Rev. Louis Wayne Ladenburger, O.F.M.

Assignment Record– Rev. Louis "Louie" Wayne Ladenburger, O.F.M.

Summary of Case: Louis Wayne Ladenburger was ordained a Franciscan priest of the Province of Santa Barbara CA in 1963. He worked in parishes, high schools and retreat centers in dioceses including Stockton, Oakland and Sacramento CA, Phoenix AZ, Portland OR, El Paso TX (in NM), Spokane and Seattle WA, and Reno-Las Vegas NV. He earned a doctorate degree in divinity from the University of California at Berkeley and became a licensed marriage and family as well as chemical dependency therapist. Ladenburger was treated twice in the 1980s for what the Franciscans called "inappropriate professional behavior and relationships." He was was allowed both times to return to ministry. In 1993 his order restricted Ladenburger's ministry after they had him undergo another psychological evaluation due to "heightened concern and new awareness of abuse issues." Ladenburger refused the restrictions and went on leave of absence. He asked for a dispensation of his vows and was laicized by the Vatican in March 1996. He was hired as a therapist in September 2006 by an Idaho school for high-risk teenage boys. In May 2007 he was fired after two boys accused him of sexual abuse, including fondling and oral sex. He admitted to abusing one of the boys. He was arrested in June and charged with three counts of sexual battery of a minor between the ages of 16 and 17. In a plea agreement in November 2007 Landenburger pleaded guilty to to one count of felony sexual misconduct. He was sentenced to up to 5 years in prison, with the possibility of parole after 6 months.

Ordained: 1963
Laicized: 1996

Start	Stop	Assignment	Town/Accusations	State	Position	Notes
1963	1964					Ladenburger is not indexed in the 1964 Directory.
1964 Stockton bishop was Hugh Aloysius Donohue (1962-1969).	1965	St. Mary of the Assumption	Stockton	CA	11/16 pastoral course	St. Mary's had a school with 210 boys and 181 girls, and a CCD program.
1964	1965	St. Benedict the Moor Center	Stockton	CA		This was a mission of St. Mary of the Assumption.
Oakland diocese			Berkeley	CA		Ladenburger earned a Doctor of Divinity from UC Berkeley, and served the Oakland diocese, per news reports. Timeframe unclear.
May 1965 Tucson bishop was Francis Joseph Green (1960-1981).	April 1967	St. Mary's High School	Phoenix	CA	teacher	St. Mary's High had 611-650 students.
1967 Portland in Oregon archbishop was Robert Joseph Dwyer (1966-1974).	1968	Salem Catholic High School	Salem	OR		Salem Catholic had 235 boys and 122 girls.
1968 El Paso bishop was SIdney Matthew Metzger (1942-1978).	1971	Holy Cross Retreat House	Mesella Park	NM	3/4	This was a retreat house of the Franciscan Fathers of the Province of Santa Barbara.
1971	1972					Ladenburger is not indexed in the 1972 Directory, nor is he listed in the diocesan pages as at his previous or next assignments.
1972 Merlin Joseph Guilfoyle succeeded Donohue as Stockton bishop (1969-1979).	1974	St. Mary of the Assumption	Stockton	CA	1/7, 2/9	St. Mary's had a CCD program.
1972	1974	St. Benedict the Moor Center	Stockton	CA		This was a mission of St. Mary of the Assumption.
1974	1975					Ladenburger is indexed in the 1975 Directory as at his previous assignment, but he is not listed as there in the Stockton diocesan pages, nor is he listed as at his next assignment.
1975 Spokane bishop was Bernard Joseph Topel (1955-1978) followed by Lawrence Harold Welsh (1978-1990).	1979	Mary Queen of Heaven	Sprague	WA	1/1
1979	1980					Ladenburger is not indexed in the 1980 Directory, or listed in the diocesan pages at his previous or next assignments. Ladenburger was treated twice in the 1980s for "inappropriate professional behavior and relationships."
1980 Seattle archbishop was Raymond Gerhardt Hunthausen (1975-1991).	1984	St. George's	Seattle	WA	1/3, 1/2	St. George's had a school with 247-204 students.
1984 Sacramento bishop was Francis Anthony Quinn (1979-1993).	1985	St. Francis of Assisi	Sacramento	CA	3/3	St. Francis' had a school with 204 students.
1985 Reno-Las Vegas bishop was Norman Francis McFarland (1976-1986), who was replaced by Daniel Francis Walsh (1987-1995).	1988	St. John's	Overton	NV	1/1, 2/2
1988	1989	Christ the King	Reno	NV	3/3
1989	1990					Ladenburger is not indexed in the 1990 Directory; previous parish not listed in Reno-Las Vegas diocesan pages; not listed as at next assignment.
July 1990 Phoenix bishop was Thomas Joseph O'Brien (1981-2003).	May 1992	Franciscan Renewal Center	Scottsdale	AZ	6/6, 5/5 retreat ministry	Ladenburger is not indexed beyond the 1992 Directory.
Fall 1992	June 1993	St. Mary's Basilica	Phoenix	AZ	in residence
Fall 1992	June 1993	St. Joan of Arc	Phoenix	AZ	assisted
	1993	St. Mary's High School	Phoenix	AZ		This assignment is per news reports. The Franciscans had Ladenburger undergo a new psychological evaluation in 1993, due to "heightened concern and new awareness of abuse issues." When told afterward that his ministry would be restricted, Ladenburger refused and went on leave of absence. He was laicized in March 1996.
September 2006	May 2007	Elk Mountain Academy	Clark Fork • Ladenburger was accused in May 2007 of sexually abusing two Elk Mountain students, ages 16 and 17. The abuse was said to have included fondling and oral sex and occurred between February and April 2007. He admitted to abusing one of the students.	ID	therapist	Elk Mountain Academy is a high school for at-risk teenage boys. The school fired him upon receiving the allegations and called Child Protective Services and law enforcement. Ladenburg was arrested in June 2007 and charged with three counts of sexual battery of a minor between the ages of 16 and 17. He pleaded guilty in a plea agreement to one count of felony sexual misconduct, and was sentenced in March 2008 to up to 5 years in prison.

