Reveal of 57 New Orleans Clergy Credibly Accused of Sexual Abuse a Major Step for Catholic Officials
By John Simerman, Ramon Antonio Vargas and Matt Sledge
New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond on Friday released the names of 57 former clergy members credibly accused of sexually abusing minors — the first such disclosure in the history of the Catholic Church in Louisiana. The list, released amid pressure from local Catholics and widespread demands for church transparency across the U.S., includes 34 clergy whose alleged abuses do not appear to have been previously exposed. According to Aymond, all 57 clergy were either removed from ministry as a result of the allegations or were already dead when the allegations arose. In all, the disgraced clergy served across a wide swath of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Alleged abusers worked at some time or another in about 125 schools, parishes and other church-operated facilities. That figure represents about 25 percent of all such facilities under the archdiocese in the 1970s, when the largest share of known clergy sex abuse took place. Many of the listed clergy served as modest parish priests or worked in local high schools while they allegedly preyed on children and young adults. But a select few were once pillars of the city. J. Donald Pearce served as president of Jesuit High School from 1965 to 1968 and was earlier a legendary disciplinarian at the school. It turns out he sexually abused minors in the 1960s, according to allegations the archdiocese deemed credible. The list was also provided to Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro's office, and it will be given to any other prosecutor who requests it, Aymond said in a letter accompanying the list's release. In an interview Friday, he said church officials "will totally cooperate in any way as law enforcement sees fit." The disclosure represents a major step for Catholic officials in New Orleans as they confront anew the worldwide scandal that reached a boil in Boston in 2002 and is roiling again, reignited by new allegations of cover-ups by national church leaders and the explosive Pennsylvania grand-jury report in July that detailed hundreds of cases of abuse in that state. In recent months, the scandal has led to the resignations of Cardinal Donald Wuerl and Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the current and former leaders of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. Attorneys general in 18 states and the District of Columbia have started investigations into the church's handling of sexual abuse allegations. Meanwhile, Pope Francis has seen his popularity in the U.S. tumble over the past year due to his response to the crisis. Aymond said he hoped releasing the list would restore a trust that he acknowledged has been grievously damaged. "I would describe it as historic, bold and important — pursuing justice, caring for victims and being transparent," Aymond said. “I stand behind this list. I’m totally convinced that it’s the right thing to do. And I’m totally convinced that we have acted with honesty and integrity,” he added. “I’m hoping through this that victims and survivors will find some healing that this has been publicly disclosed, that we have been transparent, we’re pursuing justice. The truth will set us free, as Jesus said." The archbishop's list includes former priests and deacons in the archdiocese and clergymen belonging to religious orders, such as the Jesuits and Redemptorists, who spent time in New Orleans' archdiocese. It does not include brothers, nuns, diocesan staff or lay employees of Catholic institutions. Can't see video below? Click here. At least 14 of the named priests remain alive, the list shows. The list includes 30 diocesan priests, two deacons and 25 priests in religious orders. Of the 25 religious-order priests, more than half belong to the Salesian and Jesuit orders, two of the most prominent orders in the archdiocese. The eight Salesians on the list all worked at Hope Haven and Madonna Manor, a pair of homes for troubled youth and orphans that was the site of a massive sex-abuse scandal dating to the 1970s. The result was a $5.2 million legal settlement paid out by the archdiocese in 2009. Two of those priests also had ties to Archbishop Shaw High School. Louis Cantero, a 66-year-old retired New Orleans cab driver, was among those who sued. Cantero said he suffered physical, sexual and emotional abuse at Madonna Manor as an 8- and 9-year-old in the late 1950s. For decades before news reports about abuse there surfaced in the mid-2000s, Cantero thought he was the only one who had suffered, he said. “I really think what they’re doing is a good start in the right direction,” he said. “It’s just the tip of the iceberg. Abuse with people in the Catholic Church goes back hundreds of years.” The six Jesuit priests on the list had ties either to the order's venerable Mid-City high school or its Uptown university, Loyola. In addition to Pearce, the former Jesuit High principal, the list included Bernard Knoth, who was Loyola's president from 1995 to 2003, when he resigned after the church deemed credible an allegation against him from 1986. The New Orleans list includes at least a dozen priests who were dead when they were publicly accused of sexually abusing minors. The release of those names marks a significant shift in how the archdiocese has viewed its obligation to disclose previous child sex abuse in the clergy under guidelines laid out in 2002 by the U.S. Conference of Bishops. The archdiocese had long considered the names of deceased priests who were accused of child sex abuse as exempt from disclosure. Resigning or retiring from the priesthood in the wake of sexual-abuse allegations didn't spare disgraced clergy from appearing on the list. Aymond said the abuse allegations were substantiated against all 57 listed clergy, regardless of why they left. For each priest and deacon, the list includes information on the year an allegation was received, the estimated time period of the alleged abuse, the cleric's work history in the archdiocese, and if he's alive or dead. The earliest allegation from the list came in 1917, accusing Pierre Celestin Cambiaire of abuse sometime in the 1910s. Cambiaire, who held pastoral assignments in Cameron, Baton Rouge, Grosse Tete and Leonville, died in 1955. But that case is an outlier: The list does not include any allegations dating to the 1920s or 1930s, and there are only a few cases from the 1940s and 1950s. The alleged abuses reached a crescendo in the 1970s and 1980s. The most recent alleged abuses from the list occurred in the 1990s, leading