Here Are The 3 Newtown Priests On The 'Credibly Accused' List

NEWTOWN, PA — The journalism site ProPublica, a Patch Partner, recently released the most comprehensive list so far of Catholic clergy "credibly accused" of sexual abuse. The list includes three accused abusers with ties to Newtown.

The searchable database — which includes hundreds of priests accused from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, as well as dioceses in Scranton, Allentown, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, and more — comes on the heels of a Pennsylvania grand jury report that revealed hundreds of "predator" priests across the state.

RELATED: Full List Released Of PA Catholic Clergy Accused Of Sex Assault

Here are the six priests on the ProPublic list with Newtown ties:

James J. Brennan

Brennan was the parochial vicar at St. Andrew in Newtown from 1989 to 1991. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia said in 2006 it received a report Brennan allegedly sexually abused a minor approximately eight years prior. He met the victim while serving in Newtown, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

During the investigation, he was relieved of his assignment as Parochial Vicar of Assumption Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Feasterville, where he was serving at the time.

The Archdiocese's Review Board determined that there was sufficient information to substantiate the allegation.

He was later tried in a Philadelphia criminal court, agreeing to plead no contest to a misdemeanor charge.

He has since been restricted from the ministry.

John P. Paul

Paul, who is now laicized, was in residence at St. Andrew from 1997 to 2000 while serving as faculty at Archbishop Wood High School in Warminster.

Charles J. Schaeflein

Schaeflein served as pastor at St. Andrew from 1977 to 1989. He also served as principal at Bishop Conwell High School from 1965 to 1977. He died in 2013.

The Pennsylvania grand jury investigation, which prompted ProPublica's project, was described by the Associated Press as the "biggest and most exhaustive ever" into priest sex abuse by an individual state. The investigation revealed many priests admitted to their actions and were allowed to continue in the ministry for years despite having confessed to molesting children.

RELATED: 300 PA Priests Sexually Abused 1,000 Children: Grand Jury

In one case, after a priest confessed to anal and oral rape of at least 15 boys, a bishop who later met with him commended him as "a person of candor and sincerity."

Another priest who was "grooming his middle school students for oral sex," was accused by several victims before he was removed 15 years later, the grand jury found.

The Pennsylvania grand jury report was pivotal in spurring dioceses around the country to release lists of abusers associated with their churches, ProPublica said.