Credibly Accused

Search lists of U.S. Catholic clergy that have been deemed credibly accused of sexual abuse or misconduct.

Published Jan. 28, 2020

This database was last updated in January 2020 and should only be used as a historical snapshot of the lists published by dioceses and religious orders. There may be changes to those records that are not reflected here.

If you find an error in the data or would like to suggest changes, contact us.

Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska

John Copenhaver

Status: Retired in 2012; faculties revoked and public ministry restricted as of 2012

Appeared under the heading: “Diocese of Lincoln priests against whom substantiated allegations of childhood sexual abuse have been reported B.) Living priests (or status unknown) against whom substantiated allegations of childhood sexual abuse have been reported.”

Birth Year: Not reported

Ordination year: 1988

Reported assignment history:

St. John (Lincoln)
Pius X High School (Lincoln)
St. Michael (Fairbury)
St. Mary (Alexandria)
Sacred Heart (Shelby)
Aquinas High School (David City)
Saint Joseph (Superior)
Sacred Heart (Nelson)
St. Wenceslaus (Wahoo)
St. Cecilia (Hastings)
St. Patrick (McCook), Sacred Heart (McCook)
St. Ann (Hayes Center)
St. Catherine (Indianola)
Nursing Homes & Prison Ministry (Lincoln)

If you find an error in the data or would like to suggest changes, contact us.

Sources: U.S Catholic dioceses and religious orders, ProPublica reporting, Pontifical Yearbook (2019)

Data entry by: Tatyana Bellamy-Walker, Grace Haley, Samantha Maldonado, Spencer Norris, Anna Pouza, Lilia Saul

You can download this complete dataset at the ProPublica Data Store.