Father Carmen Sita (a/k/a Gerald Howard)
Archdiocese of Newark
Ordained: 1976
Removed: 1984
Laicized: 2012
Assigned as follows:
- St. Aloysius (Jersey City, NJ)
- SS. Peter and Paul (Boonville, MO)
Summary of Abuse Allegations against Father Carmen Sita (a/k/a Gerald Howard):
Father Carmen Sita (a/k/a Gerald Howard) was ordained a priest in 1976 and served in the Archdiocese of Newark. According to media reports, in September 1982, he was arrested on charges of sexually abusing a teen boy multiple times and giving him liquor. In 1983, he pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to five years probation in exchange for an agreement that the Archdiocese of Newark would send for treatment at a notorious pedophile treatment facility in New Mexico.
Less than a year later, with the permission of the Archdiocese of Newark, Father Sita legally changed his name to Gerald Howard and moved to Missouri. He was then incardinated into Diocese of Jefferson City and assigned to a parish with a school.
In 2007, Father Sita was accused of abusing another boy from 1983 through 1988, and giving him drugs to facilitate the abuse.
In 2009, the claim was settled by the three defendants, including the Archdiocese of Newark, for $600,000 and an agreement that Father Sita would seek laicization.
In April 2010, Father Sita was charged and arrested on charges of forcible sodomy, attempted sodomy, and the kidnapping of three MO boys in the 1980s. In June 2014, Father Sita pleaded guilty to two counts of forcible sodomy and one count of attempted forcible sodomy against the three teenage boys. The other counts were dropped. He was sentenced to serve three concurrent twelve-year sentences and to register as a sex offender when released.
In October and November 2012, Father Sita was investigated for the sexual abuse of children at a Missouri hospital where he worked as a counselor in the 1980s.
In 2013, five more abuse claims were settled by the Archdiocese of Newark for $650,000.00.
In September, 2012, Father Sita was laicized (removed from the priesthood), but it was not announced until 2014.
In November 2018, Father Sita's name appeared on the Diocese of Jefferson City's list of credibly accused priests. In February 2019, his name appeared on the Archdiocese of Newark's list of credibly accused priests, which indicated only that he had been the subject of "multiple" credible allegations. No additional details were provided.
Father Sita lives in the Farmington, Missouri, area as "Gerald Howard." He is a registered sex offender.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Archdiocese of Newark in New Jersey. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused in the Archdiocese of Newark, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Archdiocese of Newark 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 Jersey and nationwide. We can help.
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