Ordained: 1960
Status: Accused
Diocese: Archdiocese of Baltimore MD
In August 2019, the Archdiocese made public that it had received an accusation of sexual abuse of a child by Father Ronald Belschner in the mid-1970s while he was assigned to St. Gregory the Great. Father Ronald Belschner denied the allegations but went on leave of absence in 1991 and had his faculties removed permanently.
The MD Attorney General’s report on April 5, 2023, revealed a report to the Archdiocese in December 2017 that Belschner abused a 14 or 15-year-old boy in 1975-1976. Additionally, another man came forward in October 2020 and reported that the priest sexually abused him, including rape, from 1976-1979.
Belschner adopted a 17-year-old boy in the mid-1980s, and in 1990, parishioners and staff voiced concerns about his behavior to the Archdiocese. In response, Bishop Murphy instructed Belschner to have the young man living with him move out. However, Belschner defied this directive and was subsequently placed on leave. He agreed to undergo treatment but did not follow through.