List of Memphis clergy 'credibly accused' of child sex abuse released by Catholic Diocese

By Katherine Burgess
Commercial Appeal
February 28, 2020

https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/2020/02/28/memphis-catholic-diocese-list-priests-sex-abuse/4903570002/

Bishop Carroll T. Dozier, of the Catholic Diocese of Memphis, in a file photo from May 21, 1971. Dozier is among the priests named in a new list of clergy credibly accused of child sex abuse. Photo by Richard Gardner

Months after promising survivors to release a list of clergy credibly accused of child abuse, the Catholic Diocese of Memphis has done so.

Its list includes 20 names. The list is predominantly made up of names already included in lists compiled by other dioceses or religious orders along with clergy named publicly by victims.

The two exceptions appear to be James Gilbert and Floyd Brey, who do not appear in ProPublica’s database compiling the lists released by dioceses and religious orders or on bishopaccountability.org, which lists accused clergy.

"We are heartbroken and deeply saddened for the victims of these crimes and we have been scandalized to learn that some of those in authority ignored the cries from victims or minimized the damage," wrote the Most Rev. David Talley, bishop of the Diocese of Memphis, in a letter accompanying the list. "...The evils of the past can only be purged through a vigilant process of examination that is transparent to the public. Our response must demonstrate the highest levels of honesty and scrutiny."

The list from the Catholic Diocese of Memphis comes after 178 other dioceses and orders covering 64.7 million Catholics released their own lists of credibly accused clergy, according to data gathered by ProPublica.

According to the report from the Diocesan Review Board, which compiled the list, the definition of sexual misconduct that they used "is broad" and "derived from Tennessee law and other sources, and generally prohibits ... all sexual contact, solicitation, lewd sexual behavior and conversation involving minors."

"The Board is charged to determine whether it is more likely than not that the accused cleric engaged in sexual misconduct involving a minor," the report reads. 

Since the Diocese of Memphis was created out of the Diocese of Nashville in 1970, the Diocesan Review Board did not repeat investigations into clergy ordained into the Diocese of Nashville. It later incardinated into the Diocese of Memphis, Talley wrote, but simply accepted the conclusions of Nashville's investigations.

Nashville released its list of 13 former priests who had been credibly accused in November 2018, which has since been updated.

Talley wrote that the same applied for clergy named on lists by other dioceses or religious orders. 

In his letter, Talley said the "most notable" name in this category is that of Carroll T. Dozier, the founding bishop of the Diocese of Memphis. 

Dozier was included on a list of clergy credibly accused of sexual abuse of a child by the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, Virginia, last year. He was assigned to three parishes there before being appointed the first bishop of the Diocese of Memphis after it separated from the Diocese of Nashville. The allegation of abuse was made after his death, but other details were not given.

Talley wrote that the Diocese of Memphis' files have no evidence of credible allegations made against Dozier in Memphis before his death or inclusion on the list in Richmond. 

"While the Diocese of Memphis will investigate all allegations that come forward against Bishop Dozier, such investigations will be essentially incomplete as Bishop Dozier will not have had an opportunity to defend himself," Talley wrote. "We recognize listing Bishop Dozier might be upsetting to some parishioners who remember him as our first Bishop. However, because of the Diocese of Richmond’s findings, placing his name on our list is appropriate.

Priests also named by the Diocese of Nashville:

The Rev. Edward James Cleary (deceased)

• Born: April 18, 1914
• Ordained: May 18, 1940
• Incardinated in Diocese of Memphis: January 6, 1971
• Died: November 10, 1997
• Assignments in West Tennessee: Immaculate Conception Church in Memphis, St. Paul Church

Msgr. William Floyd Davis (deceased)

• Born: August 17, 1929
• Ordained: May 26, 1956
• Incardinated in Diocese of Memphis: June 1, 1971
• Died: October 26, 2011
• Assignments in West Tennessee: St. William Church in Millington, St. Louis Church, Teacher at Catholic High School for Boys, St. John Church in Memphis, Blessed Sacrament Church, St. Mary’s Church, Savannah and Our Lady of the Lake, Pickwick

The Rev. Walter Emala (deceased)

• Born: June 14, 1925
• Ordained: May 31, 1952
• Incardinated in Diocese of Memphis: January 6, 1971
• Died: February 20, 2008
• Assignments in West Tennessee: St. Anne Church in Memphis, West Tennessee Area Scout Chaplain, Immaculate Conception Church in Memphis, St. Ann Church in Bartlett

The Paul Frederick Haas (deceased)

• Born: December 14, 1933
• Ordained: May 23, 1959
• Dismissed from priesthood: May 24, 1977
• Died: June 7, 1979
• Assignments in West Tennessee: St. John Church in Memphis, Teacher at Catholic High School for Boys, Sacred Heart Church in Memphis

The Rev. James A. Kemper (deceased)

• Born: February 7, 1915
• Ordained: March 21, 1942
• Died: November 23, 1993
• Assignments in West Tennessee: Holy Rosary Church, St. James Church

The Rev. James William Murphy Jr. (deceased)

• Born: September 12, 1922
• Ordained: April 3, 1948
• Incardinated in Diocese of Memphis: January 6, 1971
• Died: October 11, 2016
• Assignments in West Tennessee: Sacred Heart Church, St. Thomas Church, Director of the Ladies of Charity for West Tennessee, Immaculate Conception Church in Union City, St. Anthony Church, St. James Church

