Father John H. Dux
Diocese of St. Augustine
Ordained: 1973
Assignment History:
- 1973-1974: Parochial Vicar St. Paul Parish (Jacksonville, FL)
- 1973-1974: Religion Teacher Bishop Kenny High School (Jacksonville, FL)
- 1974-1977: Parochial Vicar St. Patrick Parish (Gainesville, FL)
- 1977-1983: Administrator St. Madeleine Sophie Parish (High Springs, FL)
- 1983-1985: Pastor St. Madeleine Sophie Parish (High Springs, FL)
- 1985-1998: Chaplain United States Navy
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations Against Father John Dux:
Fr. John Dux was ordained a priest in 1973. Dux worked in the Diocese of St. Augustine until 1985. He was a US Navy chaplain from 1985-1998. He was also living and assisting in the Diocese of Charleston for a short time.
In 2019, the Diocese of St. Augustine received a complaint that Fr. Dux sexually abused a minor in 1976 when Dux worked at St. Patrick Parish in Gainesville, FL. His faculties were removed immediately, pending investigation. However, due to the statute of limitations in Florida, the state did not initiate an investigation.
In 2020, the Diocesan Review Board determined that the allegations against Dux were deemed credible. The Diocese of St. Augustine notified the Diocese of Charleston, where Father Dux was residing and assisting in ministry. The Archdiocese for Military Services-USA was also notified of his status.
In 2021, the victim shared his story of the abuse publicly for the first time. He stated that when he was a 13-year old altar boy at St. Patrick's in Gainesville. He states that Father Dux groomed him for abuse and worked his way into the family. Dux asked the victim's mother if he could take him to the state fair that year, to which she agreed. Dux took him back to a hotel after the fair and fed him drugs and alcohol. The victim stated that he recalls turning around in an instant, and Dux was naked. He stated, "He performed oral sex on me, tried to hold me down and make me perform oral sex on him."
Since the initial investigation began, investigators realized that this wasn't Dux's only victim. A "confidential report" from 2008 detailed allegations of sexual abuse to a minor in High Springs, where Dux served the parish after leaving Gainesville. According to the report, the Diocesan Review Board concluded the boy "has been a victim of clergy abuse."
The public statement prompted another man to contact the victim assistance coordinator for the Diocese in St. Augustine, stating that he was abused by Dux at St. Madeleine Sophie in High Springs in 1980-1982.
Dux was removed from ministry and the Diocese of St. Augustine issued the following press statement:
"After reviewing the case, the Holy See took into consideration the age of Father Dux, his poor health, and the fact that the statutes of limitations have passed to initiate a canonical trial. The church's law in this regard is similar to our civil law in the United States. That being said, the Holy See did support Bishop Estevez's decision to remove the priestly faculties of Father Dux, which prevents him from exercising his priestly ministry, and prohibits him from presenting himself as a priest and from wearing his clerical attire."
Fr. Dux was included on the Diocese of Charleston list named as being credibly accused of child sex abuse. Dux was also included on the Diocese of St. Augustine's 2020 List of Clergy Credibly Accused of Sexual Abuse of a Minor.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of St. Augustine in Florida. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Florida, contact our office today. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse in Florida and nationwide. We can help.
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