Father Robert A. Gluch
Ordained: 1964
Removed: 1968
Died: 1993
Assigned as follows:
- 1964-1968 St. Gregory, (Phoenix, AZ)
- 1968-1972 Blessed Sacrament, (Miami, AZ)
- 1972-1975 St. Joseph, (Tucson, AZ)
- 1975-1976 Sacred Heart, (Clifton, AZ)
- 1976-1981 St. Andrew, (Sierra Vista, AZ)
- 1981-1983 St. Patrick, (Bisbee, AZ)
- 1984-1993 St. Odilia, (Tucson, AZ)
Summary of Abuse Allegations against Father Robert A. Gluch:
According to media reports, in a September 2002 lawsuit, Father Robert A. Gluch was accused of abusing a 13-year-old boy beginning in 1965 through 1967. The abuse occurred in the sacristy at St. Gregory's after Mass, and in the priest's bedroom in the church rectory.
The lawsuit said Father Gluch's sexual improprieties were well known among local priests, and that the Diocese of Tucson sent him away to New Mexico for treatment of pedophilia. The suit also alleged that the Father Gluch went on to sexually abuse other boys as church officials shuffled him from church to church to hide his alleged molesting of young boys.
Father Gluch was removed from St. Gregory's in 1968 because of improper sexual behavior exhibited toward at least one other boy, the suit claimed. He was then moved to Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament in Miami, Arizona.
In April 2003, two brothers alleged in a lawsuit that Father Gluch molested them from 1968 to 1970, when they were altar boys at Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament Church in Miami, Arizona. The abuse occurred in the sacristy after Mass in the church rectory and in Father Gluch's car while he was on church-related business.
"We lived only one house away from the church," one victim said. "Father Gluch used to show up at the house all the time."
The lawsuit said church officials were on notice before Father Gluch arrived at Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament that he had "propensities and a past history of committing sexual improprieties with boys that he came in contact with through the church."
In June 2003, another man alleged in a lawsuit that Father Gluch molested him while he was an altar boy at St. Gregory's in 1964 and 1965. He said the molestations occurred over a six-month period in the church sacristy after Mass.
Father Gluch was also sued in California.
At least two claims were included in the Diocese of Tucson's bankruptcy settlement fund.
The review of archival records has shown that there was a failure to report allegations made against Father Gluch, and that he was given assignments after there was awareness of the allegations. Bishop O'Brien denied knowing anything about Father Gluch's suspected activities.
Father Gluch died in 1993. His name was included in the Diocese of Tuscon's list of clergy credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors released in June 2002.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Tucson in Arizona. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Arizona, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Diocese of Tucson now have legal options, but filing deadlines will apply so do not delay in reaching out to us. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse in Arizona and nationwide. We can help.
Contact us at 888-283-9922 or adam@adamhorowitzlaw.com to discuss your options today.