Rev. John Whiteley-Assignment

Assignment Record – Rev. John J. Whiteley

Summary of Case: A priest of the Jefferson City diocese ordained in 1967, Whiteley was a parish priest as well as a college and Army reserve chaplain. He was accused in a 1991 lawsuit of abusing David Clohessy from 1969 to 1973, beginning when David was about age twelve. The abuse is said to have involved the priest touching the boy's genitals and lying on top of him during trips; some of the trips were out-of-state. Whiteley allegedly abused at least five others, including Clohessy's brother Kevin, later a priest and himself accused of abuse. Whiteley held a chancery job in 1991. He resigned and disappeared in 1992. The lawsuit against him was dismissed 1992 after a Missouri supreme court decision on a new statute of limitations law. Whiteley reportedly went on to work as a flight attendant. David Clohessy became long-time executive director of SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests).

Ordained: 1967

Start	Stop	Assignment	Town/Accusations	State	Position	Notes
1967 Bishop of Jefferson City was Joseph Mary Marling (1956-1969).	1968	St. Patrick's	Rolla	MO	2/2	Parish had a school with 242 students.
1968	1969	Missouri University at Rolla-Newman Center	Rolla	MO	1/1
1969 Michael Francis McAuliffe replaced Marling as bishop (1969-1997).	1970	St. Pius X	Moberly • Sued in 1991 by David Clohessy, who reported that he had been sexually abused as a child by when Whiteley was assigned to St. Pius X. The abuse was said to have occurred over a four year period, when Clohessy was ages 12-16. The case was thrown out due to the statute of limitations. • Clohessy's brother, Kevin, who was a priest, has been accused of molesting college students. David believes Kevin was also molested by Whiteley as a boy. David Clohessy went on to become a national advocate for victims of clergy sexual abuse as the Director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP).	MO	2/3	St. Pius X had a school with 24 students.
1970	1976	Mary Immaculate	Kirksville	MO	2/2	Mary Immacuate had a school with 62-83 students.
1970	1976	St. Rose's	Novinger	MO		St. Rose's was a mission of Mary Immaculate in Kirksville.
1970	1974	St. Mary's	Adair	MO		St. Mary's was a mission of Mary Immaculate in Kirksville.
1976	1978	St. Joseph's	Rhineland	MO	1/1
1977	1978	St. Martin's	Starkenburg	MO		St. Martin's was a mission of St. Joseph's in Rhineland.
1978	1980	Church of the Risen Savior	Rhineland	MO	1/1
1978	1980	Shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows	Starkenburg	MO		This was a mission of Church of the Risen Savior in Rhineland.
1980	1981	On Sick Leave
1981	1983	St. Patrick's	Rolla • Whiteley is said to have molested young boys at St. Patrick's and that there were known to have been six victims between this parish and St. Pius X in Moberly.	M O	2/2	Listed as "in residence" in the 1982 Directory. St. Patrick's had a school with 172-159 students.
1983	1991	Columbia Newman Center, University of Missouri	Columbia	MO	Associate Director
1985		U.S. Army	Columbia	MO	Chaplain	Whiteley joined the 5503rd reserve unit in 1985.
	1991	Fulton State Hospital	Fulton	MO	Chaplain
	1991	University of Missouri Hospital and Clinics	Columbia	MO	Chaplain
1991	1992					Whiteley is not indexed in the 1992 Directory.
1992	1994	Absent on leave				Whiteley is no longer indexed in the Directories after 1994. He reportedly left the priesthood and became a flight attendant. David Clohessy bacame long-time executive director of SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests).

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: Kenedy & Sons, 1968-1994).

• [Whiteley at the Newman Center], By David O’Grady, Columbia Missourian, September 7, 1990
• Former Rolla Priest Facing Sex Charges, by Angela Middleton, Rolla Daily News, Aug. 2, 1991
• Priest Accused of Sexual Abuse Placed on Leave, by Christopher Diedoardo, Columbia Missourian, Aug. 4, 1991
• Dangers of Censorship, Just look at the 'John Z .Doe' Case, Columbia Daily Tribune, Aug. 6, 1991
• Church Answers Sex Laws, Diocese Seeks Dismissal; Priest Won't Comment, Columbia Daily Tribune, Sept. 6, 1991
• Lawyer Argues Church Can't be Sued, by Christopher Diedoardo, Columbia Missourian, Sept. 6, 1991
• 'John Doe' in Suit Alleging Abuse by Priest Goes Public, Plaintiff Hopes to Foster Understanding, by George Mazurak, Columbia Daily Tribune, Sept. 12, 1991
• 'John Doe' Goes Public, Good for Him, and Good for the System, Columbia Daily Tribune, Sept. 19, 1991
• Church Sexual Abuse Policy Criticized, by Christopher Diedoardo, Columbia Missourian, Feb. 9, 1992
• Extension Granted in Suit Against Church, Priests, by George Mazurak, Columbia Daily Tribune, Feb. 15, 1992
• Case Tests Child Abuse Amendments, by Christopher Diedoardo, Columbia Missourian, Feb. 17, 1992
• Priest Accused of Abuse Was Given Parish Job, by Patricia Rice, Post-Dispatch, April 8, 2002
• Am I My Brother's Keeper?, By Frank Bruni and Elinor Burkett, New York Times, May 12, 2002
• Priest Scandal Puts Focus on Victims' Advocate, by Dawn Fallik, Post-Dispatch, May 12, 2002
Mother Superior Court
• The Kansas City Catholic Diocese Finds Itself Fighting a Slew of New Lawsuits over Abuse of Parishioners All Filed by One Determined Lawyer, By Kendrick Blackwood, The Pitch [Kansas City], October 16, 2003
• In the Trenches, by David Clohessy, Journal of Religion and Abuse, June 2, 2004
• Thy Child's Face, April 2010
• SNAP , snapnetwork.org

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 & 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 Whiteley'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 Aug. 9, 2014.