- \n
- The alleged offending priest, Fr. Art Smith, never suffered consequences for this crime against the seminarian which the diocese claimed years later it had substantiated<\/a>.<\/li>\n
- The case was never brought to the attention of civil authorities.<\/li>\n
- This case was not brought to the attention of the diocesan attorneys until 2018.<\/li>\n
- This case never went before the Diocesan Review Board of laypeople who are supposed to investigate such allegations.<\/li>\n
- No diocesan official involved in concealing this case from ecclesial and civil authorities was ever held accountable.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Fast forward to 2013, Fr. Biernat was appointed as secretary to Bishop Richard Malone and vice chancellor of the diocese. In this position, he said he thought he could play a role in weeding out corruption in the way clergy sexual abuse reports were handled. Instead, he found himself working in a system flagrantly covering up such reports, and that system was not going to change under that bishop. So he started making secret audio recordings of the bishop…something he said he regretted he did not do when Bishop Grosz threatened him.<\/p>\n
In his official capacity as an officer of the diocese, Fr. Biernat said he witnessed his bishop ignoring a variety of clergy sexual abuse reports (mostly vulnerable adults) or mishandling known sexual predators. In September, 2019, not having any other reasonable avenue available to him to report to competent Church authorities, Fr. Biernat passed his recordings on to investigative reporter, Charlie Specht, at WKBW-tv. These\u00a0secret recordings<\/a> revealed Bishop Malone appearing to freely acknowledge the veracity of reports concerning a priest credibly accused of sexual harassment of a seminarian; yet, the bishop refused to pull him from ministry. That priest, Fr. Nowak, was finally arrested by the FBI in 2026 for possession of child pornography<\/a>!<\/p>\n
In addition to this revelation, Fr. Biernat also made public the sexual assault he suffered as a seminarian. At long last, he revealed Bishop Grosz’s alleged threats to him at the time to keep him from making this known to the public. \u00a0Specht’s report<\/a> aired a few weeks before the state attorney general sat down with Bishops Malone and Grosz to question them under oath about their handling of more than two dozen clergy sexual abuse cases specifically tied to one or both of them. Bishop Malone resigned<\/a> from office (penalty-free) two weeks before his state interrogation. A day before his resignation, December 3, 2019,\u00a0he removed Fr. Biernat from ministry<\/a> for whistleblowing<\/a> to local media. This official Church “penalty” is upheld by his successor, Bishop Michael Fisher, who has the authority to reinstate Fr. Biernat to ministry.<\/p>\n
Links to News Media Reports concerning Fr. Biernat’s tragic story<\/h2>\n
\nFr. Ryszard Biernat’s interview with Charlie Spect from WKBW-TV<\/a>
March 4, 2020
Discussion on Bishop Scharfenberger’s reluctance to re-instate Fr. Biernat into ministry following what was an obvious retaliatory move by the former bishop to remove him from ministry with use of a canonical “Penal Remedy.” The reason for the removal from ministry? Because he revealed secrets. Fr. Biernat states: \u201cIn the decree, they cite policies of secrecy, but isn’t that what led us into the trouble that we are in right now?\u201d Biernat said, \u201cSecrecy…that we kept things secret and that everything is OK as long as people don’t find out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nFr. Ryszard Biernat’s full interview with Steve Brown from WGRZ-TV<\/a>
September 6, 2019
Graphic details of abuse by priest when Biernat was a seminarian
video<\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/laydob.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/interview-spect.jpg?resize=190%2C106&ssl=1\")
Bishop Silenced Fr. Ryszard about alleged sexual assault<\/a>
WKBW, Charlie Spect – September 5, 2019
First news interview concerning this case
video<\/p>\n
\nRyszard Biernat speaks with WBEN-930<\/a><\/p>\n
As a radio host talked with WKBW investigative reporter, Charlie Specht, Fr. Ryszard Biernat called in to clarify his story and answer questions.<\/p>\n
September 10, 2019
audio: 17 minutes<\/span><\/p>\n
\nABC News report<\/p>\n
Buffalo bishop preached transparency. Secret recordings made by a whistleblower suggest a different agenda<\/a><\/p>\n
September 4, 2019<\/p>\n
\u201cI am here to serve the people of Western New York the way I can,\u201d said Biernat, who agreed to take a leave of absence<\/a> from the diocese in August and has until recently lived in the bishop\u2019s official residence. \u201cI feel I have a responsibility to come forward and ask Bishop Malone to please resign. For the love of God and for the sake of your people here, please resign.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nWho is Father Ryszard Biernat, and why would he secretly record Bishop Malone?<\/a>
Buffalo News\u00a0<\/em>By Dan Herbeck<\/a><\/span>