to the removal of two priests: Michael Fraser, who held pastoral assignments in Pearl River, New Orleans and Marrero, and Patrick Sanders, who worked in Belle Chasse, New Orleans, Metairie, Reserve and Pointe a la Hache. Fraser was removed from ministry in 2004 based on allegations that the archdiocese received in 1998. Sanders was removed from ministry in 2005 following allegations he'd abused two teenage boys. He was never charged criminally, and parishioners came to his defense with a massive letter-writing campaign. Sanders is now a lawyer in private practice. Aymond acknowledged that records of abuse from earlier decades were likely to be less thorough, both because of changing mores and improvements in record-keeping. “I think it’s important to note, as we have grown as human beings and professionals, our records are much more complete than they were in 1914,” he said. “Everything is in the file (now)." He also noted that child sex abuse was poorly understood. “Pedophilia was not defined until the late 70s and early 80s; before that, it was seen as treatable," Aymond said. "It was seen as something that could be cured. “And so in those days, it would not have been unusual to send a man to treatment. He would stay three or four months. He would then receive a letter and the bishop would receive a letter saying that he was fit for ministry; he was not a threat to children. I’m not trying to blame the psychologists and psychiatrists, but I think that’s a piece of the puzzle.” Aymond said “we assume” that scenario played out in the New Orleans archdiocese, but “we don’t know,” because those medical records aren’t contained in church files. Friday’s release marks the first time a Louisiana diocese has published a roster of child sex abusers among its clergy. Nearly a third of U.S. dioceses have released similar lists, although the extent of the disclosures varies. In most cases involving religious-order priests, the archdiocese says it was notified of the allegations but that leaders of those orders were responsible for investigating and disciplining their priests. Five other religious-order priests on the list, including Knoth and fellow Jesuit Charley Coyle, were taken out of ministry based on allegations from elsewhere. Cornelius Carr, their fellow Jesuit, was first investigated for abuse years ago by New York-based officials of his order, but it's not clear how that allegation was resolved. His inclusion in Friday's list appears to date to an allegation that first surfaced in 2012, when a man named Richard Windmann accused Carr of abusing him while Carr taught at Jesuit High in New Orleans in the 1970s and Windmann was a boy living nearby. Order officials deemed the allegation credible and settled for $450,000. According to the archdiocese, a team of 10 men and women spent "an extended period of time" reviewing more than 2,400 paper files on all clergy who were living after 1950. Terry McKiernan, founder of the watchdog site bishop-accountability.org, praised the archdiocese for releasing a list with dozens of previously undisclosed names. But he questioned Aymond’s decisions not to provide more detailed work histories and to keep hidden the number of accusers for each clergyman. “There are a lot of new names, and that’s a good thing,” McKiernan said, before adding: “If you’re not complete in summarizing a priest’s assignments, then you’re in a sense concealing information that is important in assessing the total risk involved with each of these men.” Some dioceses that have released lists of accused clergy have included summaries of the accusations of sexual abuse. Many also have provided dates for when an accused clergyman served in various posts. Aymond’s list includes each cleric’s pastoral assignments, but no dates for when they served at each post. “One telltale sign of a priest in trouble is someone who transferred a lot and doesn’t spend a lot of time in any parish,” McKiernan said. The archdiocese has previously released the names of a handful of accused priests under protocols set up by the U.S. Conference of Bishops in 2002. In 2003, then-Archbishop Alfred C. Hughes also released a tally of allegations against archdiocesan clergy deemed credible over the previous 50 years, without names. The number at that time was 10, according to Hughes’ report. But the list released Friday shows that at the time, there were 19 archdiocesan clergy members who had been removed from the ministry or had left it after a credible abuse allegation since 1950. The reasons for the disparity are not clear; they could owe to Aymond and Hughes defining their terms differently. Friday's list also suggests at least one glaring violation of the new transparency protocols announced in 2002, which called for credible allegations against clergy after that date to be made public. The list shows that Thomas Gaspard Glasgow, who had at least seven pastoral assignments across the New Orleans area, was removed from ministry in 2008, a year after the archdiocese received an allegation about abuse in the late 1970s. Hughes made no announcement at the time. Aymond said Friday that he could not say why the church had been silent in that case. “You certainly have an argument that they should have been released,” Aymond said. “They should have been. I can’t really respond to why. “What we do know is by this process … we’re exposing everything. So if there were some mistakes and mishaps that happened in the past, now they’re clarified.” At least four of the state’s six other dioceses are planning to release similar lists of disgraced priests and deacons in the coming weeks. It’s unclear if bishops in those dioceses intend to follow the same guidelines as Aymond. The latest attempt at a full accounting of the scandal figures to come at a price for the archdiocese. It is likely to spur fresh allegations of abuse at the hands of the listed clerics, invite lawsuits and leave other survivors to question why their abusers were not named. It is also likely to exhume painful memories for survivors of clergy sex abuse while forcing parishioners to confront jarring new revelations about their former religious leaders. Aymond has faced intense pressure to try and restore trust among local parishioners amid new reports of stubborn secrecy in the church. Dozens of bishops across the country have released similar lists, lurching toward transparency as law-enforcement officials initiate investigations and high-profile church leaders have resigned. While state attorneys general have opened cases and issued subpoenas for church records, no such sprawling investigation appears to be on the near horizon in Louisiana. Attorney General Jeff Landry