Running afoul of legalities, Louisiana’s attempt to bring serial sexual predators to justice may be revived in a different way, as an unfortunate instance of this crime reminds.
This week, Florida authorities on a Texas warrant arrested Anthony Odiong, charging him with illegally possessing child abuse imagery depicting unclothed children. Until last year, for a several years Odiong had been pastor of St. Anthony’s in Luling, in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Although his home diocese technically is in Africa, Odiong had spent many years in the Diocese of Austin during the time of then-Bishop Gregory Aymond who when assuming the archbishopric of New Orleans eventually transferred Odiong there.
Odiong in 2023 was removed from his position by the Archdiocese apparently on complaints from women about sexual improprieties as well as for financial irregularities attached to his ministry. Since then, he ignored his Nigerian bishop’s call to return and instead holed up in an expensive home in Florida. He complained his removal, which included revoking his ministerial authority, was in response to his complaining that Church policy under Pope Francis was too lenient that validated homosexual liaisons.
That’s weak. Former archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò had to do everything but yank up Francis’ robe in public to get himself excommunicated after years of increasingly deviationist rhetoric that began as valid criticism but ended up as renouncing Francis as legitimate pope. And years of defending traditional doctrine and practices oppositional to the Vatican’s recent dictates didn’t oust Bishop Joseph Strickland, previously heading the Diocese of Tyler but now without portfolio after being relieved of duties last year; only after he criticized directly Francis’ role in what a number of the faithful perceive as undermining Church teachings did the Vatican act. One parish priest criticizing the confusion Francis has loosed with a recent pronunciation that clergy can non-sacramentally bless homosexual unions – which the whole of Africa rejected – isn’t going to get anybody booted from pastoral duties, much less ministerial authority.
In fact, a long paper trail has emerged concerning Odiong’s relationships with parishioners or others who relied upon him for spiritual leadership. As early as 2019 he was barred from ministry in the Diocese of Austin over “behavior with adult women,” four of whom now have come forward with complaints of sexual assault. The letter doing so, the diocese says, was transmitted to New Orleans. That archdiocese this week issued a statement concerning the arrest, but the statement did not acknowledge the earlier warnings from Austin or the reasons for his dismissal from the Luling congregation.
St. Charles Parish authorities were notified by one of the complainers. However, no arrest occurred because of insufficient evidence. The only reason the Waco warrant activated Florida police into the investigation that found the alleged child pornography was Texas law automatically criminalize sexual contact between a clergyman and an adult parishioner and relaxes the statute of limitations if the conduct is serial. And the Waco investigation was kickstarted by publicity from the Archdiocese’s revocation of Odiong’s priestly authority, which also seems to have occurred in his home diocese as well.
Too little, too late. Aymond, with his connections to the Diocese of Austin certainly should have known, if not prior to inviting Odiong into the Archdiocese nearly a decade ago, about the complaints mounting against Odiong, and he certainly should have acted immediately after the Diocese had warned him. It continues a regrettable pattern with some Louisiana bishops who seem more concerned with opining about policy matters that they know little about that are little connected to their missions of moral instruction and guidance than in providing that moral leadership by ensuring the integrity of their shepherds and the safety of their flocks.
But the failings of individual bishops can be ameliorated by changes in Louisiana law that discourage cowardly approaches to dealing with predator clergy. One recent effort fell short when a 2021 law that opened a lookback window for prosecution of sex crimes – temporarily beyond 30 years past the age of majority – that the Louisiana Supreme Court found unconstitutional. However, there’s no reason Louisiana can’t adopt a law similar to Texas’ that extends the same presumption of illegality of sexual contact between teachers and minor students as well as between corrections officers and incarcerated adults to clergy and their spiritual advisees.
That makes for a good start for next year’s legislative session. It’s right up the alley of a governor and Legislature who have proven in other ways they’ll get tough on crime.
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