Father Roy Hardin
Diocese of Camden
Ordained: 1964
Removed from ministry: 1994
Assigned as follows:
- Our Lady Star of the Sea (Cape May, NJ)
- St. Mary (Cherry Hill, NJ)
- Most Holy Redeemer (Westville, NJ)
- St. Martin de Porres (Hammonton, NJ)
- St. Joseph High School (Hammonton, NJ)
- Assumption (Atco, NJ)
- St. Edward (Pine Hill, NJ)
- Resurrection (Marmora, NJ)
- St. Isidore (Vineland, NJ)
- St. Mary (Williamstown, NJ)
- Blessed Sacrament (Margate, NJ)
- St. Mary (Rosenhayn, NJ)
- St. Anne (Westville, NJ)
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations against Father Roy Hardin:
According to media reports, in 1994, a victim accused Father Roy Hardin of sexual abuse when the victim was a teenager in 1976. The victim had been sexually abused by another person and was on the brink of suicide when he went to St. Edward’s Roman Catholic church in the Diocese of Camden for help in 1976. Hardin answered the door, talked to the victim, counseled him, helped him, then offered for him to come down and do handiwork at his house in Brigantine.
The victim alleged that Hardin let him drink all day and stay at the priest’s residence on weekends. The first time any physical contact happened, the victim says he got drunk, passed out and, when he woke up, Hardin was naked and on top of him.
The Diocese of Camden determined that the allegations of sexual abuse involving Father Hardin were credible, so they removed him from active ministry, suspended him, notified local law enforcement and county prosecutors, and is insisting on ongoing treatment for Father Hardin.
Because the statute of limitations has expired, Hardin cannot be criminally prosecuted. As of 2005, he was still receiving church-paid counseling.
Hardin’s name appears on the February 2019 Diocese of Camden list of credibly accused priests. According to Bishop Sullivan, the list, “includes those who admitted to the abuse, those who were found guilty after a trial in the church courts or the civil courts, and others against whom the evidence was so overwhelming as to be virtually unquestionable.”
According to the Diocese of Camden, Hardin is still living but is removed from ministry. His current location is unknown.
Contact us today.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Camden in New Jersey. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in New Jersey, contact our office today. In October 2020, the Camden Diocese filed for federal bankruptcy protection. The Court will resolve all claims of sexual abuse in this process but strict filing deadlines will apply and no late claims will be considered, so contact us today. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse in New Jersey and nationwide. We can help.
Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.