Assignment Record– Rev. Charles F. Stephney, c.pp.s

Summary of Case: Charles Stephney was a priest of the Society of the Precious Blood, ordained in 1980, or possibly earlier. He was assigned to St. Mark's parish and to a jail chaplaincy Cincinnati, OH. In late 1981 Stephney was investigated after teenage boys complained that the priest had made sexual advances toward them. Jail officials asked him to leave, and Stephney's Order sent him to Brooklyn, NY, for treatment. While in Brooklyn Stephney was assigned to Our Lady of the Presentation parish. Against the Society of the Precious Blood's orders, Stephney left Brooklyn and was later hired to assist accused priest, Rev. George Stallings, at St. Teresa's in Washington, DC. Stallings knew of Stephney's history, but told parishioners the priest had left his Order to care for his mother. Archbishop Hickey discovered the situation and twice told Stallings to fire Stephney. Stallings refused. In 1990 Stephney was known to be assisting Stallings at Imani Temple in DC, which Stallings established after breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church.

Ordained: 1980?

1980

Archdiocese of Cincinnati

Archbishop was Joseph Louis Bernardin (1972-1982).

Cincinnati

• Per news reports, Stephney was chaplain at a Cincinnati jail during this time. He was investigated in late 1981 after teenage boys complained that he had made sexual advances toward them.

St. Mark's had a school with 250-237 students.

Jail authorities asked Stephney to leave, and his Order sent him to Brookyn NY for treatment.

1982

Diocese of Brooklyn

Bishop was Francis Joseph Mugavero (1968-1990).

Stephney seems to be indexed only in the 1981-1984 Directories.

Stephney defied his Order and left Brooklyn for Baltimore at some point.

1987

Archdiocese of Washington DC

Archbishop was James Aloysius Hickey (1980-2000).

Stephney went to work in May 1987 for accused priest George Stallings.Stallings reportedly knew about the accusations against his new assistant, but told parishioners Stephney had left his Order to care for his mother. When archbishop Hickey discovered the situation he ordered Stallings in October 1987 to fire Stephney; Stallings did not. Hickey again ordered Stephney's dismissal in February 1988.

Stallings went on in 1989 to start his own, independent, church called "Imani Temple" in Washington DC. In April 1990 Stephney was working there as Stallings' assistant.

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Source: Official Catholic Directory (Kenedy & Sons, 1981-1984).

• Concerns About Stallings's Lifestyle Fueled Conflict, By Laura Sessions Stepp and Bill Dedman, The Washington Post, April 30, 1990
• Q&A with Imani Temple founder George A. Stallings, Jr., By By Hamil R. Harris and Mike DeBonis, The Washington Post, October 12, 2012

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Stepheny's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with the allegations against him, as reported in the media. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegations we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on February 13, 2017.