Staff report

A Woodville priest remained on temporary administrative leave Wednesday pending the outcome of a criminal investigation of sexual misconduct involving an adult woman.

Msgr. Frank Rossi, a retired priest of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, served as pastor of Our Lady of the Pines Parish in Woodville. The alleged incident happened while Rossi was a pastor in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, according to a June 1 letter from Bishop Curtis Guillory that was published on the Diocese’s website. Letty Lanza, director of stewardship and communications, said she could not comment.

The bishop said he accepted Rossi for ministry in the Diocese of Beaumont in May 2017 and Rossi came to the Diocese from the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston as a priest in good standing after having completed a renewal program for clergy and religious in order to ensure he possessed the necessary tools to live a holy priestly life.

“The renewal center staff recommended Msgr. Rossi’s return to active priestly ministry without restrictions,” he said. “At the time he began his ministry at Our Lady of the Pines in Woodville, there was no criminal investigation of him.”

And, during his ministry in the Beaumont Diocese, they had not received any allegations of misconduct regarding him, having only received commendations of him and his ministry.

 

See also: Diocese puts 2 priests on abusers list