holdren: St. Peter Church, Geneva (1981-1983); died in 2018

McHenry

• Fr. Mark A. Campobello: St. Patrick Church, McHenry (2000); unknown (2011-2019)

Many of the priests named in the Anderson Report were previously identified in court cases, but some don't appear on dioceses' official lists. Diocese lists often do not include accusations against priests that were not substantiated or accusations made against priests that had died.
The report, from Jeff Anderson & Associates of St. Paul, Minnesota, claims "it is believed that the Dioceses in Illinois have not publicly made available the full histories and their knowledge of their sexually abusive agents and employees."

The information in the report comes from "publicly available sources, claims made by survivors to
the dioceses and religious orders responsible for the offenders, and legal settlements made as a
result of claims for child sexual abuse," according to the document. "While lawsuits were filed involving many of these alleged perpetrators, the vast majority of the claims against these individuals have been settled or have not been fully evaluated in a civil or criminal court" and "in most cases the allegations have not been proved or substantiated in a court of law."

The roughly 400 priests listed in the Anderson Report is far lower than the 690 accused clergy former Attorney General Lisa Madigan said her office identified in its 2018 investigation.

View the full Anderson Report here.

Check back for updates on this developing story.