Former Scranton priest defrocked for child sex abuse

A former priest accused of sexually abusing children in the Diocese of Scranton has been permanently defrocked, diocesan officials said today. The process authorized by the Catholic Church's disciplinary arm concluded against 76 year old Martin M. Boylan, more than eight years after the church first removed him from priestly ministry. That means that Boylan's official relationship with the Diocese of Scranton is permanently ended. He last worked at Saint Patrick Parish in West Scranton before he was placed on sabbatical in 2013.