Father James Behan
Diocese of Raleigh (Oblates)
Ordained: 1973
Placed on Leave: 2002
Assigned as Follows:
- Northeast Catholic High School (Philadelphia, PA)
- Immaculate Conception Church (Wilmington, NC)
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations against Father James Behan:
Father James Behan was ordained a priest in 1973, and served in multiple parishes in the Diocese of Raleigh. According to media reports, he was officially placed on leave from the ministry in April of 2002, after a “credible allegation” of abuse was made against him. Behan was a member of an order of priests known as the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales.
The abuse allegedly occurred from 1978-1980, when Behan taught at an all-boys Catholic school in Pennsylvania. The victim was a 15-year-old boy and a freshman at the school when the abuse began. The boy claims that the incidents took place in the rectory of Germantown parish and on trips to North Carolina and Quebec.
Behan admitted to the allegations in 2005 and was convicted and sentenced to 12 years of probation. He was indicted by a Pennsylvania grand jury examining the handling of abuse allegations in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
Fr. James Behan had worked in Raleigh from 1980-2002. Because he left Pennsylvania, the statute of limitations stopped running on his crime in Pennsylvania, allowing him to be charged in 2005.
According to the National Sex Offender Registry, Behan now resides in the Elkton, Maryland, area.
His name appears on the Raleigh Diocese’s list of credibly accused priests.
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