Database of Publicly Accused

Monsignor. Died 7/4/2006. Named publicly as accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019.

Ordained in 1964 for the Pittsburgh diocese. Relocated to the Charleston diocese in 1980. Resigned from Holy Cross Parish in Pickens at the request of the bishop in 12/1993 after allegations that he had molested a child (per most accounts Bench was accused of abusing a boy, per at least one report his victim was a girl.)  In 2000 he asked to be reinstated and transferred to FL. The child's parents were consulted and strenuously objected. The bishop then denied Bench's request. Died 6/6/2009 in FL. Included on the diocese's list 3/29/2019.

Named publicly as credibly accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019. Died 3/20/1997.

Indicted in 7/1996, charged with the sexual abuse of minor in the 1970s. Resigned immediately after the Diocese learned of the charges and allowed "early retirement" without privileges. Ordered not to be alone with minors. Police also found child pornography in his possession. In 4/1998 he was sentenced to 5 years probation for committing lewd acts with boys in the 1970s. Arrested again in 1/2006 on similar charges. Retired in 2006. Charges dropped in 2/2009 because the victim's extensive legal, mental and sobriety issues kept him from testifying. Condon died 5/24/2014. Buried 05/28/2014. Included on the Diocese's 3/29/2019 list of credibly accused.

Ordained in 1956 in Hartford CT for the Diocese of Charleston. Retired in 1999. In 11/2002, Charleston police charged the 78-year-old with sexually molesting two girls while working at city churches and a local hospital in the 1950s. A third accuser came forward in 2/2003. Charges were  dropped in 2005 because of DuMouchel's dementia and inability to contribute to his own defense. He died 9/10/2006. Included on the Diocese's 3/29/2019 list of credibly accused. Named in a lawsuit against the Diocese filed by a man who claimed they knew DuMouchel was sexually abusing children. In 2/2021 a judge ruled against the plaintiff, who was also a victim of convicted priest Wayland Brown.

Arrested in 1994, charged with sexually abusing four brothers in the late 1970s. Released on personal recognizance. In 1995 he entered an Alford plea (did not admit to wrongdoing but felt evidence would result in conviction) and was sentenced to 10 years prison, suspended upon service of 5 years probation. Died 12/25/1995. The plaintiffs settled for $200K total but were denied permission to participate in a 2007 settlement.

Ordained in 1951 at Maryknoll Seminary for the Foreign Missions; sent to Peru. By 1952 Hopwood was in the Diocese of Charleston, SC, assigned as assistant chancellor. He also taught at Bishop England High School and was chaplain for the Citadel. He eventually became rector of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist and was elevated to monsignor. In 1984 he was assigned as pastor of a Greenville parish about the time the Diocese reportedly learned of an allegation. Hopwood resigned in 12/1993 after allegations became public. At least 10 men alleged sexual abuse by Hopwood. Criminal charges were filed in 1994. Hopwood leaded guilty 3/21/1994 to a lewd act on a minor for abuse of a St. John the Baptist Cathedral altar boy in 1970. He was sentenced to three years probation, treatment and 250 hours of public service. He died 4/30/2017. Included on the Diocese's 3/29/2019 list of credibly accused. A lawsuit filed in 1/2021 claims sexual abuse of a boy for two years in the mid-1970s, beginning when the boy was age 13 and a St. John's Church and Cathedral School student.

Named publicly as accused by the Charleston diocese on its list 3/29/2019. Subject of a settlement. Died 6/28/1999. Hubacz's obituary suggests that he had left the priesthood, as there is no title "Rev." or "Fr." It notes that he was retired from 18 years of service with the Department of Social Services and that he had served as a Catholic priest.

Ordained for the Archdiocese of Hartford. Transferred to the Diocese of Charleston in 1958, incardinated in 1959. Parish priest. Bishop England High School faculty member, rector of the school 1964-1990. Superintendent of Catholic Schools. Elevated to monsignor in 1991. Died in 2004. Accused in a lawsuit filed in 11/3/2021 of sexually abusing a young altar boy in the early 1990s, at St. Andrew's in Myrtle Beach. Kelly's accuser said the priest also abused other altar boys. A second man field suit in 1/2024, alleging abuse by Kelly as a St. Andrew's altar boy, also in the early 1990s.