has ruled out a broad probe into the church’s handling of clergy sex abuse claims, though he expressed a willingness to help local law enforcement investigate specific complaints. McKiernan said he expects more victims to come forward after seeing their abuser's name on the list, with fresh lawsuits to follow. But the impact goes well beyond those survivors, he said, breeding a wider angst among parishioners. “Sadly, there are many parents out there, they may never have really understood why their children had such a hard time, and they’re looking at this list,” he said. “There are just many, many sad stories encoded in this list.” FULL LIST: Name: Claude P. Boudreaux Position: Jesuit priest, teacher Served: Jesuit High School in New Orleans (1976-1977; 1980-2005) Age: Died in 2016 at age 91 Ordained: 1955 Est. time of abuse: n/a Allegation received: 2005 Removed from Ministry: 2005 Details: Boudreaux was removed from ministry in 2005 after the Jesuit order received what it deemed to be a credible report of the sexual abuse of a minor from more than three decades before, according to The Times-Picayune. The Jesuits released few other details, citing the victim’s right to privacy. Boudreaux, a native of Houma, was sent to live in an undisclosed location for medical treatment. Afterwards, Boudreaux lived at the Ignatius Residence in New Orleans, according to his obituary. When that home closed in 2013, he relocated to the St. Camillus Jesuit Community in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. Name: George Brignac Position: Diocesan deacon, teacher Served: St. John Vianney Prep School; Cabrini High School; Our Lady of the Rosary Parish (1976-88); St. Francis Cabrini School; St. Louise de Marillace School in Arabi; St. Matthew the Apostle in River Ridge; lector at St. Mary Magdalen Parish in Metairie (2016-2018) Age: 83 Ordained: 1976 Est. time of abuse: Late 1970s, early 1980s Allegation received: 1977 Removed from Ministry: 1988 Details: Archbishop Gregory Aymond said he was “utterly surprised and embarrassed” in July 2018 when he found out that Brignac, who was removed from ministry in 1988, was serving as a lay lector at St. Mary Magdalen Church in Metairie. More than 10 boys have accused Brignac of molesting them, with the claims spanning many years and multiple parishes and schools across New Orleans. In 2018, the archdiocese paid more than $500,000 to an accuser who said he was raped by Brignac between 1979 and 1982, when the deacon was the co-director of the altar boy program at Our Lady of the Rosary Parish. A pair of plaintiffs have since filed similar lawsuits, and others have claims which are in process. Brignac declined comment when contacted recently. He previously told The Advocate he was “attracted to children” and admitted to touching young boys, though he said it wasn’t for “immoral” purposes. Name: Paul Calamari Position: Diocesan priest Served: Our Lady of the Holy Rosary; Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Belle Chasse; St. Stanislaus School in Bay St. Louis, MS; St. Raphael; St. Rita; Holy Cross Church in Dover, DE; St. Mary of the Assumption in Hockemin, DE; St. Peter the Apostle in New Castle, DE; Archdiocese of New Orleans Age: 74 Ordained: 1980 Est. time of abuse: 1970s Allegation received: 2003 Removed from Ministry: 2003 Details: Calamari was accused of sexually abusing a minor before his ordination to the priesthood in 1980, according to The Times-Picayune. In addition to his service as a priest, he also spent time as the director of religious instruction for the archdiocese, the newspaper reported. He left the New Orleans area in 1997 for St. John Vianney Center in Pennsylvania, a psychiatric treatment facility for priests. Calamari had relocated to the Wilmington diocese in Delaware when he was removed from ministry in 2003. Church officials said they had received credible allegations against him. Public records suggest Calamari still lived in Delaware as of 2017. He couldn’t be reached for comment. A Clarion Herald article recently listed Calamari as a retired priest. The archdiocese said that means Calamari may still be receiving his share of the pension plan if he contributed to it. Name: Dino Cinel Position: Diocesan priest, professor Served: St. Rita (in residence 1979-1988), professor at Tulane University Age: Died in 2018 at 76 Ordained: 1966 Est. time of abuse: Late 1980s Allegation received: 1988 Removed from Ministry: 1988; Laicized (secularized) in 2010 Details: A native of Italy, Cinel was living in the St. Rita rectory in 1988 when another priest discovered a cache of child pornography and videotapes of Cinel having sex with young men, according to media reports. When the discovery was made public two years later, it sparked a protracted legal battle and allegations that then-District Attorney Harry Connick Sr., a St. Rita parishioner, hobbled his office’s efforts to prosecute the case. Connick denies improperly handling the matter. Cinel left the priesthood after the scandal broke, although he was not formally laicized, or stripped of his status as a member of the clergy, until 2010. Cinel’s life came to a violent end in Colombia in February 2018, when he was stabbed to death by an 18-year-old man who was also his lover. Name: Charles G. “Charley” Coyle Position: Jesuit priest Served: Center for Jesus the Lord (1980s); Jesuit High School (1960s); Holy Cross High School (1980s); St. Andrew the Apostle Church in Algiers; St. Cecilia Parish (in residence); St. Louise de Marillac in Arabi; St. Raphael; Tulane University Age: Died in 2015 at age 83 Ordained: 1965 Est. time of abuse: n/a Allegation received: n/a Removed from ministry: 2002 Details: Coyle was removed from ministry after being accused in a 2002 lawsuit of abusing two boys in the 1970s at Newton South High School outside Boston. At the time the allegations were made, Coyle worked and lived in New Orleans but was not attached to a parish. Coyle neither confirmed nor denied those claims, The Times-Picayune reported. Coyle worked at Jesuit in the 1960s. He also worked at St. Andrew the Apostle Church as well as at a spirituality center known as the Center for Jesus the Lord in the 1980s. Later, he lived at St. Cecilia Parish, serving as a chaplain at Holy Cross High School and Tulane University. He eventually served as a substitute for vacationing priests. He became the first known case in which a New Orleans priest was suspended following the abuse scandal in the Archdiocese of Boston in 2002. A second lawsuit filed in 2003 accused Coyle of sexually abusing a boy while Coyle was a seminarian in Baltimore, according to The Times-Picayune. Name: Michael Fraser Position: