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Assignment Record– Rev. B. Samuel Turillo/Biagio Turillo

Summary of Case: B. Samuel Turillo was ordained for the Diocese of Providence in 1946. He assisted in parishes in Warwick, Providence, West Warwick, Cranston, Barrington and Woonsocket, and he served as a hospital chaplain. In 1971 he was named pastor of St. Joseph's in Hope Valley, followed in 1979 by Sacred in West Warwick. He retired in 1994. In June 2016 the diocese announced that Turillo was "prohibited from exercising the sacred ministry" due to a credible allegation against him of sexual misconduct with a minor which occurred about 60 years previously.

Ordained: 1946
Retired: 1994


     

Start Stop Assignments Town/Accusations State Position Notes

1946

Diocese of Providence

Bishop was Francis Patrick Keough (1934-1947).

1946 St. Benedict Warwick RI  

Assignment is per diocese.

1946

Keough was succeeded by Russell Joseph McVinney (1948-1971).

1948 St. Patrick's Providence RI 4/4 Referred to as Biagio Turillo. St. Patrick's had a grade school with 286 boys and 303 girls, and a high school with 202 girls.
1948 1953 Sacred Heart Natick (West Warwick) RI 2/2  
1953 1954 Santa Maria della Civita/St. Mary's Cranston RI 2/2  
1954 1962 Holy Angels

Barrington

Accused in 6/16 of sexually abusing a minor about 60 years previously. The diocese deemed the allegation credible.

RI 2/2  
1962 1962 St. Joseph Hospital Providence RI   Assignment is per diocese.
1962 1965 St. Anthony's Woonsocket RI 2/2  
1965 1971 St. Ann's Providence RI 3/4, 2/4, 2/3 St. Ann's had a school with 146-165 boys and 151-185 girls.

1971

Louis Edward Gelineau replaced McVinney as Providence bishop (1971-1997).

1979 St. Joseph's Hope Valley RI 1/1

 

1979 1994 Sacred Heart West Warwick RI 1/2  

1994

Robert Edward Mulvee succeeded Gelineau (1997-2005).

2003 Retired South Kingstown RI    

2003

Mulvee was followed as Providence bishop by Thomas Joseph Tobin (2005-).

2016 Retired Warwick RI   "Prohibited from exercising the sacred ministry" by the diocese after it received an allegation that Turillo had sexually abused a minor about 60 years previously. 

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, 1948-2014).

Statement from the Diocese of Providence, Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, June 30, 2016
Priest Prohibited from Serving after "Credible" Accusation of "Sexual Misconduct", NBC 10, June 30, 2016
After "Credible" Allegation of Sexual Misconduct, R.I. Priest Prohibited from Serving, By Karen Lee Ziner, Providence Journal,
June 30, 2016
Diocese of Providence Bans Rev. Turillo Following Allegations of Misconduct, GoLocalProv, July 1, 2016
Former Woonsocket Priest Banned from Service over Alleged Sexual Misconduct, The Valley Breeze, July 1, 2016


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 Turillo'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 September 15, 2016.


 
 

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