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1965-1992)

• Former School Counselor Facing Three Sexual Battery Charges, By Keith Kinnaird, Bonner County Daily Bee, June 1, 2007
• Elk Mountain Academy Owner Speaks Out, School's Therapist Charged With Sexual Abuse, By R.J. Cohn, Bonner News,
June 1, 2007
• Church: Ladenburger Had History of Abuse, Was Asked to Leave Ministry, KXLY, June 1, 2007
• Therapist Charged in Sexual Abuse Case , 70-year-old Accused of Molesting 2 Students, By Taryn Brodwater , Spokesman Review, June 1, 2007
• Therapist Faced Scrutiny As Priest, Jailed counselor left Franciscans, By Taryn Brodwater , Spokesman Review, June 5, 2007
• Community Notification Statement from the Diocese of Phoenix on Louis Ladenburger, Diocese of Phoenix,
June, 2007
• Former Priest, Arrested for Sexual Battery, Confesses He's a Sex Addict, KXLY [ Washington], May 31, 2007
• Non-Monetary Undertakings of the Spokane Diocese, Diocese of Spokane , November 21, 2007
• Counselor Sentenced for Sexual Misconduct, KXLY, March 25, 2008
• Accused Clerics, Contra Costa Times, April 1, 2008
• Public Nuisance Complaint, By Nick Welsh, Santa Barbara Independent, August 15, 2008
• A Safe Environment for Children & Youth, Catholic Diocese of Spokane, November 3, 2009
• Ernesto C. v. Franciscans, Cause No. 1337577, Santa Barbara Co. Superior Court, October 5, 2009
• Clover v. Franciscans, Cause No. 1338070, Santa Barbara Co. Superior Court, November 3, 2009
• Diocese of Phoenix's List of Those Accused of Sexual Abuse, By Michael Clancy, Arizona Republic, June 15, 2011
• Community Notification Statements, Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, October 15, 2012

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 Ladenburger'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 September 13, 2015.