Victim speaks out over alleged sexual abuse at hands of former St. Martinville priest

By Rebeca Marroquin
KLFY
August 27, 2018

https://www.klfy.com/news/local/victim-speaks-out-over-alleged-sexual-abuse-at-hands-of-former-st-martinville-priest/1400325253

Although the name of a sexual abuse victim isn't normally released, Doug Bienvenu says he's speaking out for the first time in over 40 years because he feels it's time his story came to light.

"Some horrible things happened... This priest was molesting me, and this went on for quite a while," he says.

He tells us he was only 9 years old when he says he experienced sexual abuse at the hands of, now deceased, Father Kenneth Morvant of St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church.

"We were young, we were kids and we all wanted to be altar boys. We thought it was a cool thing and we got to get away for the weekends and spend the nights at the rectory where the priest lives," explains Bienvenu.

He alleges that once there, the priest would provide him with alcohol and claims Morvant would wait until Beinvenu was drunk to sexually molest the then, 9-year-old boy. He says this continued until one day it was too much for the boy to handle.

"I knew something wasn't right. I mean, you wake up in the morning and you know, you've been abused that night... But I really didn't understand it at the time. That's why I blocked it off for so many years," he says.

Bienvenu says since then, he's found others who have allegedly gone through the same experience. Together they've filed a lawsuit over what they claimed happened.

"This just had to come out today and for the people that don't know, they should know. And, hopefully, this helps someone else that maybe doesn't want to talk about it or relive it. I don't want to, but I feel I have to for anything to be done about this," he adds.

News 10 has reached out to the Diocese of Lafayette and St. Martin De Tours Catholic Church for comment, we have not received a response.