Monsignor John A. Oliver
Ordained: 1952
Died: 2011
Assigned as follows:
- 1952-1954 Queen of Peace Parish, (Mesa, AZ)
- 1954-1956 St. Augustine Cathedral (Tucson, AZ)
- 1956 St. Luke Parish (Douglas, AZ)
- 1958-1960 All Saints Parish (Tucson, AZ)
- 1960-1967 St. Augustine Cathedral (Tucson, AZ)
- 1968-1969 St. Philip Parish (Payson, AZ)
- 1969-1981 Immaculate Conception Parish (Yuma, AZ)
- 1987-1995 Sacred Heart Parish (Nogales, AZ)
- 1981-1987 St. Theresa Parish (Patagonia, AZ)
- 1995-2000 St. Jude Parish (Pearce-Sunsites, AZ)
Summary of Abuse Allegations against Monsignor John A. Oliver:
According to media reports, in 1967, Monsignor John A. Oliver was the subject of a Pima County Sheriff's Department investigation into the molestation of a 14-year-old boy. The boy said he had been hitchhiking home from bowling when a man he later identified as Monsignor Oliver picked him up and offered to drive him home. Instead, Monsignor Oliver drove him to a home in Oro Valley, gave him alcohol and molested him.
The Sheriff's Department report from that case includes a comment suggesting prior cover-ups by the diocese. John H. Rock, a retired detective sergeant with the Pima County Sheriff's Department, investigated the 1967 case and said there was no doubt the man who molested the boy was Monsignor Oliver. Rock said the case was not handled like other similar investigations. The Diocese of Tucson never made Monsignor Oliver available for an interview, he said in sworn testimony contained in court documents for the civil actions. "I think it got covered up in a way," Rock said.
Monsignor Oliver pleaded guilty in the case, though it is unclear what the plea involved. No records are available at Pima County Superior Court. He was sentenced to 6 or 7 years probation.
While in Yuma during the early 1970s, Monsignor Oliver oversaw a new, young priest named Robert C. Trupia. The Diocese of Tucson has since classified Father Trupia as a "notorious and serial abuser."
Monsignor Oliver retired in 2000 and suspended from ministry in May 2002. He died in March 2011. The review of archival records has shown that he was given assignments after there was awareness of an allegation. He was never criminally convicted of the allegations against him.
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.