Deceased Priest Added to Abuse List, 2 More Being Investigated, According to Archdiocese of New Orleans

WDSU 6 NBC
December 2, 2020

https://www.wdsu.com/article/deceased-priest-added-to-abuse-list-2-more-being-investigated-according-to-archdiocese-of-new-orleans/34851919

The Archdiocese of New Orleans announced Wednesday that it concluded an investigation into allegations of abuse of minors against a deceased priest, who has since been added to the clergy abuse list. The organization also announced investigations into two retired priests.

According to a statement issued by the Archdiocese, the late Fr. Robert K. Cooper has been added to the Archdiocese of New Orleans Report Regarding Clergy Abuse found online at nolacatholic.org.

The Archdiocese said the deceased Fr. Cooper should not be confused with the Fr. Cooper, who is an active pastor in the Archdiocese of New Orleans.

The complete assignment history for the deceased Robert Cooper is below ...

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Two retired priests placed on leave

The Archdiocese also announced it placed two retired priests on administrative leave pending the outcome of investigations lodged against them.

Those priests are Fr. Joseph M. deWater and Fr. J. Luis Fernandez.

Allegations against these priests, including the time frame and location of the allegations, were not included in the Archdiocese statement.

According to the Archdiocese, neither of the retired priests is living in the New Orleans area and neither has a formal pastoral assignment.