Binzer had referred the complaints to law enforcement, who found no evidence of criminal activity. The alleged behavior, FOX19 NOW reports, involved a pattern of uninvited hugs, shoulder massages, patting of the leg above the knee and comments, all involving young boys.
Binzer did not, however, notify the archdiocesan personnel board or Archbishop Schnurr about the multiple complaints he had received against Drew. The allegations were also reportedly not recorded by Binzer in the priest's personnel file.
As head of priest personnel, Bishop Binzer was in charge of the process that considers requests and proposals for reassignment, in conjunction with the priest personnel board. Neither the board nor the archbishop were made aware of the multiple complaints against Drew, and the transfer was approved.
Archdiocesan Chancellor Fr. Steve Angi commissioned an internal investigation of Drew's behavior in Feb. 2019.
Citing a "pattern of behavior in contradiction to the Decree on Child Protection," Archbishop Schnurr removed Drew as pastor of St. Ignatius on July 23, 2019. The archdiocese said in August that neither the archdiocese, nor Cincinnati Archbishop Schnurr were aware of the eventual rape allegations at the time of Drew's removal.
On Aug. 6 Binzer resigned from the USCCB's committee on child and youth protection, which advises the bishops' conference on all matters related to safe environment policy and child protection. Binzer had been serving as the regional representative for the dioceses of Ohio and Michigan.
The revelation that Binzer internally withheld the allegations against Drew came just weeks after the USCCB met in Baltimore to adopt measures aimed at building processes to address episcopal misconduct or neglect, and the ongoing crisis of credibility widely perceived to overshadow ongoing work to eliminate sexual abuse from the Church.
These measures included a set of directives applying in the U.S. the new universal norms for investigating allegations against bishops promulgated by Pope Francis in Vos estis lux mundi and which came into force on June 1.
Archdiocesan officials told CNA Sept. 17 that a complete file on the case of Father Drew has been sent to the apostolic nuncio in Washington, DC, for transmission to the relevant curial departments, expected to include the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
A spokesperson for the archdiocese told CNA that a "full report" was sent to Rome via the nuncio on Aug. 30, and that Archbishop Schnurr "anticipates that the Vatican may order a full investigation" into the handling of the case.