Nashville Diocese Settles 1960s Abuse Case After Brief Trial

A federal jury in Nashville saw only one witness before a 1960s sexual abuse case settled for an undisclosed amount.

The dispute centered on Father Walter Emala, who worked in the Diocese of Nashville before moving to the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

Greg Valancius was nine years old when Emala allegedly abused him at Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish in Middle River, Maryland.

The Diocese of Nashville denied responsibility, arguing that the abuse occurred in Baltimore and that the Archdiocese there, which declared bankruptcy in 2023, should be held liable.

Plaintiff’s attorney Andrew Janet presented letters from the 1950s and 1960s to show the Diocese knew about Emala’s conduct.

A 1959 letter from Bishop William Adrien to Emala referenced a “scandal” involving a boy and warned that the priest could not be trusted with another pastorate without radical change.

Janet stated that the Diocese placed Emala on sick leave in 1959, a term he described as a euphemism for doctors’ warnings.

The Diocese continued to assign Emala local posts for eight years after that letter.

A 1967 letter cited by Janet noted that Emala tried to handle boys in a sexual way and suggested he be laicized.

In May 1968, the Diocese granted Emala a three-year leave of absence, framed as sick leave, while he retained his faculties.

Emala moved to Middle River, Maryland, and began working at Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish.

Valancius alleged that Emala asked him to stay overnight for a door-to-door envelope collection the next morning and entered his room naked while he slept. Valancius said the priest got into bed, held him tightly, and rubbed his penis against him twice that night. Valancius recalled other incidents at the church but did not tell his parents or anyone else for 55 years until documents surfaced in 2023. During his examination of Father John Hammond, Valancius’ attorneys showed the jury a document in which the chancellor of the Archdiocese of Baltimore asked the Diocese of Nashville if they had “anything in the secret archives pertaining to [Emala].” John Spragens, an attorney for Valancius, said the settlement allows Mr. Valancius to move on with his life without the burden and risk of continued litigation against the Diocese. Defense attorney Matthew Pietsch argued that the abuse did not happen in Tennessee and that Valancius has known about what he experienced his whole life. Pietsch noted that Emala died in 2008, leaving Valancius as the only living person involved who can testify. Janet told the jury that Valancius has struggled with self-esteem issues and a recurring nightmare of a boa constrictor squeezing him since his mid-40s. The case concluded on Tuesday morning, November 10, 2026, after the jury heard no other witnesses.