MIAMI (FL)
Miami Herald [Miami FL]
October 2, 2025
By Lauren Costantino
A new lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Miami has revived a notorious case involving a former Catholic priest convicted of a string of sex offenses more than a decade ago.
The most recent lawsuit, filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court in June, is only the latest accusing the Catholic Church of failing to protect multiple underage boys from ex-priest Father Neil Doherty, a serial sexual abuser who was employed by the Archdiocese as a priest from 1969 until 2002 when he was removed.
“He is probably the most prolific pedophile priest in U.S. history. He sexually abused, we think, thousands of kids over the course of about 40 years,” said Daniel Ellis, senior lead attorney at Herman Law, the firm representing a victim identified only as John Doe 8 to protect his privacy.
According to the lawsuit, Doherty groomed and raped the victim around 1995 when he was around 16 years old. The alleged abuse happened multiple times in Doherty’s residence in the mid-1990s.
The lawsuit comes decades after the abuse took place and after Doherty was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in Florida prison in 2013.
At least four other civil lawsuits naming seven plaintiffs (John Doe 1-7) have been filed against the Archdiocese in the past five years naming Doherty as the primary abuser and seeking “compensatory damages” for the years of inflicted “emotional distress.” The more recent cases against Doherty appear to have been settled, though the law firm would not discuss details of those settlements. In 2006, The Miami Herald reported that the church settled six civil suits involving, including two against Doherty, for $750,000.
In a statement to the Miami Herald, the Archdiocese said it is “in the process of responding to a lawsuit involving allegations of sexual abuse of a minor by a former priest that occurred over twenty-nine years ago.”
“As always, the Catholic Church’s concerns are for the victims and a prevailing sense of justice and healing,” the statement said.
The Archdiocese said that Doherty was “permanently removed from active ministry within the Archdiocese and the universal Catholic Church in April 2002,” and since the disgraced and defrocked priest has been named in multiple lawsuits.
“As is the Archdiocese’s practice, any allegation of sexual abuse of a minor by a priest is immediately reported to the appropriate State Attorney’s Office in Monroe, Miami-Dade, or Broward County,” the statement said.
How Florida handles old cases of sexual abuse
The lawsuit alleges that church leadership — under Archbishop Edward McCarthy at the time — knew about the accusations against Doherty, but “took no action against him” and kept him in his position as pastor at St. Vincent’s Catholic Church in Margate for years after allegations were made.
Doherty, according to the lawsuit, was given a psychological evaluation in the 1990s that indicated that he should not have any access to children. Other allegations were made against Doherty decades earlier, as well as reports from other clergy about his “inability” to live the lifestyle of a priest that were made prior to his ordination.
“The Archdiocese of Miami knew as early as 1958 that he was unsafe to be around children, and it’s really all documented,” Ellis said.
Lawsuits against Doherty came pouring in the early 2000s along with a 17-month Broward state attorney’s investigation against the ex-priest, following the nationwide clergy sex-abuse scandal that rocked the Catholic Church in 2002.
Doherty is one of at least 44 other priests that have been accused of sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Miami, according to bishopAccountability.org, a digital database that tracks clergy sexual abuse claims.
The Herald and other outlets wrote extensively about Doherty’s allegations until he was sentenced to 15 years behind bars in 2013 after pleading no contest to six counts of lewd and lascivious acts upon a child. Doherty served 10 of the 15 years and was released in 2023, according to Florida inmate records. He is now required to register as a sexual offender in the state of Florida and lives in Orlando as of 2023 according to the state’s sexual offender registry.
In 2010, Florida eliminated the statute of limitations for the criminal prosecution of sexual assault cases involving victims under the age of 16, but the statute is not retroactive. For civil claims, underage victims of abuse have until they are 25 years old, four years after they leave the abuser or four years from the time they make the connection between their abuse and the inflicted injuries (mental or physical) to take action. The lawsuit argues the latter, that the victim, John Doe 8, did not discover the injuries from the abuse until four years from the time of the filing.
“My client finally had the courage to come to terms with what happened to him and the impact it’s had on his life,” Ellis said. “A lot of survivors deal with certain injuries like depression and anxiety, and they haven’t ever figured out what was the cause of it. It doesn’t happen until much, much later in life.”
Doherty, according to Ellis, had an acute interest in psychology and worked for a number of years as a youth counselor in Miami. Under the guise of mental health counseling, Doherty would alleged “hypnotize” children, then drug them before the abuse took place. He preyed on children in the neighborhood, even when, as in John Doe 8’s case, they weren’t members of his own parish. Doherty allegedly invited John Doe 8 along with other children to play on the parish’s playground at their leisure.
“He started sort of acting like a mentor as well. He would give them money whenever they ask. They would get little odd jobs to do around the church, things like that,” Ellis said.
Catholic Church reckoning
More than two decades after the clergy sex abuse scandal shook the foundation of the Catholic Church in 2002, many Catholics are still concerned about clergy misconduct. A 2025 Pew Research survey shows that 62 percent of U.S. Catholics believe that clergy sex abuse is an ongoing problem compared to 31 percent that say it’s something that happened in the past and mostly doesn’t happen anymore. The vast majority, according to the same survey, have heard at least a little about sexual abuse and misconduct by Catholic priests and bishops.
In the years since the scandal and subsequent cover-ups, the Catholic Church has taken steps towards reform to crack down on abuse, including a range of “zero tolerance” policies to help remove abusive priests. In 2019, the late Pope Francis vowed to confront abusive clergy with “the wrath of God.” He passed a new law requiring all abuse to be reported in-house and mapped out ways to investigate bishops who abuse or protect priests accused of abuse.
Still, despite the reforms, some victims say the in-house process can re-traumatize them or make them feel like a whistle-blower, leading to more problems, according to the National Catholic Reporter.
Following the landmark meeting of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in Dallas in 2002 to address the growing scandal of clergy sexual abuse, the Archdiocese of Miami said it had implemented measures to protect children and vulnerable adults.
For example, clergy, teachers, and any employees with access to children now require a Level 2 background screenings—conducted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Additionally, all clergy, employees and teachers must complete trainings and receive monthly continuing education. Children attending Catholic schools or CCD programs within the Archdiocese are also given instruction on safe interactions between children and adults.
Anyone who has been a victim of abuse by Church personnel is encouraged to report it—either by contacting law enforcement, the Archdiocese of Miami’s hotline at 1-866-802-2873, or the Florida Department of Children and Families’ abuse hotline at 1-800-962-2873.
Lauren Costantino is a religion reporter for the Miami Herald funded with financial support from Trish and Dan Bell and from donors comprising the South Florida Jewish and Muslim Communities, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. The Miami Herald retains editorial control of all work. Since joining the Herald in 2021, Lauren has worked as an audience engagement producer, reaching new audiences through social media, podcasts and community-focused projects. She lives in Miami Beach with her cocker spaniel, Oliver.