4 Ex-St. Virgil Priests Named On Church Sex Abuse List

MORRIS PLAINS, NJ — Four priests who have served at St. Virgil in Morris Plains faced credible sexual abuse allegations, the Diocese of Paterson said.

Stanislaus Durka, Peter McBride, John Wall, and William Winston all served at St. Virgil and have all faced abuse allegations, the Diocese said. All four served at other North Jersey churches during their careers (you can find a full list of churches at the bottom of this article).

The priests were included on a list of 28 from the Diocese of Paterson who face credible abuse allegations. All the priests are either deceased, removed from the ministry, or laicized.

"Such misconduct by those ordained as ministers of our faith can never be tolerated. The faithful of our diocese have a right to know that the diocese is doing everything it can to ensure the safety of our children and to report perpetrators to law enforcement authorities," Bishop Arthur Serratelli said in a letter.

McBride, from Ireland, pleaded guilty to fondling two women in the 1990s. He was removed from the ministry in 1994.

Winston also faced one accusation, and was removed from ministry in 2004 before being laicized in 2007. He was found guilty in 2006 of assaulting his wife, harassing his children and fondling a young boy; he served six months. (Winston married while serving as an Episcopal pastor, and was allowed to stay married when he converted to Catholicism.)

More information about the allegation against Wall was not immediately available. He died in 1983.

More information about the allegations against Durka was not immediately available. He died in 1983.

The Archdiocese of Newark and the Dioceses of Camden, Trenton, Paterson and Metuchen said they are committed to the establishment of a "Victim Compensation and Counseling Program."
This program will provide the resources to compensate those victims of child sexual abuse by clergy and employees of the Dioceses in New Jersey whose financial claims are legally barred by New Jersey's statute of limitations, according to the authorities.

Authorities said the program also will assure that victims who have not received any financial compensation will be paid, regardless of whether their claims meet the time requirements of the statute of limitations.

"While this is a positive first step towards transparency and accountability, I hope this spirit of openness continues during the course of our ongoing investigation and in response to our requests for records and information," Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said.

The Attorney General's Office urges survivors and others with information to contact its toll-free tip line, 855-363-6548, which is staffed by trained professionals on a 24/7 basis.

Here is a list of where all the accused priests also served:

Peter McBride

• St. Virgil, Morris Plains
• St. Clare, Clifton
• St. Peter, Parsippany
• St. Andrew, Clifton

Stanislaus Durka

• St. Virgil, Morris Plains
• St. Joseph, Passaic
• St. Stephen, Paterson
• St. Joseph, Passaic
• St. Thomas, Ogdensburg

John Wall

• St. Virgil, Morris Plains
• Chaplain, St. Mary Hospital, Passaic
• Our Lady Queen of Peace, Branchville

William Winston

• Corpus Christi, Chatham
• St. Patrick, Chatham
• Assumption, Morristown
• St. Virgil, Morris Plains

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