OKLAHOMA
KSWO
[with video]
By Allie Haddican, Reporter
LAWTON, OK (KSWO) – A priest who was convicted of an assault and battery charge in California, and who has been serving at a church here in Lawton, has been removed from his position on Tuesday. This was following public outcry over his appointment.
The news of Father Jose Alexis Davila’s removal from Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church came just days after details of the crime surfaced. He had pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor assault and battery charge for inappropriately touching a 19-year-old woman in 2011. The priest completed his probation requirements and the charges were dismissed last October.
In a statement on Saturday, Oklahoma City Archbishop Paul Coakley says because of this, he believed Father Davila could return to the ministry.
But in another statement from the Archbishop Tuesday night, he says that new information he received made it necessary to remove Father Davila from all work at Blessed Sacrament, and at the other churches he served in Elgin, Apache and Sterling.
St. Mary’s Catholic School is right next door to Blessed Sacrament. Students and parents stood silently holding signs across the street from where the Oklahoma City Archbishop was meeting with school staff about Father Davila. They were holding a silent protest over Father Davila’s position there.
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