ILLINOIS
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JOLIET, IL — A former Joliet priest accused of sexual abuse in 2010 has died.
Father Francis Lee Ryan passed away Friday, Sept. 2. He was a resident at Watseka at the time of his death, according to his obituary. He was 83.
The alleged sexual abuse began in the 1970s when the then 14-year-old boy was a student at Providence Catholic High School, according to a Chicago Tribune article. The abuse lasted more than a year.
When news of the abuse broke in 2010, Joliet Diocese Bishop Daniel Conlon originally removed Ryan from ministry. Two years later, Conlon reversed his decision to allow Ryan to do “limited religious work by ministering to homebound parishioners in Watseka and Crescent City.” Conlon again reversed this decision a week later.
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