Assignment Record– Rev. David P. Jaeger

Summary of Case: Former director of seminarians for Seattle Diocese. Jaeger approved known abuser Paul Joseph Conn for duties as archdiocesan priest. As part of a 1996 or 1997 lawsuit against Conn, Jaeger himself admitted to improperly touching 8-10 boys at a CYO camp in the 1970s. The archdiocese settled with one victim in 1988. Jaeger was restricted from working one-on-one with minors in 1989 and was sent for treatment. Another claimwas settled in December 2004. Jaeger was voluntarily laicized in December 2005. He died July 22, 2014, and was buried with full rites. His name was included on the archdiocese's list January 15, 2016 of clergy and religious with admitted, established or credible allegations of sexual abuse of a minor.

Born: July 27, 1943
Ordained: May 19, 1969
Died: July 22, 2014

   

Start Stop Assignment Town/Accusations State Position Notes

1969

Seattle archbishop was Thomas Arthur Connolly (1950-1975).

1972 St. Joseph's Vancouver WA 2/2 Parish had a school with 206-234 boys and 211-201 girls.
1972 1974 Immaculate Conception Everett WA 2/2 Parish had a school with 225 students.

1974

Connolly was replaced as archbishop by Raymond Gerhardt Hunthausen (1975-1991).

1978 St. Bridget's Seattle WA 2/2
In residence. 		 
1974 1975 Assistant Director of Catholic Youth Organization        
1975 1978 Director of Catholic Youth Organization • Sued in 1988 for molesting a 13 year old boy at Camp Don Bosco in 1978. Jaeger admitted in a 1997 lawsuit involving another offender, Rev. Paul Conn, to having molested boys at the CYO camp in the 1970s. (Seattle Times
June 22, 2002) 		 

 

 

 

As Director of Seminarians, Jaeger had deemed Conn suitable for priesthood. (Associated Press, carried in The Oregonian
July 27, 1988)

 
1978 1981 Sacred Heart of Jesus Seattle WA

5/7, 6/7, 8/8
In residence.

 
1978 1979 Associate Director of Seminarians        
1979 1989 Director of Seminarians        
1981 1987 St. Paul's Seattle WA 3/3, 2/2, 2/4, 2/3
In residence 		Parish had a school with 242-197 students.
1987 1989 St. Therese's Seattle WA 1/1; Administrator Parish had a school with 196-205 students.
1989 1990 Absent on Leave     As of June 1989, Jaeger was forbidden to minister one on one to minors, and in Aug. 1989 he was sent to Toronto for treatment. (Seattle Times
June 22, 2002) 		 

1990

Thomas Joseph Murphy replaced Hunthausen as archbishop (1991-1997), followed by Alexander Joseph Brunett (1997-2010)

2001 Special Assignment: AIDS Ministry Seattle WA Chaplain  
2001 2002 Special Assignment: Pastoral Care and Inclusion Ministry Resources Seattle WA Director; referred to as "Very Rev." Jaeger is no longer indexed in the Directories after 2002.
2002 2014         Jaeger was placed on leave in 2002 and requested laicization, which was granted in 2005. (Seattle Times
November 15, 2005) He went to work manager of the Helpline Call Center at the headquarters of the Society of St. Vincent DePaul, retiring in 2012. He died July 22, 2014, and was buried with full rites.
(Seattle Times
July 27, 2014)


Source: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1970-2002)

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 Jaeger'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 allegations 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 April 24, 2016.