Assignment Record– Rev. Francis E. "Frank" Duffy, s.j.

Summary of Case: Ordained a Jesuit of the Oregon Province in 1943, Duffy's ministry took him from California to Washington state, Montana and Oregon. He died in 1992. In the early 2000s, accusations began to surface against Duffy. He has been accused of sexually abusing at least five girls, ages 6 to 12, in the 1960s and '70s, and a "vulnerable adult" woman in the late 1980s. The abuses are said to have occurred while Duffy worked in Oregon and Washington state. He has been the subject of multiple lawsuits.

Ordained: 1943
Died: Dec. 1, 1992

1943

San Francisco archbishop was John Joseph Mitty (1935-1961).

1944

Spokane bishop was Charles Daniel White (1926-1955).

1945

Seattle bishop was Gerald Shaughnessy, S.M. (1933-1950).

1946

Great Falls bishop was William Joseph Condon (1939-1967).

This was a mission of St. Paul's Indian Mission in Hays.

St. Joseph's had a religious vacation school with 12 students.

1948

Thomas Arthur Connolly succeeded Shaughnessy (1950-1975). Seattle became an archdiocese in June 1951.

1955

Portland archbishop was Edward Daniel Howard (1926-1966).

Portland

• Duffy was accused in a 2007 lawsuit of having sexually abused a 7 or 8-year-old Oregon girl in the mid-1960s, along with accused Rev. James Poole, s.j. The abuse is said to have occurred during the priests' visits to the girl's home.

Jesuit High had 380-522 students.

Poole has been the subject of multiple allegations of sexual abuse of young girls.

Woodburn

• Duffy was accused in separate 2002 lawsuits of having sexually abused two girls, ages 6 and 7, in 1967 and 1968. The girls were sisters, and the abuse is said to have occurred at Duffy's residence.

Mt. Angel Abbey is a Benedictine Monastery and Seminary School.

This assignment is per news reports.

OR

1970

Yakima bishop was Cornelius Michael Power (1969-1974).

Yakima

• Duffy was accused in a 2010 lawsuit of molesting an 8-year- old female St. Joseph's student in 1977.

• Another woman emerged in 2013 with accusations that Jesuits Duffy, Poole, and John Morse sexually abused her when she was 8 to 12 years-old in the 1970s, and a St. Joseph's school student.

5/5, 6/6, 4/4, 5/6, 8/9

The 1976-1978 Directories indicate that Duffy was involved with the Spanish-speaking apostolate.

Cowiche

• A woman reported to the Yakima diocese in 2008 that she had been sexually abused by Duffy in the late 1980s, when she was a "vulnerable adult."

1990

Portland archbishop was William Joseph Levada (1986-1995).

1991

Spokane bishop was William Stephen Skylstad (1990-2010).

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1944-1993)

• Beaverton Woman Sues Archdiocese of Portland, Associated Press State & Local Wire [Woodburn Ore], May 21, 2002
• Woman Files $2 Million Sexual Abuse Lawsuit against Former Priest, Associated Press State & Local Wire [Salem Ore], May 29, 2002
• The Sister of the Plaintiff Filed Her Own Suit Last Week, By Alan Gustafson, Statesman Journal [Salem OR], May 29, 2002
• Oregon's Accused Clergy, By Ashbel S. Green, Sunday Oregonian, July 7, 2002
• Table: The Oregonian, Nov. 16, 2006
• Jesuits Sued over Alleged Sex Abuse by Priests in Portland Area, Associated Press, carried in KATU, February 27, 2007
• Two Jesuit Priests Named in $5 Million Sex-Abuse Suit, By Ashbel S. Green, OregonLive [Oregon], February 27, 2007
• Two Priests Abused Beaverton Girl in '60s, Lawsuit Claims, Allegations - the Oregon-Based Jesuit Province Says It Will Investigate All Charges, By Ashbel S. Green, The Oregonian, February 28, 2007
• Woman Sues Jesuits of Oregon for $5 Million, By Joseph B. Frazier, KGW [Oregon], February 28, 2007
• Jesuits Tentatively Settle Alaska Sex Abuse Cases, Priests - Accusers' Attorneys Confirm the Proposed Payout, a Record $50 Million, By Ashbel S. Green, The Oregonian, November 19, 2007
• Woman Claims Abuse by Former Priest, By Valerie Hurst, KIMA, July 3, 2008
• Another Claim of Sexual Abuse by a Member of the Yakima Catholic Diocese, KNDO/KNDU, July 4, 2008
• Mediation Set for Oregon Jesuits Sex Abuse Case, By Associated Press, The Oregonian, August 8, 2008
• Sex Abuse Lawsuit against Jesuits Settled, By Associated Press, KGW, August 14, 2008
• Group Urges Victims of Priest Abuse to Come Forward, By Susan Olp, Billings Gazette, November 4, 2009
• The Jesuit Stories behind the Bankruptcy of the Oregon Province, Good Jesuit, Bad Jesuit, November 12, 2009
• Lawsuits against Yakima Diocese Still Pending, By Jane Gargas, Yakima Herald-Republic, July 4, 2010
• Diocese Pays $205k to Settle Sexual Abuse Claim, By Pat Muir, Yakima Herald-Republic, July 19, 2012
• Woman Alleges She Was Abused by Three Priests at St. Joseph in '70s, By Jane Gargas, Yakima Herald Republic, March 27, 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 Duffy'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 Dec. 5, 2013.