Rhode Island Attorney General Releases Report on Child Sexual Abuse in the Diocese of Providence

In early March of 2026, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Neronha published a comprehensive report on child sexual abuse in the Diocese of Providence. The report is the result of an investigation that began in 2019, after the Diocese agreed to voluntarily produce internal records relating to clergy abuse dating back to 1950.

The investigation involved the review of more than 250,000 pages of documents, including personnel files, treatment reports, internal investigation records, correspondence, policies, and other materials. Investigators also made contact with nearly 150 survivors.

According to the report, 75 clergy members, including Diocesan priests and deacons, an extern priest, and other members of the religious order, were credibly accused of abusing more than 300 children during the review period. The Attorney General’s Office notes, however, that the scope may be far greater.

While the report identifies clergy members and others who have been credibly accused of sexually abusing children, it’s important to read the report with care. The Attorney General’s Office notes that many of the allegations described in it have not been proven in court. Inclusion in the report does not, by itself, constitute a finding of guilt.

More Than Numbers

The numbers in the Attorney General’s report are staggering. However, it’s about so much more than numbers. It’s about the safety of children. It’s about trust. It’s about families who believed their children were in good hands. It’s about survivors who have carried fear, shame, confusion, anger, grief, and silence into adulthood.

The report discusses long-term effects described by survivors, including post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, self-harm, and serious difficulties with relationships, intimacy, work, and daily life. These are not abstract harms. They’re the kind of wounds that can shape a person’s sense of safety, faith, identity, and self.

The report also describes how survivors often struggled to speak about what happened because of trauma, threats, or the power of the person who abused them. For many, it can take years or decades to disclose what happened.

This is not unusual. Studies have found that it takes an average of 17 years for a survivor of childhood sexual abuse to come forward. Tragically, not everyone can take that step. This is the reality of childhood trauma. The Attorney General’s report on child sexual abuse in the Diocese of Providence helps give voice even to those who are unable to speak.

Accountability Matters

The Attorney General’s report describes institutional failures, including failures to report complaints, failures to properly investigate allegations, failures to remove accused clergy from positions involving children, and historical practices that placed institutional reputation above the safety of children. For many survivors, seeing those failures publicly named can be part of a long and difficult process of validation.

The report also makes recommendations focused on child protection, transparency, internal investigations, monitoring, survivor support, recordkeeping, and trauma-informed practices. Those recommendations, if implemented, could help to increase accountability and protect children the way that they should be protected.

Are You a Survivor of Childhood Sexual Abuse?

If you are a survivor of childhood sexual abuse connected to the Diocese of Providence, or if this report has brought back difficult memories, we want you to know that you are not alone.

Many survivors have questions after a report like this is released. Some want to better understand what the report says. Some want to know whether information they remember appears in the public record. Some want to talk privately with someone outside the institution involved. Some simply want to be heard.

Whatever brings you to that point, your questions deserve honest answers.

The Attorney General’s Diocese Report website includes a resources page for those impacted by the abuse. It lists the Rhode Island State Police Special Victims Unit clergy abuse hotline, as well as organizations that provide survivor support, crisis services, counseling, and advocacy. These organizations are available to provide support and assistance, no matter how long ago the abuse took place.

We Are Here to Get Justice for Survivors

At Mandell, Boisclair & Mandell, we represent people who have suffered profound harm because trusted institutions failed to protect them. We know these conversations are sensitive. We know they require privacy, compassion, and true care. We’re honored to offer civil legal services to survivors of sexual abuse.

If you have questions about the Attorney General’s report or would like to speak to someone in private about whether you can pursue a lawsuit, call us at (401) 273-8330 to schedule a confidential, no-obligation, no-cost consultation at our Providence office today. We help survivors of childhood sexual abuse throughout Rhode Island seek justice.