Joseph L. Reilly

• Born: December 16, 1928
• Ordained: May 26, 1956
• Dismissed from priesthood: 1965
• Assignment in West Tennessee: St. Michael Church

The Rev. James Arthur Rudisill (deceased)

• Born: May 16, 1926
• Ordained: May 19, 1951
• Died: February 8, 2008
• Assignments in West Tennessee: Sacred Heart Church in Memphis, Youth Director for West Tennessee, Holy Angels Church in Dyersburg

The Rev. Paul Wiley St. Charles (deceased)

• Born: June 23, 1939
• Ordained: May 21, 1966
• Incardinated in Diocese of Memphis: January 6, 1971
• Suspended: August 7, 2006
• Died: December 27, 2009
• Note: Allegations also found credible in a separate investigation by Memphis Review Board
• Assignments in West Tennessee: St. John Church, Chaplain for Scouting in the Memphis area, Director of the Catholic Youth Office in the Memphis area, teacher at Catholic High School, Church of the Ascension

The Rev. Anthony G. Stredny (deceased)

• Born: October 15, 1928
• Ordained: June 15, 1957
• Incardinated into the Diocese of Galveston-Houston: 1971
• Died: 2018
• Assignments in West Tennessee: Our Lady of Sorrows, Holy Rosary Church, Blessed Sacrament Church

The Rev. Edward Albert Walenga (deceased)

• Born: November 2, 1926
• Ordained: May 30, 1953
• Died: November 27, 1983
• Assignments in West Tennessee: Little Flower Church, Sacred Heart Church in Humboldt

Priests determined to have engaged in sexual misconduct before the formation of the Memphis Diocesan Review Board:

Daniel Dupree

• Born: June 30, 1956
• Ordained: July 14, 1984
• Suspended: March 3, 1992
• Dismissed from clerical state: March 31, 2006
• Assignments: Church of the Resurrection, St. Andrew Church in Lexington, St. Regina Church in Parsons, Christian Brothers High School, Associate Director of Jackson Deanery Youth Ministry

James Gilbert

• Born: July 11, 1931
• Ordained for the Diocese of Natchez (now Jackson): May 25, 1957
• Granted dispensations from clerical state: October 10, 1973
• Reinstated to clerical state for Diocese of Memphis: July 27, 1978
• Suspended: August 13, 1985
• Laicised: 2006
• Assignments in West Tennessee: Associate Professor of Education at LeMoyne-Owen College, Academic Dean of LeMoyne Owen College, Professor of Education at LeMoyne-Owen College, Teacher at State Technical Institute, Coordinator of Family Life Ministry for the Diocese of Memphis, Adjunct professor at Christian Brothers College, Blessed Sacrament Parish

Juan Carlos Duran (formerly O.P.)

• Born: August 3, 1960
• Ordained: December 28, 1996 (Dominican Order)
• Dismissed from Dominican Order: 2001
• Dismissed from clerical state: 2017
• Assignments in West Tennessee: St. Peter Church, Church of the Ascension

Priests determined by the Review Board to have credible allegations of sexual misconduct involving minors:

The Rev. William Kantner (deceased)

• Born: May 3, 1944
• Ordained: January 11, 1975
• Died: February 17, 2013
• Assignments: St. Paul Church, St. Louis Church, St. Anne Church, Bishop Byrne High School, St. Joseph Church, Holy Cross Church in Paris, St. Mary’s Church in Camden, St. Francis of Assisi Church, Charter Lakeside Hospital (part-time chaplain), Christian Brothers College (in residence), Church of the Incarnation in Collierville; St. Peter Manor and Villa (sacramental minister), St. James Catholic Church

Joseph Thinh Duc Nguyen

• Born: December 14, 1961
• Ordained: June 25, 1994
• Administrative leave: September 2006
• Suspended: July 23, 2007
• Dismissed from the clerical state: May 29, 2012
• Assignments: Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Germantown, St. Paul, St. Ann Church in Bartlett, Chaplain at St. Peter Manor and Villa, Sacramental Minister to the Vietnamese Catholic Community

References in the archives deemed credible by the Review Board: 

The Rev. Floyd Brey, S.J. (deceased)

• Born: March 24, 1904
• Ordained: June 23, 1935 (Society of Jesus)
• Died: December 14, 1996
• Assignment in West Tennessee: St. Mary’s Hospital in Humboldt in 1971

Allegations deemed credible by other review boards: 

The Rev. Thomas Joseph Dove, C.S.P. (Paulist Fathers)

• Born: March 2, 1934
• Ordained: May 1, 1961
• Suspended from ministry: November 2014
• Assignment in West Tennessee: St. Patrick Church
• [Finding of credibility made by Paulist Fathers]

The Most Rev. Carroll T. Dozier (deceased)

• Born: August 18, 1911
• Ordained a priest: March 19, 1937 (Diocese of Richmond)
• Ordained Bishop of Memphis: January 6, 1971
• Died: December 7, 1985
• Assignment: Bishop of Memphis
• [Finding of Credibility made by Diocese of Richmond]

The Rev. Alfred Longley (deceased)

• Born: September 17, 1913
• Ordained: 1939 Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis
• Removed from Ministry: 1968
• Died: 1974
• Assignment: Christian Brothers College 1965-1966* (Note this assignment is reported by the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis, though neither the Christian Brothers nor the Diocese of Nashville have any record of Fr. Longley ever having served in West Tennessee.)
• [Finding of credibility made by the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis]