A former Pavilion resident held a press conference in Buffalo today and said that he was abused by a priest at St. Mary's in Pavilion when he was 16 years old in 1980.
Wayne Bortles said that Father Robert P. Conlin, who was appointed pastor of St. Mary's in 1977, abused him in a basement of the rectory recreation room where youth gatherings were sometimes held, according to WBEN.
"He touched me all over, and he wouldn't stop," Bortles said.
Conlin died in 1997 and is one of at least four Catholic priests with ties to Genesee County who have been accused of sexual misconduct.
This week the Diocese of Buffalo released a list of 42 priests who served in Western New York who have been accused of sexual misconduct.
Included on the list were Father Donald W. Becker, who served two terms at St. Mary's and has denied any wrongdoing, Father Fred Ingalls, who served at St. Joseph's from 1974 to 1982 and from 1990 to 1996, and Father Richard Keppeler, who was appointed to St. Brigid in Bergen in 1973, became pastor there in 1974 and served until his retirement in 2003. He died in 2011.
Ingalls admitted in Federal Court in 2004 to the acquisition of child pornography.
Conlin's name is not on the list released by the Diocese, which only includes names of those who were removed from the ministry as a result of allegations, were retired or left the ministry after being accused of sexual misconduct. It also includes the names of priests who died with two or more allegations against them.
Before today, Bortles had not made a public allegation against Conlin.
Today, Bishop Richard J. Malone issued a videotaped apology for the sexual misconduct of priests in the diocese (embedded below).
Bortles said an apology wasn't enough.
"I don't know how an apology would impact me," Bortles said. "I mean, the sentiment is nice, but there is more, obviously, that needs to be done."
Bortles said the parish social hall in Pavilion is named after Conlin and there is a large picture of him in the hall. He thinks the hall should be renamed and the picture removed.
He believes there were other victims of Conlin in Pavilion and that they should come forward.
