On March 4, 2026, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha released a comprehensive report on child sexual abuse within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence. The report confirmed what many survivors had known for decades: clergy abused hundreds of children, and diocesan leadership worked to protect the institution rather than the children in its care. If you or someone you love was abused by a priest, deacon, or other clergy member in Rhode Island, this report matters to you. It is the most complete public accounting of this crisis in our state’s history, and it has already helped drive landmark legal reform. A sexual assault lawyer who represents Rhode Island survivors can help you understand what this report means for your specific situation and whether you have a path to justice.

Table of Contents

• What the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Clergy Abuse Report Found
• How the Investigation Was Conducted and Why Its Scope Was Limited
• What the Report Means for Survivors Seeking Civil Justice
• The Pattern of Institutional Concealment the Report Exposed
• Rhode Island’s New Child Sexual Abuse Law and What It Means for You
• FAQs About the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Clergy Abuse Report

What the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Clergy Abuse Report Found

For more than seven decades, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence concealed the sexual abuse of hundreds of children by over six dozen clergy members, according to the report released by Attorney General Peter Neronha. A total of 72 deacons and priests faced credible accusations of abuse dating as far back as 1950.

The report, which took almost seven years to produce, found 75 clergy members with credible accusations of sexual misconduct and over 300 documented victims of sex abuse at the hands of clergy members since 1950. These are not abstract numbers. Behind every figure is a person who was harmed as a child, in a place where they should have been safe.

Child sexual abuse in the Diocese of Providence occurred on an abhorrent, staggering scale. For decades, the Diocese engaged in a well-worn pattern of protecting the reputation of the Church and its priests over the welfare of children. They failed to report the abuse to civil authorities, failed to properly investigate those complaints internally, and failed to remove accused priests from positions where they had access to even more children.

The investigation revealed that the five priests who are alleged to have sexually abused the most children were: Fathers O’Connell with 23 victims, Smyth and Robert Marcantonio each with 17 victims, Edmond Micarelli with 16 victims, and Michael LaMountain with 12 victims.

Father Robert McIntyre is credibly accused of abusing 11 children, primarily during his 23-year assignment at St. Aloysius Home, a diocesan-run orphanage in Smithfield. According to one victim, McIntyre threatened him, saying, “If you don’t cooperate here, you’re not going to go home to your mother.” For more than 70 years, the Diocese of Providence systematically concealed child sexual abuse, prioritizing institutional reputation over child safety.

None of this was your fault. If you were abused by any of the clergy named in this report, or by someone not yet identified, your experience is real and your pain is valid. You deserve answers, and you deserve the opportunity to hold those responsible accountable.

How the Investigation Was Conducted and Why Its Scope Was Limited

The investigation, which began in July 2019, involved an examination of more than 250,000 pages of diocesan documents dating back to 1950. Those records included personnel files, treatment reports, internal investigation records, and other materials that the Diocese agreed to hand over under a formal agreement.

The state’s investigation began in July 2019, when then-Bishop Thomas Tobin signed a memorandum of understanding with Neronha to review diocesan records of complaints of child sexual abuse dating back to 1950. This agreement, known as the MOU, was the legal framework that gave investigators access to the church’s internal records. Without it, the Attorney General had no power to compel the Diocese to produce documents, because Rhode Island does not have a grand jury reporting statute.

Though the Diocese cooperated in producing a large volume of records, which laid bare the deep institutional and personal failures at the heart of this crisis, the investigatory process was also not without roadblocks of the Diocese’s own making. The Diocese denied the Office’s requests for in-person interviews.

There was also evidence that the diocese had a practice of destroying confidential files when the priests died, according to state investigators. That means the full scope of the abuse may never be known. The report itself acknowledges this plainly.

In deciding whether to include an accused individual in the report’s appendix, the Attorney General relied on records voluntarily produced by the Diocese of Providence, as well as law enforcement records, records of criminal and civil proceedings, victim and witness interviews, and publicly available information. The standard used was whether there was a reasonable basis to believe the alleged conduct more likely than not occurred.

The investigation’s limitations do not diminish its findings. They actually underscore why survivors who were abused by clergy connected to specific parishes, schools like St. Raphael Academy in Pawtucket, or institutions like St. Aloysius Home in Smithfield should speak with an attorney who can investigate beyond what the public report contains.

What the Report Means for Survivors Seeking Civil Justice

The Attorney General’s report did more than document abuse. It directly shaped new law in Rhode Island, creating a real legal opportunity for survivors whose claims were previously blocked by time limits.

In 2019, the General Assembly extended the statute of limitations and gave previously time-barred survivors an opportunity to sue. But in 2023, the Rhode Island Supreme Court ruled that the 2019 law only applied to suits against individual perpetrators, not the institutions or supervisors who enabled them. That ruling left many survivors without a path to hold the Diocese and other institutions legally accountable.

The enactment of the new law comes after the release of the report in March 2026 by Attorney General Neronha accusing the Catholic Diocese of Providence of a “well-worn pattern” of failing to remove dozens of priests accused of child sexual abuse and keeping the abuse secret over decades.

The new law amends the statute of limitations for claims of sexual abuse of a child and creates a two-year window for victims to bring otherwise time-barred claims against institutions and supervisors accused of enabling or covering up sexual abuse. The new law takes effect on July 1, 2026.

The new law establishes a two-year civil revival window that opens from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2028. During this 24-month period, survivors can file civil suits even if the statute of limitations on their claims had previously expired.

This means that if you were abused as a child in Rhode Island, whether by a priest at a parish, a religious order member at a school, or any clergy member covered by the report, you may now have the right to bring a civil claim against the institution that enabled or concealed that abuse. Consulting a sexual abuse lawyer now is the most important step you can take to understand whether this window applies to you.

