KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - A retired eastern Tennessee priest will never serve in any church post again after he admitted to abusing a 10-year-old boy more than 25 years ago, church officials said Thursday.
"This just goes to show that sometimes sin is in the places you least expect to find it," said Bishop Richard F. Stika, head of the Diocese of Knoxville.
Stika said he suspended the priest, Father Bill Casey, on Wednesday and ordered an internal investigation immediately upon learning of the accusation.
"This is a problem that reaches across the board," the bishop said. "It's not just a problem for the church. Most abuse occurs in family situations. In those situations and in the church, people are sometimes afraid to report it. Fortunately, we've reached a point where people can talk about it."
Diocese policy calls for background screening of all new priests, including references and criminal history checks. An independent board reviews all complaints.
Warren Anthony Tucker, 44, says the priest, who still lives in eastern Tennessee, abused him from about 1975-1980, starting when Tucker was 10 years old. Tucker said the abuse happened in Kingsport, in Greene County and across the state line in McDowell County, N.C.
Casey has also served in Farragut at St. John Neumann Church.
"You try to push it down in your mind, because you don't think anyone will believe you, but it keeps coming back," said Tucker, who now lives in Jeffersonville, Ind. "I realized I'd waited too long."
Tucker, who met Wednesday in Knoxville with diocese officials, said he reported his claims to authorities in both states, but no criminal charges have been filed.
