Assignment Record – Rev. Alan E. Caparella, o.f.m.

Summary of Case: Rev. Alan E. Caparella was ordained a Franciscan priest in 1966. He worked at a high school in the Pittsburgh, PA diocese early in his career, moving to the Boston archdiocese in 1972 where he did parish work and some hospital ministry. He died in March 1991. Caparella was accused of the sexual abuse of a minor in a lawsuit that was settled in May 2013.


Ordained: 1966
Died: March 31, 1991


     

Start Stop Parish/Assignment Town/Accusations State Position Notes

1966

Pittsburgh bishop was John Joseph Wright (1959-1969), followed by Vincent Martin Leonard (1969-1983).

1972 Serra High School McKeesport PA Serra High had 521-425 students, all male.

1972

Boston archbishop was Humberto Sousa Medeiros (1970-1983).

1973 St. Francis of Assisi (Italian) Cambridge MA 4/5 In residence.  
1973 1978 Provincial Curia New York NY   Franciscan Province of the Immaculate Conception of New York City.
1978 1979 Mass. General Hospital Boston MA    
1979 1983 St. Leonard of Port Maurice (Italian)

Boston

• Caparella was accused in a lawsuit settled in May 2013 of having sexually abused a child while at St. Leonard's.

MA 1/6, 1/5, 1/3 St. Leonard's had a school with 279-230 students.

1983

Medeiros was succeeded by Bernard Francis Law (1984-2002).

1985 St. Christopher Friary Boston MA    
    St. Anthony's Revere MA assistant  
1985 1991 Holy Ghost Whitman MA 2/3, 2/2 Caparella died of a heart attack at age 53 on March 31, 1991.

 

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1967-1992)


• Boston Lawyer Clergy Sex Abuse Victims Releases New List of Alleged Abusers, By Jay Lindsay, The Republic, September 4, 2013
• Victims “Out” Two Abusive Catholic Priests, SNAP, September 12, 2013
• Group Wants Further Disclosure of Priests Accused of Sexual Abuse, By Deanna Garcia, WESA, September 12, 2013



Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Caparella's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with allegations as reported in the media. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegation we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on Oct. 2, 2013.