Archdiocese of Dubuque IA - BishopAccountability.org

36 Accused in This Diocese

Br. Bede (John) D’Eufemia

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Order: SVD
Status: Accused

Professed vows for the Society of the Divine Word Chicago Province in 1967. Worked in NY, IA, WI, MI. Left the Order in 1972. Included on the Order's list of credibly accused. Abused noted to have occurred in Epworth IA in 1971.

Assignments:

Society of the Divine Word Chicago Province Assignments

Sources:

Society of the Divine Word Chicago Province List

Fr. John J. Brickley

Ordained: 1935
Status: Settled

Died: 10/30/1998
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

A 1999 lawsuit settled in 2000 claimed Brickley abused a boy 1966-1971, beginning when the boy was age 8. Another man said that Brickley abused him at age 12 and that he complained to the archbishop at some time after 1994. Brickley was placed on leave in 1998 and died the same year, on 10/30/1998. At least one claim was included in a $2.6M settlement with the Archdiocese in 3/2007.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Information 9.22.06

Sources:

Fr. Albert L. Carman

Ordained: 1945
Status: Settled

Died: 04/19/1980
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused of abusing a teenage boy at Loras Academy, Dubuque, in 1954. Died in 1980. Claims included in a 2/2006 settlement with the Archdiocese. At least one more claim of abuse 1965-1966 was included in a $4.7M settlement with the Archdiocese in 3/2008 involving 9 priests.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Information 9.22.06

Sources:

Fr. Nicholas Cigrand

Ordained: 1960
Status: Sued

Died: 01/20/1976
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

A man filed suit in 2004 alleging abuse 1965-1968 when he was an altar boy. Archdiocese did not consider accusations true. The lawsuit was dismissed on motion for summary judgment. Iowa Supreme Court rejected the plaintiff's appeal in 4/2007. Cigrand died in 1976.

Sources:

Fr. Thomas F. Currier

Ordained: 1950
Status: Accused

Died: 05/10/2005
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Named publicly as accused by the archdiocese on its list updated 8/1/2013. Per the list, in the 1990s a woman reported abuse as a minor by Currier. He died 5/10/2005.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque Assignment Record

Sources:

Gazette 06.14.75
Globe-Gazette Obituary 05.14.05
Archdiocese of Dubuque List updated 08.01.13

Fr. Timothy DeVenney

Ordained: 1993
Status: Guilty plea

Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused in 6/1996 of fondling five teenage boys 1993-1996, during his first assignment. Suspended. Criminally charged in 6/21/1996. Pleaded guilty in 1997. Sentenced to 10 years in prison. Released from prison on parole in 12/2001 and was living outside Washington DC in a residence run by a religious order. At least one claim settled in a $2.6M settlement with the archdiocese in 3/2007. Another was included in a 3/2008 settlement. Laicization announced in 12/2008.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Info 9.22.06

Sources:

Fr. Gerald C. Dolan

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Ordained: 1990
Status: Accused

Died: 01/10/2007
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Named publicly as accused by the archdiocese on its list updated 9/13/2018. Accused of the sexual abuse of boys. Leaves of absence 1992-1996 and 1998-2001. Died 1/10/2007.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque Assignment Record

Sources:

Archdiocese of Dubuque List updated 09.13.18

Fr. Henry N. Dunkel

Ordained: 1945
Status: Settled

Died: 10/28/1998
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Publicly accused in letters to the Telegraph Herald editor in the 1990s and 2000s. Accused of abusing several girls, including his own nieces, in 1947-1948, during his first assignment. Retired in 1990. Dunkel's priestly activities were restricted in 1992. He died in 1998. At least one accuser settled in 1993 under a gag order. She and two others filed suit in 2002 to void the gag orders. That case was dismissed in 2004.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Info 9.22.06

Sources:

Fr. Michael C. Fitzgerald

Ordained: 1978
Status: Accused

Died: 10/2/2001
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Caught in 1999 taking part in an inappropriate internet chat with someone he thought was a 13-year-old boy, in a sting by law enforcement . Removed by the Diocese and sent for therapy. Diocese was going to return him to a parish assignment but did not after Fitzgerald was accused of having oral sex with a 12-year-old boy. Died in a car crash in 10/2001. Was training to be a hospital chaplain at the time of his death.

