Key Takeaways
- Father William O’Neill was publicly identified in the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 Report on Child Sex Abuse in the Diocese of Providence.
- According to the report, O’Neill sexually abused a boy and a girl in the late 1960s and early 1970s and personally admitted to diocesan investigators in 1996 that he had assaulted the girl.
- Despite that admission, the Diocese never referred the allegations to law enforcement and allowed O’Neill, who was working as a music director with regular access to children, to remain in that position for years afterwards.
Who Was Father William O’Neill?
Father William O’Neill was a priest in the Diocese of Providence, ordained in 1968, who served in active ministry for only about three years before being suspended in 1971. He was voluntarily laicized in 1972 for reasons the diocese never documented.
O’Neill is identified on the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 Report and is included on the Diocese of Providence’s List of Credibly Accused Clergy. According to the Report, complainants first disclosed his abuse to the diocese in 1994 and 1995, more than two decades after it allegedly occurred, and the diocese never referred either allegation to law enforcement. (Appendix A, p. 286)
Father William O’Neill Assignment History
According to the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Report, O’Neill served at:
- 1968: St. Mary Church, Charlestown
- 1968–1969: Immaculate Conception Church, Cranston
- 1969–1971: Blessed Sacrament Church, Providence
- 1971: Suspended on leave
- 1972: Laicized
The Allegations Against Father William O’Neill
O’Neill’s file documents two victims, and his own later admission to one of the assaults makes this one of the more directly corroborated cases in the report.
- Late 1960s: A man disclosed to an acquaintance in November 1994 that O’Neill had sexually abused him around age 10 while assigned to Blessed Sacrament Parish in Providence and separately abused a girl around the same period. The Diocese’s own records show no attempt was made to contact the man or O’Neill after this initial report.
- Late 1960s: A second complainant, a girl between 9 and 12 years old, was reportedly abused by O’Neill during a camping trip in Maine while he was assigned to Immaculate Conception Parish in Cranston. Her brother reported the abuse to Bishop Louis Gelineau in March 1995, describing a taped confrontation with O’Neill years earlier in which O’Neill appeared to admit the assault and a letter in which O’Neill had reportedly apologized to the girl directly.
- August 1996: Diocesan investigator Robert McCarthy finally interviewed O’Neill, nearly two years after the first report. O’Neill denied abusing the boy but admitted to the camping trip incident with the girl, telling McCarthy “an incident did occur late at night, it was unintentional,” and that he remembered “being between her legs when it occurred.” He acknowledged writing her a letter of apology but denied it contained specific admissions.
At the time of his admission, O’Neill was working as a music director at St. Jude Parish in Lincoln, a position with direct access to children. Bishop Gelineau’s own internal memo on the case read, “Problem now: He is working at St. Jude’s. Has access to children.” Despite this, and despite O’Neill’s admission, McCarthy did not refer the matter to law enforcement. Instead, the Diocese allowed O’Neill to continue working at St. Jude’s under an informal “no closed-door policy,” which McCarthy confirmed to the parish pastor in November 1996 was made at Bishop Gelineau’s direction.
The following year, a new pastor at St. Jude’s told McCarthy he was uncomfortable with O’Neill after finding him alone in the church with a girl, his hands on her face. The pastor said his predecessor had vaguely alluded to “some type of sexual conditions” involving O’Neill but had never explained them. There is no record of the Diocese taking further action. O’Neill died in 2000. A Diocesan advisory group later discussed, in a memo that survives in the file, whether to destroy his case records now that he was deceased.
Father William O’Neill’s Criminal Proceedings
O’Neill was never criminally charged. The Diocese did not refer either allegation against him to law enforcement at any point, including after his own admission in 1996.
Civil Litigation Against Father William O’Neill
Public records reviewed for this profile do not show a civil lawsuit filed against O’Neill. Rhode Island’s expanded statute of limitations may still allow survivors to pursue civil claims against the Diocese of Providence.
The Dangers of Giving Abusers “Second Chances”
Father William O’Neill’s case illustrates the danger of an institution accepting an abuser’s own admission and still failing to act. The Diocese knew by 1996, in O’Neill’s own words, that he had assaulted a child and knew he was working in a role with ongoing access to children, yet responded only with an informal supervision policy rather than removal or a report to police.
When institutions treat a confirmed disclosure as a matter to be quietly managed rather than reported, children remain at risk long after the truth is known.
Support for Survivors of Clergy Sexual Abuse
If you or someone you love was sexually abused by Father William O’Neill, Andreozzi + Foote is here to help.
Recent changes to Rhode Island law have created an opportunity for survivors to pursue civil claims that may have previously been barred by the statute of limitations.
At Andreozzi + Foote, we represent survivors of clergy sexual abuse across the nation. Our team takes a trauma-informed approach to every case, ensuring survivors are heard, supported, and empowered throughout the legal process.
If you were abused by Father O’Neill or another religious leader, we encourage you to contact us today to learn about your legal options.
Every consultation is free and completely confidential.
📞 (866) 311-8640 📧 info@vca.law
Image source: Fr. William O’Neill, via Bishop Accountability. Blessed Sacrament Church, Providence, Rhode Island, blessedsacramentpvd.org
