Father Francis (Frank) E. Nugent
Archdiocese of New York
Ordained: 1956
Died: 2011
Assigned as follows:
- 1958-1959: Sacred Heart Juniorate (Ipswich, MA)
- 1960-1973: Salesian High School (New Rochelle, NY)
- 1974-1978: Don Bosco High School (Ramsey, NJ)
- 1979: University of Scranton (Scranton, PA)
- 1980-1981: Don Bosco Retreat Center (West Haverstraw, NY)
- 1982-1995: Sacred Heart Retreat House (Ipswich, MA)
- 1996-1998: Salesian Residence (South Orange, NJ)
- 1999: The Salesian Community (South Orange, NJ)
- 2000-2002: The Salesian Community (Orange, NJ); Salesians of Don Bosco, S.D.B. (Orange, NJ)
- 2003-2010: Unknown
Summary of Abuse Allegations against Father Francis (Frank) E Nugent:
Fr. Francis (Frank) E Nugent was a priest of the Salesians Order. He was the director of the Salesians’ Don Bosco Preparatory High School in Ramsey, New Jersey, and ran a youth camp in Ellenville, New York.
According to media reports, in 1994, a woman reported that Nugent sexually abused her when she was 14 years old in the 1970s, along with her two minor brothers. She said Nugent repeatedly abused one of her brothers and he had become suicidal. In 1980, he drove a car owned by the Salesians into a pond and died when he was 25 years old.
Nugent was removed from his position as director of a youth retreat in Ipswich, Massachusetts. He was sent for therapy and reassigned to another parish upon his return. The woman again reported the abuse to the Order in 1998. She subsequently filed a civil suit, which was settled for $250,000 later that year.
She said, “The press has to keep up coverage of female victims so that more people come forward. I told my story because I thought it would do some good — that others would see Fr. Nugent’s name and come forward. He was working for years with children.”
In October 2002, Nugent was named in a civil lawsuit filed by four former students of a Salesian Junior Seminary. The suit alleged they were repeatedly sexually molested by members of the religious order while living at the seminary between 1969 and 1973.
Nugent died in January 2011 in Italy, where he had lived for many years.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Archdiocese of New York. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest or other Catholic clergy in New York State, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Archdiocese of New York 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 New York and nationwide. We can help.
Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.