Former Charlotte priest listed among credibly-accused clergy in the Diocese of Providence

CHARLOTTE (NC)
WBTV News

July 2, 2019

A former Catholic priest in Charlotte was listed among credibly-accused clergy in the Diocese of Providence in Rhode Island.

William Tanguay served the Diocese of Charlotte from 1995 to 2002, and worked with the Hmong Ministry.

Tanguay’s name was listed by the Diocese of Providence in Rhode Island where he also served for years.

He’s served in the church since 1969 and was removed from the ministry in 2002. The church did not detail any of the allegations, or if they’re based in Charlotte.

The Diocese of Providence released the list Monday and provided the following statement on its website.

At the direction of the Bishop, the Director of Compliance was tasked with conducting an independent, thorough and objective review of files dating back to 1950, a year used by many other dioceses as a benchmark. Many files were several decades old, and the Director was not the initial investigator. The Director reviewed all diocesan files compiled over seventy years, and employed his training and expertise as a twenty-three year State Police detective to make assessments and judgments regarding the available and developed evidence within the files. In some instances, the Director made additional inquiries to corroborate and bolster certain allegations. In some cases of his own choosing, the Director of Compliance consulted the Director of Outreach and Prevention and/or the Diocesan Review Board for further advice. In all instances, however, the Director of Compliance ultimately exercised his own independent, expert judgment in determining whether to place particular clergy on the list.

The Catholic Diocese of Charlotte has not yet released a full list of names of credibly-accused clergy, but the Diocese says they plan to release that list by the end of the year.

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