List Includes 'Credible' Abuse Accusations At St. John's Danvers

DANVERS, MA — "Credible allegations of abuse" against 34 current, former and deceased members of the Xaverian Brothers include at least six victims at St. John's Preparatory School in Danvers. The Roman Catholic order, which runs St. John's and four other high schools in Massachusetts, released the list Friday and included allegations of sexual abuse dating back to the early 1900s.

Of the priests accused of abusing students at St. John's in Danvers, only one is still alive. Thomas Morrissey, who taught at St. John's in Danvers from 1965 to 1967, was accused of abuse by former students at St. John's in Danvers and at Xaverian Brothers High School in Westwood, where he taught from 1967 to 1979. Morrissey has been living in a restricted environment since 2002, when the allegations were first made.

Last year, St. John's placed Brother Robert Flaherty on leave after he was accused of child sexual abuse in Maryland. Flaherty was not included on the list released Friday.

In addition to Morrissey, the order also released the names of deceased members who were accused of abuse while they taught or worked at St. John's in Danvers, including:

• William M. Burns, who died in 1974. He was accused of abuse by students at four schools where he taught, including St. John's, where he was taught in 1932-33, 1951-53 and 1961.
• Albert F. Kerressey, who died in 1997 and taught at St. Johns from 1942-45 and 1965-71. The alleged abused occurred in the 1960s and was reported after 1994.
• Thomas Harrison, who left the order in 1973 and taught in Danvers from 1949-56. The alleged abuse occurred in the late 1950s.

The order said it could not conduct full investigations on the following priests but established there was a "reasonable possibility" the abuse occurred:

• Francis E. Dailey, who died in 1961, and taught at St. John's in 1922-23 and 1948-53. The alleged abuse occurred between 1951 and 1955. Thomas F. Holihan, who died in 1991 and taight at St. Johns from 1950 to 1991. The alleged abuse, which was reported in 2004, occurred in the early 1960s.
• John Augustine, who died in 1939 after teaching at St. Jons from 1937 to 1938. The abuse was reported in 2002.

The complete list, as well as a letter from Brother Edward Driscoll, General Superior of Xaverian Brothers, was posted on the order's Website Friday. The order contracted a former FBI agent to go through its records and compile the list.

"The Xaverian Brothers want to continue this journey of repentance, transparency, and solidarity with victims as we renew our commitment to our mission 'to manifest God’s compassionate love to all whom we meet in this journey of life'," Driscoll wrote. "Please join the Brothers praying for continued healing for those who have been wounded by the evil of sexual abuse."