Sources:

Fr. Albert J. Forster

Ordained: 1926
Status: Settled

Died: 03/26/1990
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused of abusing several boys in the 1960s. Died 3/26/1990. Named in at least two civil suits filed against the diocese in 2004, which settled in 2004 and 2005.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Info 9.22.06

Sources:

Fr. William A. Goltz

Ordained: 1950
Status: Settled

Died: 01/7/2006
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused of abuse of boys. Three lawsuits were filed in 2005. Earliest alleged abuse was in the 1950s. Former Archbishop Binz apparently held a formal church trial and removed Goltz from active priesthood. Sent to treatment over a 12-year period to Via Coeli in Jemez Springs NM, and to rectories and abbeys in OH, WI and IA. Reassigned to active priesthood in eastern IA for 18 years, abused again, and retired in 1991. In 1992 the Vatican removed his privileges and in 2005 ordered him to live a life of prayer and penance. Died 1/7/2006. Claims included in 2/2006 settlement. Another claim settled in 3/2008. Included on the Santa Fe archdiocese's list 5/19/2021.

Fr. Peter M. Graff

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Ordained: 1941
Status: Settled

Died: 04/8/1976
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

One claim against Graff was included in a 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims. A man alleged he had been abused in the 1940s. The Diocesan Review Board was unable to determine the credibility of the allegation. Graff died 4/8/1976.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque – Table of Accused Priests and Assignment Records 08.01.13

Sources:

Fr. Joseph F. Griffin

Ordained: 1947
Status: Settled

Died: 06/7/1999
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Named publicly as accused by the archdiocese on its list updated 9/13/2018. Accused of sexually abusing a boy in the 1960s. Claims settled in 2018. Griffin died 6/7/1999.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque Assignment Record

Sources:

Fr. Thomas B. Knox

Ordained: 1942
Status: Accused

Died: 03/9/1968
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused by a man via a letter to the editor 1/2006 of sexually abusing him as a child in the early 1950s at Sacred Heart in Oelwein. The man said he notified the Archdiocese in 2003 and that the Archdiocese knew of other accusations. Knox died 3/9/1968.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Info 9.22.06

Sources:

Fr. Clarence S. Kruse

Ordained: 1957
Status: Settled

Died: 04/13/2018
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Named publicly as accused by the archdiocese on its list updated 9/13/2018. Alleged to have sexually abused a girl in the 1970s. Claim settled in 2002. Kruse died 4/13/2018.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque Assignment Record

Sources:

Archdiocese of Dubuque List updated 09.13.18

Fr. Patrick W. McElliott

Ordained: 1936
Status: Settled

Died: 11/14/1987
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Died 11/14/1987. Sued in 2005. Accused of abuse of at least five girls in the 1960s. Took nude pictures of at least one girl. Claims settled as part of a $5M settlement with the Archdiocese in 2006. At least one claim was included in a $2.6M settlement with the Archdiocese in 3/2007 and at least one more in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims.

Assignments:

Sources:

Fr. William G. McLaughlin

Ordained: 1959
Status: Settled

Died: 10/23/1993
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Died 10/23/1993. Accused at some point of sexually abusing a girl in the 1960s. Educator. His accuser said there may be other victims. Claim settled in 1/2008. McLaughlin's name was added to the archdiocese's list of accused priests in 4/2008.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque Assignment Record

Sources:

Fr. Julius J. Olinger

Ordained: 1931
Status: Settled

Died: 04/19/1993
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused of abuse at St. Mary's in New Hampton 1957-1958. Claim settled in 2/2006. Olinger died 4/19/1993.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Info 9.22.06

Sources:

Fr. Joseph I. Patnode

Ordained: 1918
Status: Settled

Died: 12/30/1977
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

In 2003 a man said he and at least 9 other other teenage boys were sexually abused by Patnode in the 1930s, 1940s and early 1950s. In 1951 Patnode was removed from his parish assignment and transferred to Sisters of Mercy Novitiate in Iowa. He retired in 1964 and died 12/30/1977. At least one claim was included in a $2.6M settlement with the Archdiocese in 3/2007 and at least one in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims.

Assignments:

Sources:

Fr. John M. Peters

Ordained: 1944
Status: Settled

Died: 05/31/1997
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused of abusing boys in 1962 at St. Joseph's in Harpers Ferry. Died 5/31/1997. Accused in a 2004 lawsuit of abusing an altar boy in 1962. In 2005 the archdiocese requested that the suit be dismissed on the statute of limitations. The claim settled in 2006.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Info 09.22.06

Sources:

Fr. John T. Reed

Ordained: 1949
Status: Settled

Died: 04/16/1976
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Multiple allegations of abuse of boys. At least one claim against Reed was included in a 3/2008 $4.7M settlement with the archdiocese involving claims against 9 priests. The abuse allegedly occurred at St. Mary's in Dubuque in 1963-1964. Reed died 4/16/1976. At least one more claim was included in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque – Table of Accused Priests and Assignment Records 08.01.13

Sources:

Fr. Robert J. Reiss

Ordained: 1955
Status: Settled

Died: 02/3/2005
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused of abuse of boys in the 1970s. Laicized in 9/1997. Murdered in Chilpancingo, Guerrero, Mexico 2/3/2005. Abuse became public after Reiss' death. Claims were including in the 2/2006 settlement by the diocese. At least one claim included in $4.7M 3/2008 settlement with the Archdiocese involving abuse by 9 priests. At least one more claim included in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims.

