Father J. Patrick Foley
Ordained: 1973
Suspended: 2010
Removed: 2015
Assignment History:
- 1973-1974: St. Michael (San Diego, CA)
- 1974-1974: Our Lady of Grace (El Cajon, CA)
- 1975-1977: University High School (San Diego, CA)
- 1977: St. Therese (San Diego, CA)
- 1982-1983: Blessed Sacrament (San Diego, CA)
- 1983-1984: St. Mary Magdalene (San Diego, CA)
- 1984-1990: St. Francis Seminary (San Diego, CA)
- 1990-1991: University of San Diego (San Diego, CA)
- 1991: Leave of Absence
- 1991-1994: Christian Brothers High School (Sacramento, CA)
- 1994-1995: Jesuit High School (Sacramento, CA)
- 1998-1999 Santa Rosa Diocese, CA
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations Against Father J. Patrick Foley:
Fr. J. Patrick Foley was ordained a priest in 1973 who served in multiple parishes in the Diocese of Santa Rosa. According to media reports, in 2010, he was accused of the molestation of two young boys that attended Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento, CA, in the early 1990s. Foley was suspended, but the Canonical trial in 2011 yielded an "unclear" verdict since the boys didn't testify. The San Diego Diocese briefly restored Foley's priestly faculties in 2012, but after a new bishop took over in San Diego, Foley was permanently removed from ministry in 2015 after another allegation of molesting a boy in the early 1990s had surfaced.
However, Foley continued to offer himself up as a priest and worked as a retreat leader online even after he left the San Diego Diocese. He had worked in parishes, campus ministry, administration, high schools, and colleges as a teacher, with a focus on missions and retreats.
Since he was named publicly as accused on the San Diego Diocese's list in 2018, Foley filed a lawsuit against the Diocese of San Diego for defamation of character. His name was included on Diocese of Stockton list of clergy credibly accused of child sexual abuse.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Santa Rosa 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 Diocese of Santa Rosa now have legal options due to a voluntary compensation fund created by the Diocese of Santa Rosa, 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.