WARSAW, Poland — In an unprecedented judicial proceeding, Bishop Andrzej Jeż of the Tarnow diocese stood trial Wednesday on charges of failing to promptly report sexual abuse allegations involving two priests under his ecclesiastical supervision. This landmark case represents the first criminal prosecution of a Polish bishop regarding mishandling of clergy abuse cases within his jurisdiction.
Prosecutors asserted that Bishop Jeż violated legal obligations by not immediately notifying authorities upon receiving credible information about alleged child sexual abuse committed by priests in his diocese. While the Catholic Church conducted internal investigations and eventually reported the priests to authorities, prosecutors maintain that Polish law mandates immediate reporting without delay upon receiving credible allegations.
The trial occurs against a backdrop of deteriorating public trust in Poland’s Catholic hierarchy, historically regarded as the nation’s moral compass for its inspirational role during foreign occupation and support of the anti-communist Solidarity movement in the 1980s. Decades of systemic abuse cover-ups have significantly damaged the institution’s credibility, despite Poland’s deep Catholic traditions that produced St. John Paul II.
Church superiors frequently face accusations of either ignoring abuse crimes or protecting offending priests by transferring them to new parishes once scandals emerge. A 2019 report from the Polish Episcopal Conference documented 382 sexual abuse complaints against priests filed between 1990 and 2018.
Bishop Jeż, who has served the southern Tarnow diocese since 2012, faces up to three years imprisonment if convicted. He maintains his innocence, claiming he notified authorities immediately after the church clarified the facts and once he became aware of his legal reporting obligations.
“I express my regret and apologies to all those who were harmed and to other people who suffered because of this, often including families,” Jeż stated in court on Wednesday.
The case highlights the unusual nature of prosecuting high-ranking church officials, even in nations that have confronted clergy abuse scandals. In a comparable 2019 case, Lyon Cardinal Philippe Barbarin faced conviction for covering up a priest’s sex crimes in France, though the ruling was overturned on appeal two years later.