NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WWL 4 CBS
December 3, 2020
By David Hammer
https://www.wwltv.com/article/news/investigations/david-hammer/latest-figure-in-new-orleans-clergy-abuse-scandal-worked-with-girl-scouts-was-pines-village-pastor/289-2f7fbc83-f571-426e-9e65-d918fcb77b5e
“Here we are, two years later, and we’re still counting new names. And why?”
For much of the 1970s, the Rev. Joseph M. deWater was known as the Archdiocese of New Orleans’ spiritual director of Girl Scouts for Catholic families, their parents and their leaders.
His name ended up on the side of a gymnasium at the New Orleans East where he spent 15 years as pastor beginning in the mid-1980s, before he retired, moved to a small village in the Netherlands and faded into relative obscurity.
But now deWater’s name has resurfaced locally. The archdiocese on Wednesday revealed that he is facing possible punishment from the church following an accusation that he had molested a minor. Archdiocesan officials said they had shared the allegations with law enforcement.
New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond said he has also suspended deWater, 85, from performing any clerical duties pending the conclusion of the penal process, whose potential duration wasn’t immediately clear.
Attempts to contact deWater for comment haven’t been successful.
The archdiocese’s announcement on deWater didn’t contain any information about the nature of the alleged molestation or provide details on where the clergyman had worked in New Orleans before his retirement. The archdiocese typically withholds such details until investigations into abuse claims deem them credible.
However, newspaper archives and church records suggest deWater at one time maintained a relatively high-profile presence in promoting participation with the local Girl Scouts scene. He was also either pastor or assistant pastor of at least four parishes in the metro area, including a lengthy stint at the since-closed Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in the Pines Village section of New Orleans East.
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