The Pattern of Institutional Concealment the Report Exposed

The report did not just identify abusers. It documented in detail how diocesan leadership responded when abuse was reported, and that response was a pattern of cover-up, not accountability.

The review found that historically, the diocese did not report any complaints of sexual abuse of children to law enforcement. Even in the 1990s, when reporting began to improve, the diocese still withheld complaints about priests who were still living.

Michael LaMountain is described as one of the “most infamous child molesters in Rhode Island history,” with 12 known victims. Although supervisors raised concerns about LaMountain’s “relationship with youths” as early as 1976, he remained in active ministry for nearly two decades before pleading guilty to nine felony counts in 1999. This is what institutional concealment looks like in practice. A warning was raised. Leadership did nothing. More children were harmed.

Church records show the diocese transferred accused priests to new assignments without fully investigating complaints or contacting law enforcement, a practice exposed in investigations in Boston, Philadelphia, and elsewhere.

Only 20 people, about a quarter of the clergy identified in the report, faced criminal charges, and just 14 were convicted. That gap between documented abuse and criminal accountability is exactly why civil litigation matters. A civil claim does not require a criminal conviction. It requires proof that the institution failed to protect children and that this failure caused harm.

The report also identified gaps in the Diocese’s current practices, including insufficient supervision of credibly accused clergy, nonstandardized internal investigations, and inadequate documentation of those investigations. These are not just historical failures. They are reasons why institutional accountability through the civil courts remains critical today.

Rhode Island’s New Child Sexual Abuse Law and What It Means for You

Rhode Island’s new law, H-7200A/S-2616A, signed by Governor Dan McKee on June 11, 2026, and effective July 1, 2026, is a direct response to the Attorney General’s report and the survivors who fought for it.

The legislation was sponsored by House Judiciary Committee Chairwoman Carol Hagan McEntee and Senator Mark McKenney. It passed with overwhelming support after years of advocacy by survivors, advocates, and the Attorney General’s office.

The legislation applies to institutions the civil culpability already applied to perpetrators. To see why this is so necessary, one only needs to look to the Attorney General’s report on abuses, which describes the shameful actions of an institution more interested in protecting its reputation than the children in their care.

The new law establishes a two-year revival window that runs from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2028, during which survivors may file lawsuits against alleged perpetrators and institutions, such as the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, and other entities accused of failing to prevent abuse or covering up wrongful conduct.

All time-barred claims must be filed by June 30, 2028, or they may be forever barred. That deadline is real. It does not move. If you believe you have a claim, waiting is the one thing you cannot afford to do.

This law applies to survivors abused in any institutional setting. Whether your abuse happened at a parish, a Catholic school, a youth program, or another setting where an institution failed to protect you, the window may apply to your situation. Reaching out to a sexual assault attorney at Sommers Schwartz costs you nothing to start, and it could be the most important call you make.

At Sommers Schwartz, we represent survivors across Rhode Island with the seriousness, compassion, and commitment your case deserves. We understand that coming forward is hard. We also understand the legal clock is running. You do not have to face this alone, and what happened to you was not your fault.

FAQs About the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Clergy Abuse Report

What is the Rhode Island Attorney General’s clergy abuse report?

The report is a comprehensive investigation into child sexual abuse within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, released by Attorney General Peter Neronha on March 4, 2026. It identified 75 clergy members with credible allegations of sexual misconduct involving more than 300 documented victims since 1950. It also documented how diocesan leadership concealed the abuse for decades by failing to report it to law enforcement and reassigning accused priests to new parishes.

Does the report name specific priests who abused children in Rhode Island?

Yes. The report’s Appendix A, published by the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office at riag.ri.gov, contains summaries of 72 clergy determined to be credibly accused of child sexual misconduct. Each summary includes the individual’s assignment history, known allegations, and the Diocese’s response to those allegations. The Attorney General used a standard of whether there was a reasonable basis to believe the alleged conduct more likely than not occurred before including any name.

Can I still file a civil lawsuit if my abuse happened decades ago?

Possibly yes, and this is exactly what Rhode Island’s new law, H-7200A/S-2616A, is designed to address. Signed by Governor Dan McKee on June 11, 2026, and effective July 1, 2026, the law creates a two-year revival window running through June 30, 2028. During this period, survivors can bring civil claims against institutions and supervisors accused of enabling or covering up sexual abuse, even if the statute of limitations on those claims had previously expired. Speaking with an attorney as soon as possible is critical because the window closes permanently on June 30, 2028.

What is the difference between a criminal case and a civil lawsuit for clergy abuse?

A criminal case is brought by the state and can result in prison time for the abuser. A civil lawsuit is brought by the survivor and seeks financial accountability from the abuser, the institution, or both. You do not need a criminal conviction, or even a criminal case, to file a civil lawsuit. Many survivors whose abusers were never criminally charged have still been able to pursue civil claims. Civil litigation also allows you to hold institutions like the Diocese of Providence directly responsible for their role in enabling or concealing the abuse.

How do I know if the clergy abuse report affects my situation?

If you were sexually abused as a child by a Catholic priest, deacon, religious order member, or any clergy member connected to the Diocese of Providence, the report is directly relevant to you. Even if your abuser is not named in the report, the institutional failures it documents may still support a civil claim against the Diocese or another supervising institution. The best way to understand your specific options is to speak confidentially with an attorney. At Sommers Schwartz, we offer free, confidential consultations for survivors across Rhode Island, and we can help you understand what your rights are under the new law before the revival window closes.

More Resources About Rhode Island Sexual Abuse Resources

• The 2026–2028 Rhode Island Child Sexual Abuse Lookback Window
• Rhode Island Sexual Abuse Statute of Limitations (Annie’s Law, Houllahan, H-7200A)