Diocesan priest Served: Sts. Peter and Paul in Pearl River; St. Raphael the Archangel; St. Rita Church; The Visitation of Our Lady in Marrero Age: 69 Ordained: 1975 Est. time of abuse: 1980s and 1990s Allegation received: 1998 Removed from Ministry: 2004 Details: Fraser was accused of abusing boys in the mid-1980s and in 1991 while at Sts. Peter and Paul, The Times-Picayune reported. Fraser was removed in 2004, after the archdiocese received the complaint with the accusations against Fraser from the mid-1980s. Fraser was the pastor at Visitation of Our Lady at the time. After his removal, a separate lawsuit which was settled accused him of abusing a boy at St. Raphael about 1983. He was among a group of priests removed from ministry following sexual abuse allegations who later sued Archbishop Alfred Hughes for defamation. He couldn’t be reached for comment. Name: Patrick Keane Position: Diocesan priest Served: St. Catherine of Siena in Metairie; St. Mary Magdalen in Metairie Age: 70 Ordained: 1973 Est. time of abuse: 1980s Allegation received: 1994 Removed from ministry: 1995 Details: A man who identified himself publicly as Patrick Collins told church officials in 1994 that as a teenager he’d been molested by Keane in the rectory of St. Mary Magdalen in the early 1980s, according to The Times-Picayune. Keane was an associate at St. Catherine of Siena at the time of the allegation. He was removed from ministry, left the priesthood, and admitted the abuse under oath in a 1999 deposition, according to a Times-Picayune story. A civil lawsuit involving the allegations was settled in 2003, records show. Attempts to contact him for comment were unsuccessful. Name: James Kilgour Position: Diocesan priest Served: *Our Lady of the Lake Church in Mandeville; St. Pius X Age: 72 Ordained: 1982 Est. time of abuse: 1980s Allegation received: 1987 Removed from Ministry: 1988 Details: Kilgour was accused of sexually abusing a 13-year-old altar boy in 1980 and 1981 at Our Lady of the Lake, according to The Times-Picayune. Three others were also accused of roles in the case. The archbishop did not list *Our Lady of the Lake as a work assignment, and Kilgour was not ordained until 1982. Kilgour was placed on leave in 1987, when a civil suit in the case was filed. He was working at St. Pius X at the time. He recently told The Advocate he did not return to the ministry. The suit was settled in April 1991, but Kilgour said he did not assume any responsibility for wrongdoing. Name: Gerard P. Kinane Position: Diocesan priest Served: St. Mark in Chalmette (1973-1978); Our Lady of the Lake in Grand Isle; St. Cecilia (in residence); St. Edward the Confessor in Metairie; St. Gabriel the Archangel; St. Henry; St. Hilary in Houma (1981-1985); St. Luke the Evangelist in Slidell (in residence 1999-2004); St. Mary’s Nativity in Raceland; Assumption Catholic Church in Jacksonville, FL; Mother Seton Catholic Church in Palm Springs, FL; St. John Catholic Church in Atlanta Beach, FL; St. Bernadette Church in Canadensis, PA Age: 73 Ordained: 1973 Est. time of abuse: 1970s and 1980s Allegation received: 1993 Removed from ministry: 2004 Details: A man came forward in 2004 to allege that Kinane sexually abused him in two incidents in 1973 and 1975 when he was a teenager and Kinane was an associate pastor at St. Mark, according to The Times-Picayune. One incident allegedly occurred in the church and another on a trip to the Honey Island Swamp near Slidell. The archbishop’s list, however, said the archdiocese received a complaint regarding Kinane in 1993. Kinane was eventually removed from ministry, but he continued to insist on his innocence in a defamation lawsuit against the archdiocese. The suit was dismissed in 2010. Kinane couldn’t be reached for comment. Name: Bernard Knoth Position: Jesuit priest Served: Loyola University New Orleans Age: 69 Ordained: 1977 Est. time of abuse: n/a Allegation received: n/a Removed from ministry: Around 2003 Details: Knoth resigned as president of Loyola in 2003 after being accused of sexually abusing a student at Brebeuf Jesuit Prep in Indianapolis in 1986, according to The Times-Picayune. He denied wrongdoing, but the order deemed the allegation credible, and he was removed from ministry. He later entered private business in Florida. The Archdiocese of Indianapolis included him on a publicly released list of clergy who had been credibly accused of sexually abusing a minor. Knoth recently told The Advocate, “I still stand with what I said when I resigned from Loyola. (The allegation) was untrue.” Name: Wesley Michael Landry Position: Diocesan priest Served: Christ the King in Gretna; Incarnate Word; St. Anthony in Gretna; St. Cecilia; St. Gabriel the Archangel; St. Joseph in Thibodaux; St. Leo the Great; St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Ordained: 1948 Est. time of abuse: Late 1950s Allegation received: 1993 Age: Died in 2002 at 78 Removed from ministry: 1993 Details: An accuser said Landry seduced him while he was an altar boy at Incarnate Word and continued a sexual relationship with him for 45 years, trading him money for sex, according to The Times-Picayune. Landry admitted to the relationship in 1993 and was removed from ministry. The archdiocese paid the accuser $7,000 that year for a release from liability, the Times-Picayune reported. Name: Richard Nowery Position: Holy Cross priest Served: Sacred Heart of Jesus Church Age: Died in April 2018 at age 80 Ordained: 1968 Est. time of abuse: n/a Allegation received: n/a Removed from ministry: 2002 Details: Nowery was accused in 1986 of sexually abusing two boys in Austin, Texas, according to The Times-Picayune. He underwent treatment and came back to church where he recruited clergy but was restricted from unsupervised access to children. After the 2002 church abuse scandal in Boston, the archdiocese reviewed Nowery's personnel file and removed him from ministry. He was the pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus in Mid-City. His case demonstrates how church policy changed after the scandal erupted in 2002. Name: Joseph Pellettieri Position: Redemptorist priest Served: Notre Dame High School in Crowley; Ave Maria Retreat House in Crown Point Age: Died in 2018 at age 79 Ordained: 1965 Est. time of abuse: n/a Allegation received: n/a Removed from ministry: 2002 Details: According to The Times-Picayune, an unidentified man contacted church officials in April 2002 and reported being sexually abused by Pellettieri when the victim was a minor in 1967. At the time in question, Pellettieri was a teacher and principal at Notre Dame High School, and the boy was described as the son of a janitor. After the allegation, Archbishop