Deacon Thomas G. Kuhl
Archdiocese of Baltimore
Ordained: 1988
Laicized: 2015
Died: 2015
Assignment History:
- 1980s: Sacred Heart Church (Baltimore, MD)
- 1985-2000: Our Lady of Pompei High School (Baltimore, MD)
- 1988-2006: Our Lady of Pompei (Baltimore, MD)
- 2000-2004: Our Lady of the Rosary High School (Baltimore, MD)
- 2004-2006: Towson Catholic High School (Baltimore, MD)
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations Against Deacon Thomas G. Kuhl:
Deacon Thomas G. Kuhl worked at various parishes in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. In April 2023, Maryland’s Attorney General released a report alleging 156 Catholic clergy members sexually abused at least 600 children over six decades. The report lists the names of the abusers, including Deacon Thomas Kuhl.
According to the Attorney General’s report, in 2006, a man contacted the archdiocese and reported that Dn. Thomas Kuhl and lay teacher Eric Price sexually abused him in the mid-1990s, when he was 14 years old, and continued until he was almost 16. The boy attended Our Lady of Pompei and was a student at Towson Catholic High School, where Dn. Kuhl was his religion teacher. Kuhl was also the choir director and was involved in confirmation classes and other activities. On one particular occasion, Dn. Kuhl invited the boy to his house for dinner, and Eric Price was there. After dinner, Kuhl left the victim alone with Price, and they went to a bedroom to look at pornography. Kuhl then entered the room and orally raped the victim. Dn. Kuhl told the teenager not to tell anyone.
The abuse typically occurred on Saturday nights at Kuhl’s house repeatedly for approximately one year. The victim told authorities that Kuhl and Price had been in a sexual relationship for seven years that began when Price was a minor and that the two men had anal and oral sex with each other and anally and orally raped the victim.
On the boy’s 16th birthday, Kuhl brought a strange man to his house to have sex with the victim, with Kuhl watching. The victim was not willing to do so. When the archdiocese questioned Kuhl, he denied the abuse and denied knowing where Price lived, even though he and Price had the same address. The archdiocese also learned that Kuhl was arrested in the mid-1980s for soliciting an undercover male police officer. Father Sylvester Feeley of Sacred Heart Parish in the 1980s said that he knew about the arrest at the time it happened, along with many other members of the parish. Kuhl denied the arrest as well. Dn. Kuhl was dismissed from his duties in the Religious Education Program.
During the investigation, multiple witnesses were interviewed by the archdiocese. At least one parishioner expressed frustration that the Pastor of Our Lady of Pompei and Father Luigi Esposito hired Kuhl knowing about the arrest and that Price and Kuhl lived together.
The Archdiocese of Baltimore removed both Dn. Kuhl and Eric Price from their roles and prohibited Kuhl from having contact with minors. The Archdiocese notified law enforcement, released an official statement, sent letters to parishioners of Our Lady of Pompei Parish and Towson Catholic High School parents, and held public meetings at both places following the report.
In April 2006, Fr. Esposito allowed Kuhl to actively participate in the Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday services at Our Lady of Pompei, despite knowing that the Archdiocese forbade Kuhl from having any part in services. Esposito got suspended and was subsequently placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. In 2009, the archdiocese settled with the victim who reported in 2006 for $28,000.
In 2011, an incarcerated man sent a letter to Esposito reporting that he was sexually abused by Kuhl from 1995 to 2005, beginning when he was 15. The letter said that he met Kuhl when he was “bumming for food,” and Kuhl helped and gave him money. Kuhl began hugging the teen boy, but his behavior escalated to oral rape.
In 2012, a petition was sent to the Vatican for the laicization of Dn. Kuhl, which was granted in 2015. Deacon Kuhl died that same year.
Neither Kuhl nor Price has been listed as credibly accused by the Archdiocese. Bishop Accountability also reports that the victim believes there were many other victims.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Maryland. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Maryland, contact our office today. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse nationwide. We can help. Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.