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West Virginia Bishop Resigns, To Be Investigated By Vatican

September 13, 2018

Bishop Michael Bransfield, the bishop of Wheeling-Charleston, resigned Thursday and will be investigated by the Archbishop of Baltimore on suspicions of sexually harassing adults, a Church official announced.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston consists of the entire state of West Virginia.

Bransfield eight days ago turned 75, which is the age of retirement for bishops and priests set by canon law. But church officials aren’t describing his departure as a retirement.

Instead, Archbishop William Lori, whose Baltimore archdiocese includes as a suffragan see the West Virginia diocese, plans to investigate Bransfield’s conduct at the request of the Holy See on behalf of Pope Francis.

“My primary concern is for the care and support of the priests and people of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston at this difficult time,” Lori said in a written statement. “I further pledge to conduct a thorough investigation in search of the truth into the troubling allegations against Bishop Bransfield and to work closely with the clergy, religious and lay leaders of the diocese until the appointment of a new bishop.”

Bransfield’s name surfaced during a criminal trial in Philadelphia in the spring of 2012 against two priests connected to sexual molestation of adolescent boys. Bransfield at the time strongly denied the allegations against him.

It was unclear as of Thursday afternoon why a church investigation of the bishop was being initiated more than six years after the allegations initially surfaced.