Alfred Hughes suspended Pellettieri, who was running the Ave Maria Retreat House in Crown Point. Pellettieri had also worked in Wisconsin, Alexandria and Baton Rouge. It is not clear if the Redemptorist order acted similarly. A lawsuit against Pellettieri was later dismissed on grounds of statute of limitations. He couldn’t be reached for comment. Name: Patrick B. Sanders Position: Diocesan priest Served: Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Belle Chasse; Resurrection of Our Lord; St. Angela Merici in Metairie; St. Frances Cabrini; St. Peter in Reserve; St. Thomas in Point-a-la-Hache Age: 55 Ordained: 1990 Est. time of abuse: 1990s Allegation received: 2004 Removed from ministry: 2005 Details: Sanders was sidelined from serving as a pastor in 2004 after two men came forward to report they were sexually abused as teenagers 11 years before, according to The Times-Picayune. In 2005, Archbishop Alfred Hughes announced that he had permanently removed Sanders from the priesthood after three hearing officers said they believed Sanders committed the abuse. At the time, he was the pastor at Our Lady of Perpetual Help and well-liked by his congregation. Public records suggest Sanders has since become an attorney. He declined to comment but has previously denied wrongdoing. Name: John C. Sax Position: Diocesan priest Served: Resurrection; St. Cecilia; St. Clement of Rome in Metairie; St. Francis of Assisi (in residence); St. Gabriel the Archangel; St. Jerome in Kenner; St. John of the Cross (in residence); St. Louis Cathedral; St. Peter in Reserve, St. Raphael; St. Rita; St. John Vianney Villa (a Marrero retirement home for priests) Age: 70 Ordained: 1973 Est. time of abuse: 1980s Allegation received: 2000 Removed From Ministry: 2004 Details: Sax admitted he molested an altar boy repeatedly between 1980 and 1985 at St. Peter’s, according to The Times-Picayune. The victim approached another priest in 2000, disclosed the abuse and was put in touch with a therapist. The victim sued. Sax was placed on leave when the allegations were first reported. He was removed from ministry in 2004 and was reportedly living in an undisclosed location, according to The Times-Picayune. Sax had helped the archdiocese draft a sex-abuse policy some seven years before his accuser came forward, the newspaper reported. Sax, who held the title of monsignor, did not return a message seeking comment. Name: Vincent Feehan Position: Diocesan priest Served: Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Belle Chasse; St. Anselm in Madisonville; St. Catherine of Siena in Metairie; St. Francis Cabrini; *Our Lady of the Lake in Mandeville Age: Died in 2010 at age 64 Ordained: 1977 Est. time of abuse: Late 1970s, early 1980s Allegation received: 1987 Removed from Ministry: Took a voluntary leave of absence in 1987 Details: Feehan was one of four priests accused of abusing an Our Lady of the Lake altar boy in 1980 and 1981, according to The Times-Picayune. However, the archdiocese did not list *Our Lady of the Lake as one of Feehan’s work assignments. The civil suit against the clergy members was settled in 1991. Name: Gerard “Jerry” Howell Position: Diocesan priest Served: Holy Trinity; Mater Dolorosa; Our Lady of Prompt Succor in Westwego; Prince of Peace in Chalmette; St. Gerard; St. Henry; St. Lawrence the Martyr in Kenner; Sts. Peter and Paul; St. Piux X in Baton Rouge Age: 79 Ordained: 1964 Est. time of abuse: 1960s and 1970s Allegation received: 1978 Removed from Ministry: 1980 Details: Howell and his brother, Fr. Rodney Howell, were accused of molesting students, apparently at a Baton Rouge school for the deaf during the 1970s. Among their accusers were Shari Bernius of Chalmette and Darlene Austin of New Orleans, according to a 2003 story in The Times-Picayune. The allegations surfaced in 1992, at which time Fr. Jerry Howell denied them. The archbishop’s list does not include Fr. Rodney Howell. Name: Bernard Schmaltz Position: Diocesan priest Served: Anunziata in Houma; St. Clement of Rome in Metairie; St. Francis Xavier in Metairie; St. Gabriel the Archangel; St. Rose of Lima (in residence) Age: Died in 2010 at age 62 Ordained: 1973 Est. time of abuse: 1970s Allegation received: 1993 Removed from ministry: 1993 Details: In a 1992 lawsuit, a man identified as John Gianoli accused Schmaltz of sexually molesting him as an eighth-grade student at St. Clement of Rome while on a fishing trip to Slidell, as well as at a rectory during the 1973-1974 school year. A judge later ruled that Gianoli had waited too long to file his lawsuit. Schmaltz professed his innocence but resigned his post as pastor of St. Gabriel and was removed from ministry in 2003. He eventually embarked on a career selling real estate in Mississippi, according to his obituary in The Times-Picayune. Schmaltz also denied wrongdoing in the face of claims of abuse stemming from his earlier days in the priesthood in Houma. He filed a defamation lawsuit in 2004 against Archbishop Alfred Hughes, who discussed allegations against Schmaltz at a news conference. It was not clear how the lawsuit was resolved. Also in 2004, the Vatican ordered Schmaltz to stand a church trial. It is possible for an accused clergy member to clear his name in such a proceeding, but the church keeps the outcome secret. Name: Benjamin L. Wren Position: Jesuit priest Served: Community of John the Evangelist; Loyola University New Orleans Age: Died in 2006 at age 75 Ordained: 1961 Est. time of abuse: Late 1970s; early 1980s Allegation received: 2016 Removed from Ministry: Was deceased when allegation surfaced Details: Wren spent time at Jesuit high schools in New Orleans, Dallas and El Paso, Texas, before spending 35 years teaching Asian History and Zen classes at Loyola University in New Orleans. He left the priesthood in 1996 and married. Wren died 10 years later. In 2006, he was accused in a lawsuit of raping the granddaughter of a co-worker on Loyola’s campus on hundreds of occasions over seven years beginning in 1978, when the girl was 5. The man many on Loyola’s campus affectionately called “Zen Ben Wren” allegedly threatened the victim with death and damnation if she told anyone what he was doing. Loyola and church officials settled the case in July for what was described as a “significant” amount. Name: Cornelius “Neil” Carr Position: Jesuit priest Served: Provincial of Jesuits’ New York Province (1966); principal of McQuaid High School in Rochester, New York (1960-64); Jesuit High School (1976-1980); principal of St. Peter’s Prep in Jersey City, New Jersey; Archdiocese of Florida, 1981-2005 Age: Died about 2012 Ordained: 1951 Est. time of abuse: Late 1970s; early 1980s