Order: OFM Cap
Ordained: 1985
Status: Convicted
Diocese: Archdiocese of Baltimore MD
Father Richard Deakin was convicted in 1990 for sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl between 1986-1988, which included incidents of rape. He received a 20-year suspended sentence and a concurrent 15-year suspended sentence, along with five years of probation. In January 1992, a civil suit was filed against him, which was settled out of court in September 1993.
The Archdiocese was aware of Father Richard Deakin’s history of deviant sexual behavior, and in 1987, after he exposed himself to a woman and shouted obscenities, the Capuchins transferred him to Pittsburgh.
Before his ordination, seminary officials were aware of his use of church funds to purchase X-rated movies and pornography. He left the priesthood in 1988 and married but was dismissed from the clerical state on December 29, 1992.
Father Richard Deakin became a licensed social worker and started working with the V.A. in 1996. His name was included on the Baltimore Archdiocese’s 2002 list of accused religious priests and brothers. He was also included in the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report released on August 14, 2018, and the Maryland Attorney General’s report published on April 5, 2023.