Assignments:

Sources:

Fr. Leo P. Riley

Ordained: 1982
Status: Case Dismissed

Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Accused on 12/10/2014 of sexually abusing a 4th grade altar boy in Dubuque IA starting in 10/1985 at morning Mass. A 2/18/2015 letter by Dubuque Archbishop Jackels about allegation was reprinted in the 3/1/2015 bulletin of the parish where the abuse is alleged to have been committed, after Archdiocese received the accuser's lawsuit on 2/10/2015 and the review board deemed the allegation "not manifestly false or frivolous" on 2/11/2015. A preliminary investigation began then. Riley worked in 16 Dubuque parishes from 1982 until 2002, when he transferred to the Venice FL diocese; incardinated in 2005. Placed on temporary leave by Venice Bishop Dewane sometime between 1/4/2015 and 1/11/2015, pending the results of Dubuque's investigation. Riley "strenuously denie[d]" the allegation. Jackels announced 7/12/2015 that his investigation did not find the allegation to be true; survivor stated the inquiry was incomplete. Riley reportedly passed a polygraph test. He was reinstated, took a leave, and then returned to St. Peter the Apostle in Naples in 10/2015. In a 7/2020 lawsuit, Riley was accused of abusing a boy in the 2000s at St. Charles School in Port Charlotte FL, along with the school's music teacher, Alan Klispie. Per the suit, the boy had reported to Riley that he was being abused by Kilspie and begged for help. The abuse is said to have occurred when the boy was in pre-K through 8th grade. He said Riley silenced him with threats. Kept in ministry. Accused 5/5/2023 of abuse between 1985-1986 in Dubuque. Placed on leave by Venice bishop pending investigation. Another allegation was reported 5/23/2023 to Dubuque. Arrested in 4/24/2024 in FL for the abuse of four altar boys, all under age 12, in Dubuque 1984-1986 at Resurrection Parish. Pleaded not guilty 5/28/2024. Trial set for 7/30/2024. The case was dismissed 7/15/2024, due to the statute of limitations. Three new civil lawsuits were filed in FL in 10/2024 by three former Iowa altar boys, claiming abuse by Riley in the 1980s.

Assignments:

Detailed BA Assignment Record with Links

Sources:

Fr. William A. Roach

Ordained: 1945
Status: Settled

Died: 04/9/1986
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Sued in 2004. Accused of abuse of two boys in Cedar Rapids in 1962 and one in Key West in 1967. Roach was former vicar general and former chancellor of the archdiocese. He died 4/9/1986 in an alcohol-related auto accident. Claims were settled by the archdiocese in 2/2006 as part of a $5M settlement with 20 individuals.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Info 09.22.06

Sources:

Fr. Robert J. Saunders

Ordained: 1941
Status: Settled

Died: 07/4/2007
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Died 7/4/2007 at age 92. At about the same time, the Archdiocese revealed that Saunders had been accused of the abuse of several girls at Temple Hill and in Norway IA, during 1959-1973. At least one claim was included in a 3/2008 $4.7M settlement with Archdiocese involving abuse by 9 priests.

Sources:

Fr. Allen M. Schmitt

Ordained: 1971
Status: Settled

Died: 01/5/2016
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Multiple allegations of the abuse of boys. Placed on leave in 3/2002 after a man wrote in an email to the Archdiocese that Schmitt abused him in 1978 in Cedar Rapids. Schmitt admitted to the behavior when confronted by the Archbishop. A second report received in 4/2002 alleged abuse in 1974. At least one claim was included in a $2.6M settlement with the Archdiocese in 3/2007 and another in a $4.7M settlement concerning 9 priests in 3/2008. There was also at least one in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims. Schmitt died 1/5/2016.

Assignments:

Sources:

Fr. John A. Schmitz

Ordained: 1957
Status: Settled

Died: 10/15/1991
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Allegations first public in 2002. Sued in 2005 by a woman claiming abuse as a child in 1959. Schmitz died 10/15/1991. Parishioners had complained about his financial skills, his relationship with adult woman in 1982 and inappropriate behavior with girls. Sent to Paracletes for treatment. Archbishop did not accept him back as priest. Arrived in San Bernardino Diocese in 1/1983. Back in Iowa by 1985 without privileges; sued for a relationship with a married woman. Settlements in 2006 and 2007. San Diego and Dubuque personnel filed released 10/25/2010. Included on the San Bernardino diocese's list 10/9/2018.