Allegation received: 2018 via media reports Removed from Ministry: n/a, but deceased at time of media reports Details: News reports in Florida and New York in 2006 said the Jesuit order was investigating Carr for allegations of child abuse. He was accused of walking in on janitor Peter Modica raping an adolescent boy at Jesuit High School in New Orleans in the 1970s, and joining in the abuse by masturbating. The school and order paid a $450,000 settlement after the alleged victim, Richard Windmann, filed suit. An audio recording captured Jesuit’s president at the time describing Windmann’s claim as credible. Carr spent his last days at a Jesuit residence hall at Fordham University in the Bronx. Name: Gerald Prinz Position: Diocesan priest Served: St. Frances de Sales in Houma; St. Gregory Barbarigo in Houma Age: 79 Ordained: 1968 Est. time of abuse: 1970s Allegation received: 1995 Removed from Ministry: Resigned in 1990 Details: A 1995 lawsuit accused Prinz of abusing an underage boy in 1973 and 1978, who repressed the memory until 1994, according to The Times-Picayune. The lawsuit apparently was the first of its kind to survive challenges alleging that it was filed after a statute of limitations had lapsed, the newspaper said. The state Supreme Court ruled that the case could proceed to trial, but its disposition wasn’t immediately clear. Prinz left the priesthood before the late 1980s and at one point was living in Metairie. Name: Ernest Faggioni Position: Salesian priest Served: Hope Haven orphanage in Marrero (1940-43, 1950-59, 1963-66); treasurer of Archbishop Shaw High School in Marrero (1966-74); assistant pastor at St. John Bosco Church in Harvey (1988-2000), Salesian High School in New Rochelle, NY. Age: Died in 2006 at 88. Ordained: 1947 Est. time of abuse: 1950s; 1960s Allegation received: 2006 Removed from Ministry: n/a, but died the same year allegation received. Details: Faggioni was born in Sao Paolo, Brazil and served as a priest for 59 years. He is believed to be the subject of at least one claim that was part of a roughly $5.2 million settlement in 2009 related to abuse at the Hope Haven and Madonna Manor orphanages on the West Bank. There he worked as a teacher, principal and treasurer, according to his obituary. Name: August Kita Position: Salesian priest Age: Died in 2008 at age 77 Served: Hope Haven in Marrero; Archbishop Shaw High School in Marrero (1962-1967) Ordained: 1960 Est. time of abuse: 1960s; 1970s Allegation received: 2006 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Kita was one of several men accused of abuse at the Hope Haven and Madonna Manor orphanages in Marrero, according to the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests. The archdiocese settled legal claims about abuse there for $5.2 million in 2009, but the specific allegations against Kita are unknown. Kita remained in good standing with the church and continued to have a long career in religious education and as a pastor in other states before his death in New York in 2008. Name: Malcolm Strassel Position: Diocesan priest, Monsignor Served: Holy Rosary Church in St. Amant; Our Lady of Lourdes; Sacred Heart in LaCombe; St. Agnes in Baton Rouge; St. Charles Borromeo in Destrehan; St. Joseph in Gretna; St. Mary Pamela in Raceland Age: Died in 1987 at age 79 Ordained: 1934 Est. time of abuse: Late 1960s; early 1970s Allegation received: 2006 Removed from Ministry: n/a, but died before 2006 allegation Details: A 2009 lawsuit accused Strassel of fondling a boy while working at Our Lady of Lourdes in Uptown between 1969 and 1971. The Archdiocese settled the lawsuit, the plaintiff’s attorney said. The attorney alleged that the statute of limitations had not lapsed in the case because the traumatized victim had suppressed memory of the abuse and the church had worked to cover it up. Name: Carl Davidson Position: Diocesan priest Served: Annunciation; St. James Major; St. John Vianney Prep School; St. Raphael the Archangel; St. Theresa of the Child Jesus; musician and accompanist for St. Louis Cathedral boys choir Age: Died in 2007 at age 67 Ordained: 1964 Est. time of abuse: Early 1980s Allegation received: 1989 Removed from Ministry: 2002 Details: According to 2004 articles in the Times-Picayune, a man claimed Davidson tried to molest him years earlier when the victim was a boy. The accuser said he and a second victim went to the archdiocese in 2002 and complained, resulting in Davidson’s removal and retirement from ministry. But, according to The Times-Picayune, that action wasn’t publicly discussed until 2004, an apparent violation of guidelines to disclose such matters following the Boston scandal two years earlier. The archbishop’s list says the first allegation against Davidson was received in 1989. Name: Michael Farino Position: Diocesan priest Served: Our Lady of Prompt Succor, Chalmette; St. Benilde in Metairie; St. Maurice Age: 75 or 76 Ordained: 1969 Est. time of abuse: 1970s and 1980s Allegation received: 1990 Removed from Ministry: 1990 Details: The archdiocese says Farino is alive and was accused of sexually abusing a minor in 1990, which led to his removal from ministry. Further details are unknown. Name: Timothy Gaspard Glasgow Position: Diocesan priest Served: Mater Dolorosa; St. Brigid; St. Gabriel; St. James Major; St. John the Baptist in Edgard; St. Philip the Apostle; St. Simon Peter Age: 79 or 80 Ordained: 1969 Est. time of abuse: Late 1970s Allegation received: 2007 Removed from Ministry: 2008 Details: The archdiocese says Glasgow is alive and was accused in 2007 of sexually abusing a minor the late 1970s, which led to his removal from ministry. Further details are unknown. Glasgow could not be reached for comment. Name: James Lockwood Position: Deacon Served: Center of Jesus the Lord; Our Lady of Prompt Succor in Chalmette Age: 85 Ordained: 1974 Est. time of abuse: Late 1970s Allegation received: 1978 Removed from Ministry: 1978 Details: The archdiocese said Lockwood is alive and was accused in 1978 of sexually abusing a minor, which led to his removal from ministry. Further details are unknown. He could not be reached for comment. Name: John Basty Position: Diocesan priest Served: St. Augustine; St. Charles Borromeo in Destrehan; Sts. Peter and Paul; St. Vincent de Paul Age: Died in 1956 at 73 or 74 Ordained: 1908 Est. time of abuse: 1940s Allegation received: 1946 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Basty admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor, according to the archdiocese. He laid the cornerstone and served as the pastor for St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church from 1918-1949, which means he continued to serve