Father Richard Coughlin
Archdiocese of Los Angeles
Ordained: 1953
Suspended: 1993
Assigned as follows:
- 1954-1959: St. Patrick’s (Boston, MA)
- 1960-1965: St. Mary’s (Lynn, MA)
- 1966-1967: Immaculate Heart of Mary (Santa Ana, CA)
- 1968-1972: St. Anthony Claret (Anaheim, CA
- 1973-1974: St. John the Baptist (Costa Mesa, CA)
- 1975-1985: St. Michael’s Norbertine Junior Seminary (Orange, CA)
- 1986-1989: Unknown
- 1990-1993: Special Assignment
- 1993: Placed on “Indefinite Leave”
Summary of Abuse Allegations against Father Richard Coughlin:
Fr. Richard Coughlin was ordained a priest in 1972, and served in the Archdiocese of Boston, and Diocese of Orange, as well as in multiple parishes in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. In 1970, Fr. Coughlin founded the All-American Boys Choir, which was not funded by or affiliated with the Church. The choir traveled internationally and performed for Pope Paul VI at the Vatican. According to media reports, in 1985, a man reported to the Archdiocese of Boston that he was sexually abused by Fr. Coughlin when he was a child from 1958 to 1962. He said the abuse occurred in Massachusetts and on trips to New Hampshire and New York.
In December 1992, four men reported separately that Fr. Coughlin had molested them as boys. The men were ages 23-45, and all had been Boys Choir members between 1970 and 1983. One said his father told the Archdiocese of Los Angeles of the abuse in 1974 and choir board members in 1990. Also, in December 1992, the man who had reported Fr. Coughlin, in 1985 again went to Father McCormack in Boston with his allegations. He was initially told that there was no record of his previous report.
In April 1993, Father McCormack informed him that the complaint was found and that Bishop Banks had forwarded it to the Diocese of Orange. Orange officials said in 2002 that the complaint was never received. In February 1993, another man, who was a Boys Choir member from 1977 to 1980, reported abuse by Father Coughlin. He said he told choir management in 1979 that Father Coughlin was abusing him and two other boys.
In April 2002, a man reported to the Oklahoma City Archdiocese “inappropriate conduct” by Fr. Coughlin from 1968 to 1971. The report was forwarded to Los Angeles. In December of that year, Father Coughlin was accused in a civil lawsuit of sexually abusing a boy in Lynn, Massachusetts, during 1962-1965.
Father Coughlin was suspended from ministry in January 1993 and ordered to sever ties with the Boys Choir. He was also included in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles’ list of priests accused of sexual misconduct involving minors and on the Diocese of Orange’s list of clergy removed from ministry resulting from a credible allegation of sexual abuse.
Lawsuits against him in Southern California resulted in more than $3 million in settlements. His status, per the Diocese of Orange in August 2016, was a “Life of Prayer and Penance.” In February 2017, another lawsuit was filed alleging abuse of a Boys Choir member beginning at age 10.
According to the Diocese of Orange, as of December 2019, Coughlin is still alive and seeking laicization from the Vatican. His current whereabouts are unknown.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in California. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in one of California’s Catholic dioceses, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles now have legal options due to a voluntary compensation fund created by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, 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 California and nationwide. We can help.
Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.