Assignments:

Archdiocesan Report on Assignments and Other Info 9.22.06

Sources:

Josephine Schmitz

Order: OSF
Status: Accused

Died: 02/17/2021
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Took vows in 1943. Accused of sexually abusing a boy in the early 1960s, starting when the boy was age 9. Schmitz, aka Sister Mary Philip, is accused of repeatedly keeping the boy after class at a Dubuque parish school, laying on top of him, and tongue-kissing him. She also worked in the Sioux City IA diocese and the Chicago IL archdiocese. The Dubuque archdiocese found the allegation not sustained (choices were: unfounded, exonerated, not sustained, sustained) although their investigator found it credible. Schmitz died 2/17/2021, at age 98.

Assignments:

Sources:

Fr. William T. Schwartz

Ordained: 1958
Status: Settled

Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Allegation first public in 2003. Accused of abusing boys in the 1960s and 1970s. Laicized in 11/2005. A lawsuit filed in 2004 settled in 2005 for $100K. Three plaintiffs settled in 2/2006 as part of settlement involving several priests. Settled with Schwartz in 4/2006. At least one more claim was included in a $2.6M settlement with the archdiocese in 3/2007. Three cases were included in a 1/2008 settlement with the archdiocese. At least one more was included in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims.

Assignments:

Sources:

Fr. Norbert F. Showalter

Ordained: 1939
Status: Accused

Died: 12/31/1971
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Died 12/31/1971. Name included on the diocese's list updated 9/13/2018. The diocese received an accusation in 2015 that Showalter sexually abused male minors. In a letter published 5/22/2015 in the Telegraph Herald, a man alleged that Showalter sexually abused him over a two-year period, beginning when the man was age 14 in 1954, at St. Mary's in Lamont.

Sources:

Seminarian Dale Soppe

Status: Convicted

Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Former seminary student, teacher. Left teaching to become a therapist. Charged in 5/2006 in WI with molesting a former student 50-100 times in 1968 and 1969. Abuse alleged to have occurred in IA and in WI. Pleaded guilty in 7/2008 in WI; sentenced to two years' probation (with 60 days in jail) and a $1,000 fine. Soppe said he was abused by priests as a child. In 12/2008 a court ordered him to pay $14,500 restitution to the plaintiff for counseling. Registered sex offender in WI, living in IA.

Sources:

Fr. Robert V. Swift

Ordained: 1944
Status: Settled

Died: 08/20/1980
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

A man notified a newspaper in 1/2006 that he was sexually abused by Swift at age 13. Also accused of abusing several other boys in the early 1950s. Long involved with the Catholic Boy Scouts. Died 08/20/1980. At least one claim was included in a 3/2008 $4.7M settlement with the archdiocese regarding alleged abuse by nine priests. At least one more was included in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims.

Assignments:

Sources:

Fr. Maurice J. Tracy

Ordained: 1931
Status: Settled

Died: 04/20/1990
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Named publicly as accused by the archdiocese on its list 8/1/2013. Accused of sexually abusing boys. Claim settled in 2012. Tracy died 4/20/1990.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque Assignment Record

Sources:

Fr. Dean L. Walbaum

Donate Photo

Ordained: 1957
Status: Sued

Died: 04/4/1996
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Named publicly as accused by the archdiocese on its list 9/13/2018. Admitted to sexually abusing boys. Died 4/4/1996. Claim made in 2004.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque Assignment Record

Sources:

Archdiocese of Dubuque List updated 09.13.18

Fr. Louis E. Wendling

Donate Photo

Ordained: 1939
Status: Settled

Died: 09/25/1969
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Multiple allegations of the sexual abuse of girls. One claim against Wendling was included in a 3/2008 $4.7M settlement with the Dubuque diocese involving claims against 9 priests. One woman claimed she was abused by Wendling in 1947. The Diocesan Review Board and Archbishop Hanus decided that the allegation had not been substantiated. Died 9/25/1969. At least one more claim was included in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque – Table of Accused Priests and Assignment Records 08.01.13

Sources:

Fr. Louis W. Wunder

Ordained: 1961
Status: Settled

Died: 01/28/1990
Diocese: Archdiocese of Dubuque IA

Two claims against Wunder were included in an 8/2013 $5.2M out-of-court settlement involving 10 priests and 26 victims. Earliest claimed abuse occurred in 1960s, apparently during his assignments in Clear Lake and/or Dubuque. Worked at Sacred Heart in Waterloo 1969-1975 and on faculty at Columbus High School 1974 through 1975. Died 1/28/1990.

Assignments:

Archdiocese of Dubuque – Table of Accused Priests and Assignment Records 08.01.13

Sources:

Our Database of Publicly Accused does not state or imply that individuals facing allegations are guilty of a crime or liable for civil claims. The reports contained in the database are merely allegations. 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.