after an abuse allegation was received. The parish school began educating students under his watch in 1929. Further details are unknown. Name: James Benedict Position: Diocesan priest Served: Mater Dolorosa Church; Our Lady of Lourdes; St. Augustine Church; St. Henry Church; Ursuline Convent and Ursuline Academy Age: Died in 1984 at 70 or 71 Ordained: 1939 Est. time of abuse: Late 1950s Allegation received: 2003 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Basty admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown, although it came nearly two decades after his death, the archdiocese said. Name: Pierre Celestin Cambiaire Position: Diocesan priest Served: Sacred Heart of Jesus in Cameron; St. George in Baton Rouge; St. Joseph in Grosse-Tete; St. Leon in Leonville Age: Died in 1955 at 83 or 84 Ordained: 1898 Est. time of abuse: Late 1910s Allegation received: 1917 Removed from Ministry: 1917 Details: Cambiaire admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor in 1917 and was removed from ministry that same year, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown. Name: John Franklin Position: Diocesan priest of Savannah serving in New Orleans Served: Ascension in Donaldsonville; St. Gabriel Age: Born in 1925, date of death unknown Ordained: 1956 Est. time of abuse: Late 1950s Allegation received: 1959 Removed from Ministry: 1959 Details: Franklin admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor in 1959 and was removed from ministry that same year, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown. The archdiocese says he is deceased. Name: Howard Hotard Position: Diocesan priest Served: Our Lady of Lourdes in Slidell; Sacred Heart Church in Lacombe; St. Catherine of Siena in Metairie; St. Charles Borromeo in Destrehan; St. Mary Pamela in Raceland; St. Matthias in New Orleans Age: Died in 2013 at 87 Ordained: 1955 Est. time of abuse: Early 1980s Allegation received: 1995 Removed from Ministry: 2002 Details: Hotard admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown. He continued to serve in the ministry for seven years after the allegation was received. Name: Michael Hurley Position: Diocesan priest Served: Immaculate Conception Church in Marrero; St. Agnes in Baton Rouge; St. Francis de Sales in Houma; St. Maurice; Sts. Peter and Paul Age: Died in 2005 at 89 or 90 Ordained: 1943 Est. time of abuse: 1940s Allegation received: 1945 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Hurley admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown. He left the archdiocese in 1955, although the archdiocese did not provide details on whether he was removed from ministry or went to another region at the time. Name: James Kircher Position: Diocesan priest of Jackson, Mississippi in residence in New Orleans Served: St. Julian Eymard in Algiers (in residence) Age: Died in 2007 at 76 Ordained: 1963 Est. time of abuse: 1970s Allegation received: 2010 Removed from Ministry: 1991 Details: Four men accused Kircher of abuse in the diocese of Jackson, Mississippi from the mid-1970s to 1984 in a 2002 lawsuit, according to press reports. A judge said in one order that the church hierarchy was “involved in a cover-up of massive proportions.” Another allegation of abuse in New Orleans was received in 2010, according to the archdiocese. Name: Ralph Lawrence Position: Diocesan priest Served: Mater Dolorosa; Our Lady of Good Harbor in Buras; Our Lady of Lourdes in Winnfield; Sacred Heart Church in Rayville; St. Anthony in Baton Rouge Age: Died in 1992 at 101 or 102 Ordained: 1916 Est. time of abuse: Early 1930s Allegation received: 1935 Removed from Ministry: Took a “leave of absence” in 1935 Details: Lawrence admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor in 1935 and he took a leave of absence that same year, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown. Name: Gorham Joseph Putnam Position: Diocesan priest Served: St. Agnes in Jefferson; St. Andrew the Apostle; St. Francis de Sales; St. John the Baptist in Edgard; St. Rita Church Age: Died in 1993 at 63 or 64 Ordained: 1955 Est. time of abuse: Early 1950s Allegation received: 2002 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Putnam admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown. Name: John Seery Position: Diocesan priest Served: Our Lady of Prompt Succor in Westwego Age: Died in 2011 at 57 or 58 Ordained: 1976 Est. time of abuse: Late 1970s Allegation received: 1978 Removed from Ministry: Left the United States in 1978 Details: Seery admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown. Name: John Thomann Position: Diocesan priest Served: Our Lady of Lourdes; Our Lady of Prompt Succor; Resurrection of Our Lord; St. Charles Borromeo Church in Destrehan; St. Frances Cabrini; St. Henry; St. Joseph Church in Gretna; St. Joseph in Galliano; St. Leo the Great; St. Rose of Lima Church Age: Died in 1989 at 58 or 59 Ordained: 1958 Est. time of abuse: 1960s Allegation received: 1966 Removed from Ministry: 1967 Details: Thomann admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation are unknown. Name: John Weber Position: Diocesan priest Served: Assumption Parish in Plattenville; Holy Trinity; St. Ann in Morganza; St. Eloi in Theriot; St. Rita Age: Died in 2000 at 81 Ordained: 1945 Est. time of abuse: 1940s Allegation received: 2005 Removed from Ministry: Transferred to Diocese of Baton Rouge in 1961 Details: Weber admitted to or was publicly accused of sexually abusing a minor, according to the archdiocese. Further details about the allegation, which came after his death, are unknown. Name: Paul Avallone Position: Salesian priest Served: Archbishop Shaw High School in Marrero; Hope Haven in Marrero Age: Died in 2008 at 86 Ordained: 1950 Est. time of abuse: Late 1950s, early 1960s Allegation received: 2011 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Avallone founded and oversaw Archbishop Shaw High School in Marrero as principal from 1962 to 1968. It’s not known whether he is accused of abusing a minor there or at Hope Haven, an orphanage that was the center of a large group of abuse allegations in the 1960s. The archdiocese said it received a notification of the allegation from his religious order in 2011. An obituary in the Times-Picayune said Avallone had an “easy personality” that gave rise to his nickname “Papa.” He died at the St. Vincent's Nursing Home in New Jersey. Name: Patrick Brady Position: Dominican priest Served: St. Anthony of Padua Age: Died in 1999, age unknown Ordained: Unknown Est. time of abuse: 1960s, 1970s Allegation received: 2002 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Brady was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Further