Vatican Clears Brooklyn Bishop Of Child Abuse Charges: Diocese

BROOKLYN, NY — The leader of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn has been cleared by the Vatican of abuse allegations dating back to his time as a priest in New Jersey in the 1970s, according to the archdiocese.

The investigation, launched in early 2020, found the allegations that Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio had committed acts of sex abuse against minors "not to have the semblance of truth," the archdiocese said in a statement Wednesday. DiMarzio has served as the bishop of the Brooklyn diocese since 2003.

The bishop has vehemently denied the accusations.

Given the finding, DiMarzio will likely not face disciplinary action from church officials, despite two civil lawsuits filed against him by the alleged victims, according to the New York Times and the archdiocese.

The victims' lawyer, Mitchell Garabedian, has called the Vactican-authorized investigation into DiMarzio “subjective and biased” given that it was conducted by officials in New York and Vatican City, the Times reports.

The allegations into DiMarzio made headlines last year given that DiMarzio had headed efforts to help victims of sexual abuse by clergy members and recently spearheaded an investigation into how the Buffalo diocese handled abuse cases at the time he was accused.

Read the full report about the Vatican investigation from the New York Times here.