Prosecutors in Dayton, Ohio, will begin reviewing Catholic church files this week to determine whether they should pursue criminal charges against priests accused of sexual abuse.

        The Archdiocese of Cincinnati sent the files to prosecutors last week in response to a grand jury subpoena.

        Prosecutors had told the archdiocese to comply with the subpoena by Friday or risk a court order that would force Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk to testify before the grand jury.

        The arrival of the files means it is unlikely the archbishop will be called to testify anytime soon, if at all.

        “We're nowhere near that point,” said Jim Knight, spokesman for Montgomery County Prosecutor Mathias Heck Jr.

        Mr. Knight said prosecutors must now review the files and decide whether any of the allegations should be prosecuted as crimes.

        Prosecutors launched the grand jury investigation last month after church officials admitted that “fewer than five” priests continue to work in the 19-county archdiocese despite substantiated allegations of abuse.

        Hamilton County prosecutors also have launched an investigation and have given the archdiocese until June 3 to comply with a demand for records.

        Church officials have not identified the “fewer than five” priests, but on Monday they did provide more information about them.

        They said three of the priests still are at work in the archdiocese, one has been working overseas for 20 years and one is in semi-retirement.

        All of them are closely supervised and are under orders to stay away from children, said archdiocese spokesman Dan Andriacco.

        That list does not include two priests who more recently came under suspicion.

        The Rev. James Kiffmeyer took a leave of absence from Elder High School in Price Hill after an 18-year-old former student at another school accused him of inappropriate behavior. The Rev. Thomas Hopp was placed on leave from Queen of Martyrs parish in Dayton after he was accused of molesting a teen-age boy in the early 1980s.

        Mr. Knight said the Dayton prosecutors are unsure how many cases may be included in the files sent by the archdiocese, although Father Hopp's file should be among them.

        Even if some of the cases rise to the level of crimes, prosecutors may be unable to pursue charges because of the statute of limitations.

        The statute sets a time limit on the prosecution of crimes. The limit usually begins to run when the allegation is reported to a responsible adult or when the abused child turns 18.

        The statute for misdemeanors, or minor offenses, is two years. The statute for felonies is six years.

        A new law passed in 1999 adds 20 years to the time limit, but only if time had not already run out by 1999.

        In other words, if the victim turned 18 in 1993, the six-year limit would not have expired in 1999 and the deadline would be extended by 20 years. If the victim turned 18 in 1992, the statute would have expired by 1999 and the case could not be prosecuted.

        The statute already has been a problem for prosecutors in Shelby County, where Father Hopp was accused of molesting a boy in the early 1980s.

        Prosecutor Jim Stevenson said he could not pursue a felony charge against Father Hopp.

        “There's nothing we can do,” Mr. Stevenson said Monday.

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