Massachusetts bishop indicted for abuse dies at 83

January 03, 2017

Bishop Thomas Dupre, the first American prelate to be indicted for sexual abuse, has died at the age of 83.

Bishop Dupre resigned his post as leader of the Springfield, Massachusetts diocese in 2004, shortly after a public report that he had molested altar boys. Later that year a grand jury indicted him on two counts of sexual abuse, but the local prosecutor said that he could not pursue the case because the statute of limitations had expired.

After his resignation—which he said was prompted by health concerns—Bishop Dupre disappeared from the public scene, leaving Massachusetts to live in an undisclosed location. He was deposed in a lawsuit brought be sex-abuse victims who charged that he had protected the priests who molested them, but refused to provide testimony, invoking his Fifth-Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.

 

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Further information:

• 1st Bishop Indicted in US on Sexual-Abuse Claim Dies at 83 (AP)
• Thomas Dupre, former Springfield bishop indicted on child rape charges, dead at 83 (MassLive)