details are unknown. Name: Stanislaus Ceglar Position: Dominican priest Served: Hope Haven in Marrero Age: Died in 1999, age unknown Ordained: Unknown Est. time of abuse: 1960s Allegation received: 2010 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Ceglar was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Hope Haven, an orphanage, was the site of a cluster of allegations made in the 2000s, although his name has not previously surfaced. Name: Paul Csik Position: Salesian priest Served: Hope Haven in Marrero Age: Died in 1970 at 71 or 72 Ordained: Unknown Est. time of abuse: 1960s Allegation received: 2010 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: A native of Hungary, Csik was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Hope Haven, an orphanage, was the site of a cluster of allegations made in the 2000s, although Csik’s name had not previously surfaced. Csik served as superior in the 1960s, according to newspaper archives. Name: James Collery Position: Holy Ghost priest Served: St. Ann in Metairie Age: Died in 1987 at 66 or 67 Ordained: 1948 Est. time of abuse: Early 1980s Allegation received: 2013 Removed from Ministry: N/A Details: Collery was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Further details are unknown. Name: Jerome Ducote Position: Benedictine priest Served: St. Joseph Abbey in St. Benedict Age: Died in 2006 at 76 or 77 Ordained: 1954 Est. time of abuse: Early 1960s Allegation received: 2002 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Ducote was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Further details are unknown. Name: Anthony Esposito Position: Salesian priest Served: Hope Haven in Marrero Age: Unknown Ordained: 1954 Est. time of abuse: 1950s, 1960s Allegation received: 2006 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Esposito was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Hope Haven, an orphanage, was the site of a cluster of allegations made in the 2000s, although Esposito’s name had not previously surfaced. Name: Justin Faler Position: Benedictine priest Served: Annunciation in Bogalusa; St. Benedict in St. Benedict; St. Christopher in Metairie; St. Jane de Chantal in Abita Springs; St. Joseph Abbey in St. Benedict Age: Died in 1979 at 59 or 60 Ordained: 1945 Est. time of abuse: Late 1950s Allegation received: 2002 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Faler was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Further details are unknown. Name: Andrew Masters Position: Divine Word Missionaries Served: Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Belle Chasse; St. Augustine Age: Unknown Ordained: Unknown Est. time of abuse: Unknown Allegation received: 1993 Removed from Ministry: Unknown Details: Masters was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Further details, including whether he was removed from the ministry, are unknown. Name: Joseph Pankowski Position: Salesian priest Served: Hope Haven in Marrero Age: Died in 1981 at age 66 Ordained: Unknown Est. time of abuse: 1940s, 1950s Allegation received: 2006 Removed from Ministry: Unknown Details: Pankowski was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Hope Haven, an orphanage, was the site of a cluster of allegations made in the 2000s, although Pankowski’s name had not previously surfaced. He died in Ramsey, New Jersey. Name: Alfred Pimple Position: Franciscan priest Served: St. Mary of the Angels; St. Patrick in Port Sulphur Age: Died in 1983 at 71 or 72 Ordained: 1938 Est. time of abuse: Late 1950s Allegation received: 1959 Removed from Ministry: Unknown Details: Pimple was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Further details are unknown. Name: William Miller Position: Redemptorist priest Served: St. Alphonsus Age: Died in 1972 at 75 or 76 Ordained: 1922 Est. time of abuse: Late 1940s Allegation received: 1946 Removed from Ministry: Unknown Details: Miller was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Further details are unknown. Name: Donald Pearce Position: Jesuit priest Served: Jesuit High School, New Orleans (1960-'68) Age: Died in 2016 at 90 or 91 Ordained: 1959 Est. time of abuse: 1960s Allegation received: 2003 Removed from Ministry: Unknown Details: Pearce, the president of Jesuit High School from 1965 to 1968, was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. The archdiocese said it received notification of the allegation from his order in 2010, seven years after it was made. Further details are unknown. Name: Alfred Sokol Position: Salesian priest Served: Hope Haven in Marrero Age: Died in 2004 at 92 or 93 Ordained: 1947 Est. time of abuse: 1960s, 1970s Allegation received: 2006 Removed from Ministry: n/a Details: Sokol, a New York native, was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Hope Haven, an orphanage, was the site of a cluster of allegations made in the 2000s, although Sokol’s name had not previously surfaced. An obituary said he served at Hope Haven from 1948 to 1950. He spent most of his career in New Jersey and died there. Name: Roger Temme Position: Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate priest Served: Ave Maria Retreat House in Lafitte; Our Lady of Guadalupe Age: Born in 1947 Ordained: 1976 Est. time of abuse: Late 1970s Allegation received: 1995 Removed from Ministry: Unknown Details: Temme was serving in the archdiocese at the time the abuse allegedly occurred. Further details are unknown. Temme, who has left the priesthood, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Name: Bryan Fontenot Position: Dominican priest Served: Xavier University in New Orleans Age: Born in 1953 Ordained: 1981 Est. time of abuse: Unknown Allegation received: Unknown Removed from Ministry: 2002 Details: Fontenot was serving in the archdiocese in 2002 when Archbishop Alfred Hughes removed him from ministry. However, the archdiocese said the abuse was not alleged to have occured in New Orleans. Name: Lawrence Hecker Position: Diocesan priest Served: Christ the King in Terrytown; Holy Family in Luling; Holy Rosary; Our Lady of Lourdes; St. Anthony in Luling; St. Bernadette in Houma; St. Charles Borromeo (in residence); St. Frances Cabrini; St. Francis Xavier in Metairie; St. Joseph in Gretna; St. Louise de Marillac in Arabi; St. Mary in New Roads; St. Theresa of Child Jesus Age: 86 or 87 Ordained: 1958 Est. time of abuse: Late 1960s, 1970s Allegation received: 1996 Removed from ministry: 2002 Details: The archdiocese said a credible accusation of abuse led to Hecker's removal from ministry in 2002. Further details are unknown. He could not be reached for immediate comment.
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