Ex-Woodbridge Priest In Sex Abuse Case Gets 4 Years In Prison

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — A Catholic priest who admitted to sexually abusing a 17-year-old girl at Saint Cecelia Church in Iselin was sentenced Monday to four years in state prison for the crime.

The sexual abuse occurred when Father Thomas Ganley was a priest at Saint Cecelia's back in the 1990s.

Ganley is unique because he is the first religious figure in New Jersey to be charged by the Clergy Abuse Task Force. This is a hotline that abuse victims can call into and report abuse, even if it happened decades earlier. The hotline was created last year by state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal. You may have seen ads for it on the back of buses and elsewhere.

Ganley, now 63, had since moved to Phillipsburg in western New Jersey and he was arrested at his home in January of this year. At the time of his arrest, he was still working as a priest, assigned to Saint Philip & Saint James Church in Phillipsburg. New Jersey's statute of limitations has been amended for certain sex crimes, and it applied in this case, which allowed Ganley to be prosecuted.

In the '90s, Ganley instructed the teenage girl in the youth ministry at Saint Cecelia's.

His victim, now an adult woman, called the hotline's number just two days after it launched, to allege that Ganley had sexually assaulted her as a teen. That hotline number is 855-363-6548, and it is staffed by trained professionals and operated on a 24/7 basis. More than 480 calls have been received through the hotline to date, according to the attorney general's office.

Ganley pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault in April. The priest admitted that he engaged in sexual acts with the victim when she was 16 or 17 years old.

As part of his plea, Ganley will also be required to have no contact with the victim or the family of the victim and no unsupervised contact with any child under age 18. He will be required to register as a Megan’s Law sex offender when he gets out.

When the charges against him first came to light, Ganley was immediately suspended from the ministry, said a spokesperson for the Diocese of Metuchen, which oversees Woodbridge parish. The other parishes where he had served were also informed of the news.

“The allegations against Fr. Ganley, which were first made known to the Diocese of Metuchen once he was arrested on January 16, are very sad, disturbing and sickening,” said Anthony Kearns III, Esq., spokesperson and chancellor of the Diocese of Metuchen.

Previous to this case, the diocese had never received any allegations against Ganley and he has had no prior contact with the legal system, according to Kearns.

“While his crime is nearly 30 years old, the survivor of his abuse deserves healing and we hope his sentencing and the justice it brings will help to facilitate the healing process,” said Kearns.

“Our hearts ache for this survivor and on behalf of the local Church of Metuchen, we are committed to the healing and welfare of all survivors of abuse," said Rev. James F. Checchio, Bishop of the Diocese of Metuchen. "These criminal and sinful actions will not be tolerated, now or in the future, we stand ready to provide pastoral care, counseling assistance and support, even while ensuring that we do all that can possibly be done to avoid such actions in the future."

The Diocese of Metuchen is among the five Catholic dioceses in N.J. that established an Independent Victim Compensation Program to compensate those who, as children or young adults, were sexually abused by a priest or deacon of the diocese. Since its founding thirty-eight years ago in 1981, the Diocese of Metuchen has paid approximately $1.5 million dollars in settlements to sexual abuse victims.

Anyone who has been sexually abused by any clergy in the church, is encouraged to reach out to local law enforcement and the Diocesan Response Officer at (908) 930-4558 to report an offense or arrange for counseling assistance.

Related: Ex-Priest At Woodbridge Church Admits To Sexually Assaulting Teen