CHARLOTTE (NC)
WFAE TV
Dec. 9, 2019
By Dashiell Coleman
The pastor of St. Matthew Parish has been placed on leave as the Catholic Diocese of Charlotte investigates a decades-old allegation of sexual abuse.
Bishop Peter Jugis announced Monday in a letter to parishioners that the Rev. Patrick Hoare had been placed on administrative leave after someone told the diocese on Sunday they’d been sexually abused by Hoare about 25 years ago in Pennsylvania.
The alleged abuse would have occurred when the accuser was a minor but before Hoare was a Catholic priest. The administrative leave is standard procedure, and Hoare has denied the accusation, Jugis said.
Jugis says the Charlotte Diocese has been in touch with police – as has the person who accused Hoare. The diocese’s internal lay review board will also investigate to determine if the accusation is credible, Jugis said.
“We do not yet know the facts and have no indication of any issues at St. Matthew Church,” Jugis wrote in his letter.
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