Priest with "established" allegations of abuse in residence at a New Orleans parish

The Dominican Province of St. Joseph has posted a list of those friars "credibly accused" of the sexual abuse of a minor. This list included the name of a man with an allegation that was "deemed to be established by the lay Provincial Review Board." The friar is currently in residence at a New Orleans parish.

Fr. Richard Raphael Archer was removed from public ministry in 2002, according to the Dominicans.  Yet the website of St. Dominic Parish in New Orleans, which has an attached school that serves children pre-K through 7th grade, shows that the priest is "in residence." In fact, in 2017 the New Orleans Archdiocese celebrated Fr. Archer's 65 years as a priest.

The Dallas Charter promised zero tolerance for those clergy who sexually abuse a child. We believe that zero tolerance means that the Church, or a religious order like the Dominicans, should not assign a priest who was removed from ministry to a parish, especially one with an elementary school attached. The community is best served by keeping those with a history of abusing minors, particularly those who are still recognized as clergy, from any position where they may have access to children. 

CONTACT: Becky Ianni, SNAP Board Member ([email protected], 703-801-6044), Tim Lennon, SNAP Board President ([email protected], 415-312-5820), Zach Hiner, Executive Director ([email protected], 517-974-9009)

(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)

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