Survivors described decades of abuse, coverups, and lasting trauma while urging a federal judge to end the bankruptcy case, which is approaching its sixth year.
Rage. Humiliation. Guilt. Distrust.
These were among the words spoken Tuesday in U.S. District Court by survivors of clergy sexual abuse as they testified in the Diocese of Buffalo’s bankruptcy case.
Eleven survivors, some now in their 60s, delivered raw, sometimes graphic accounts of sexual abuse by priests and nuns of the Catholic Church. Dozens more are expected to testify through the week.
The abuse spans decades. More than 900 survivors filed claims against the Diocese and their abusers. A Vatican investigation previously found that former bishops shielded abusive priests and moved them from parish to parish.
Among those who testified was Paul Barr, an attorney who represents numerous survivors and who was abused in the early 1980s by the Rev. Michael Freeman.
“What we are doing here today is taking back our power,” Barr said. “We’re here to hold those responsible for our safety accountable.”
Many survivors described burying the memories for years, afraid to speak out or certain no one would believe them.
Gary Astridge said the Rev. Edward Townsend sexually abused him for four years beginning in 1963, when he was 7.
Like many survivors, Astridge said he initially turned to alcohol to escape the pain, but has been sober for 24 years. Astridge described how his abuser turned on all the showerheads so the noise would drown out his screams.
“It just changes the wiring in your head,” he said.
Astridge accused the Diocese leadership of “circling the wagon” to protect the church’s finances and the secrecy of widespread sexual abuse.
“I shut up then, but I’m not shutting up now,” Astridge said.
Richard Brownell said the Rev. John R. Aurelio sexually abused him in the parking lot after a hockey game in 1969. To this day, he still cannot watch hockey.
The former altar boy at the now-closed St. Gerard’s said he thought Aurelio was a “cool priest” who gave him alcohol and cannabis at a secluded cabin. The trauma that followed led to a childhood of turmoil — starting fires, breaking into train cars, being expelled from multiple schools, and running away at age 15.
“The Roman Catholic Church is to blame for all of this,” Brownell said.
Brownell said he repressed the memories for decades, until a 1992 TV news report about a priest raping a child in Lockport triggered everything. That was when he told his wife.
“I didn’t even realize what I was bearing,” Brownell said.
Ann Fossler was a parishioner at Queen of Heaven Church in West Seneca in the 1950s and early 1960s when she was abused by Monsignor John Ryan in his car and at his cabin. She was 6 years old.
She said she feared telling anyone, including her parents, under the belief that she or her family would go to hell if she spoke up.
“It has taken me 68 years, and I have finally found my voice and strengthened my spine,” Fossler said.
She criticized Diocesan leadership for hiring a public relations firm to burnish its image, and for creating a review board to evaluate allegations — a process she argued was not independent.
“At this point, my faith is dead,” she said.
Kevin Brun testified that the Rev. Art Smith first abused him in 1976 at a hotel in Washington, D.C., calling it “the beginning of the nightmare.”
Brun said he now considers it a “blessing in disguise” that he was asked to step down from the bankruptcy’s Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors after expressing frustration with the slow pace. Leaving the committee, he said, made him a stronger advocate for survivors.
He sharply criticized former Bishop Richard Malone and retired Auxiliary Bishop Edward Grosz for their roles in covering up decades of abuse. Neither was in court.
But he thanked Bishop Michael Fisher, appointed by Pope Francis in December 2020, for “having the guts” to appear in the courtroom.
“I want you and your predecessors to own what you did and the destruction you’ve caused,” Brun said.
Before the testimony, Fisher released a prepared statement, acknowledging the significance of the testimony he was about to hear.
“This is a long-awaited moment for those who have endured the devastating trauma of sexual abuse to speak and be heard,” Fisher said. “I will be listening intently with an empathetic heart and mind to these deeply personal accounts. It’s my hope that this opportunity provides victim-survivors a sense of justice, however painful it is for them to recount their experiences.”
A recurring theme throughout the day was a plea to Judge Carl Bucki to end the nearly six‑year bankruptcy process.
“Hopefully, it will come to an end, and I won’t need to think about it anymore,” said Michael DiGiulio, who was abused by Monsignor Joseph E. Schieder at the rectory of St. Andrew’s Roman Catholic Church.
In April 2025, the Diocese reached a $150 million settlement with survivors, portions of which will come from parishes. The settlement does not include funds from insurance carriers.
Barr also urged both Bucki and Fisher to end the bankruptcy process, noting that two of his clients have died before seeing a resolution.
“What are you going to do so I don’t have to lose another client before this comes to an end?” Barr said.
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