Father R. Joseph Dooley
Ordained: 1960
Elevated to monsignor: 1985
Removed: 1992
Died: 2002
Assigned as follows:
- Catholic Police and Firemen's Society (Hyattsville, Maryland)
- United States Park Police
- Nativity Church (Washington, DC)
- Our Lady of Lourdes (Bethesda, Maryland)
- Annunciation Catholic Church (Washington, DC)
- St. John the Baptist Church (Silver Spring, Maryland)
Summary of Abuse Allegations against Father R. Joseph Dooley:
According to media reports, in June 2009, two adult men, who were brothers, alleged they were victims of sexual abuse by Father R. Joseph Dooley in the 1960s and 1970s. They filed a lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Washington, Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Bethesda and Annunciation Catholic Church in Northwest Washington.
The Archdiocese of Washington said it received the first report of abuse against Dooley in 1991.
The 2009 lawsuit alleged that much of the abuse occurred in the brothers' home and in Father Dooley's trailer in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. One man said he was abused from the age of 12 to 14. The other man said he served as an altar boy and was 9 years old when the abuse started, and that it did not end until he was 17 years old.
Later in 2009, a third man filed a lawsuit. This man alleged that Father Dooley sexually abused him at St. John the Baptist Church in Silver Spring, Maryland where he was a teenage parishioner.
Dooley was removed from ministry in 1992. Prior to his removal, Dooley was the police and fire chaplain in Hyattsville, Maryland for more than 20 years.
After his removal, he worked as Coordinator for Sick and Retired Priests until he retired without faculties in 1995.
In October 2018, Father Dooley's name appeared on the Archdiocese of Washington's list of clergy credibly accused of sex abuse of minors. The Archdiocese released no information about the allegation(s) against Dooley, such as the age/gender of his victims or his assignment at the time of the abuse.
Dooley died in 2002.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Archdiocese of Washington. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Washington, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Archdiocese of Washington now have legal options to recover damages due to a compensation fund created for victims. Call us at 888-283-9922 or send an email to adam@adamhorowitzlaw.com to discuss your options today.