Assemblyman Pat Burke is calling on New York State Police to open a criminal investigation into the Diocese of Buffalo, citing the recent FBI arrest a priest, which he says “demonstrates the need for an independent statewide investigation into allegations of child sexual abuse, child exploitation, and any efforts to conceal those crimes.”
Earlier this month, Jeffrey Nowak was arrested on child sexual abuse charges. Federal agents seized multiple devices inside his home that contained sexually explicit videos and pictures of children. He faces up to 20 years in prison.
“After decades of allegations, hundreds of civil lawsuits, bankruptcy proceedings, and the diocese’s own acknowledgment that dozens of priests were credibly accused of abusing children, Father Jeffrey Nowak’s arrest is the first criminal prosecution to emerge from this scandal. That should concern every one of us,” Burke said in a letter. “I wish I had been wrong. For years we’ve been told that this scandal was about the past – that the people responsible were gone and the institution had changed. The arrest of Father Nowak proves that’s not true.”
Burke is requesting that state police help coordinate state and local investigations.
“The Catholic church operates through a centralized diocesan structure, not as a collection of independent parishes,” Burke said. “Personnel decisions, assignments, transfers, and recordkeeping often occur at the diocesan level. When misconduct and potential concealment cross county lines, investigations have to be able to cross county lines too. That’s exactly what the New York State Police are uniquely equipped to do.”
Burke is also suggesting a specialized State Police investigative unit dedicated to institutional child sexual abuse and organized efforts to conceal it.
“This proposal is not about the Catholic church alone,” Burke said. “Sadly, institutional child sexual abuse has occurred in schools, youth organizations, athletic programs, nonprofits, government agencies and other institutions entrusted with the care of children. No organization— regardless of its size, influence, or public standing— should be beyond meaningful criminal investigation when evidence suggests children have been harmed or those responsible have been protected.”