Father John P. Kelly
Diocese of Camden
Ordained: 1962
Removed from ministry: 1992
Death: 1992
Assigned as follows:
- St. Rose (Newfield, NJ)
- Sacred Heart (Camden, NJ)
- Saint Monica (Atlantic City, NJ)
- Temporary Assignment, Diocese of Trenton (Sea Bright)
- St. Peter (Merchantville, NJ)
- Our Lady Star of the Sea (Atlantic City, NJ)
- St. Gregory (Magnolia, NJ)
- St. Charles Borromeo (Washington Twp., NJ)
- Sacred Heart (Vineland, NJ)
- Assumption (Atco, NJ)
- St. Michael (Cedarville, NJ)
- Our Lady of Victories (Landisville, NJ)
- Chaplain, Gibbsboro Air Force Station (Gibbsboro, NJ)
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations against Father John P Kelly:
A 1994 lawsuit alleged that Father John P Kelly and other priests in the Diocese of Camden were part of a “sex ring” in the 1970s and 1980s at St. Gregory’s in Magnolia, St. Michael’s in Gibbstown, and St. Joseph’s in Camden.
Six men have said in lawsuits or Inquirer interviews that Kelly molested them, some when they were as young as 10. Two sets of brothers say the priest masturbated them and had oral sex with them when they were minors.
One accuser said Kelly and the Rev. Joseph Shannon would have group sex with children in church rectories. The victim claims that Kelly and Shannon abused him and his brother in the same bed. The diocese settled his lawsuit for $25,000.
The second set of brothers and a third accuser shared in a later global settlement of multiple claims by the Diocese of Camden.
the Diocese of Camden did not provide any information about the number of allegations against Doyle or the nature of the misconduct alleged.
Kelly’s name appears on the February 2019 Diocese of Camden list of credibly accused priests published by the. 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.”
Kelly passed away the same year that he was removed from ministry in 1992.
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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.