Named publicly as accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019. Noted to be the subject of a settlement. Died 6/9/2017. Per his obituary, Kennedy was assigned in Columbia, Sumter, Charleston, North Charleston, Bonneau and Moncks Corner. Further, he later took a leave of absence and worked in "the alcohol and drug field" for 21 years.

Named publicly as accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019. Left the priesthood after 10 years, married and raised a family. Died in 4/1981.

Died 8/30/2004. Named publicly as credibly accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019.

Ordained for the Jesuits. The Official Catholic Directory drops the s.j. after Owens-Howard's name in its 1976 volume. He spent the rest of his priesthood in the Diocese of Charleston, having arrived there in about 1971 from the Diocese of Mobile AL. Arrested at some point on charges related to fondling an 8-year-old boy in a pool. Convicted in 2/1993. Apparently sentenced to five years in prison. Released in 4/1998. Registered sex offender in SC as of 6/2010. Died 12/01/2015. His death notice does not include "Rev." or "Father." Included on the Diocese's 3/29/2019 list of credibly accused.

Named publicly as accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019. Died 11/28/1973. Subject of a settlement.

Ryfinski was arrested in 6/2001 after a computer repairman found child pornography on his computer. He pleaded guilty in 3/2002 to one count of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and received a five year suspended sentence with three years probation. In 4/2007 he was laicized. On the SC Sex Offender Registry as of 1/3/2010. Included on the Diocese's list of credibly accused 3/29/2019.

Removed in 11/1994 after allegations that he was involved in sexual misconduct with a minor 30 years prior. Denied the allegations. Allowed to return to work by 1997. Assigned to a smaller parish and ordered not to be alone with children. Per a 6/2002 article, Seitz resigned "for health reasons." Included on the Diocese's 3/29/2019 list of credibly accused. Noted to have retired 6/1/2002 and to be "under restrictions." Died 8/12/2021.

Priest of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri in Rock Hill, SC. Died 11/28/1974. Named publicly as credibly accused by the Charleston Diocese on its list 3/29/2019.

Monsignor. Died 7/15/2010. Named publicly as credibly accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019.

Named publicly as accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019. Died 8/26/1998. Subject of a settlement.

Named as accused by the Diocese on its list 3/29/2019. Died 8/4/1980. Subject of a settlement.

Vaverek's privileges were removed in 3/2013 after allegations against him of sexual misconduct involving a minor more than 15 years prior, when he was pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes in Greenwood. In 1/2011, with permission of the bishop, he began working for Catholic Near East Welfare Association, a papal agency based in NY City. Vaverek was apparently in Rome when the allegations were made public. As of 4/23/2013 his accuser waived further criminal investigation, saying church punishment was enough. The Diocese was continuing its investigation. Vaverek was laicized in 5/2016. In 2017 he created a nonprofit for supporting priests "at a vocational crossroads" called Pax Bonum. Included on the diocese's 3/2019 list of credibly accused.

Assigned in the Archdioceses of Cincinnati, Chicago, and New York. Prior to ordination, worked as a deacon in Tanzania. Pastor of St. Mark the Evangelist Parish in Harlem in the NY archdiocese when arrested in 6/2017 for sexual abuse in 1982-1984 of two boys, ages 10 and 11-14, at St. Patrick's church in Charleston. Washington was a lay person and volunteer in his early 20s at the time of the alleged abuse. The boys were in training to be altar servers. The abuse was said to have included fondling and oral copulation. The Charleston diocese learned of the allegations in 2/2016 and contacted the Rockville Centre diocese. The Charleston diocese contacted Charleston police in 9/2016. The criminal case was dismissed in 2018. Listed on Xavier University in New Orleans' website in 6/2017 as associate professor of pastoral theology.  Included in 10/2022 on the Chicago Archdiocese's list of credibly accused; had been pastor of two Chicago parishes. Included in the 5/23/2023 IL Attorney General's Report. Washington's order, the Spiritans, contended in 2025 that the allegations were unsubstantiated. However, the order said that Washington was under constant monitoring and did not have unsupervised accessed to minors. He was living at a Spiritans retirement home in Bethel Park, PA.

Died 6/20/1962. Named publicly as credibly accused by the Diocese on its list updated 12/31/2019.