This page concerns Edward Kelley, born March 21, 1942, ordained June 8, 1968, a priest of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence who died September 26, 2022. It does not refer to any other person of the same or similar name. Assignments are reproduced from the Diocese’s records and the Attorney General’s report — see how this database is verified.
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Father Edward Kelley served in a dozen Rhode Island assignments across Narragansett, Warwick, Slatersville, Manville, Pascoag, Cranston, Providence, Rumford, Pawtucket, Woonsocket, and Cumberland — followed by twenty years as a United States Army chaplain. He is named on the Diocese of Providence’s published List of Credibly Accused Clergy and is among the 72 clergy included in the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 report on the Diocese (Appendix A, p. 2).
What happened to Father Kelley?
According to the Diocese of Providence’s published list, Father Kelley was removed from ministry on May 19, 2015 and died on September 26, 2022. The Attorney General’s report separately records his retirement on January 31, 2013 and the revocation of his priestly faculties in 2015 (Appendix A, p. 165).
He was also one of four clergy criminally prosecuted as a result of the Attorney General’s investigation: a grand jury indicted him in May 2021, on three counts of first-degree sexual assault, following an investigation by the State Police and the Attorney General’s Office (Report, p. 50; Report, p. 81). As the Attorney General’s report states, he died while his criminal case was still pending — the charges were never tried, and he was never convicted. The report records that he “was deemed incompetent to stand trial in 2022 and died shortly thereafter” (Report, p. 24; Appendix A, p. 2). He remained entitled to the presumption of innocence.
Where Father Kelley served: assignment history
The Diocese of Providence publishes the following assignment record:
| Assignment | Location | Years |
|---|---|---|
| St. Mary, Star of the Sea Church | Narragansett, RI | 1968 |
| St. Catherine Church | Warwick, RI | 1968–1969 |
| St. John the Evangelist Church | Slatersville, RI | 1969 |
| St. James Church | Manville, RI | 1969–1975 |
| St. Joseph Church | Pascoag, RI | 1975–1976 |
| St. Matthew Church | Cranston, RI | 1976–1978 |
| St. Joseph Hospital | Providence, RI | 1978 |
| St. Margaret Church | Rumford, RI | 1978–1980 |
| St. John the Evangelist Church | Slatersville, RI | 1980–1985 |
| Our Lady of Consolation Church | Pawtucket, RI | 1985–1986 |
| St. Agatha Church | Woonsocket, RI | 1986–1992 |
| St. Aidan Church | Cumberland, RI | 1992 |
| Sacred Heart Church | Woonsocket, RI | 1992 |
| United States Army Chaplain | — | 1993–2013 |
Source: Diocese of Providence, individual clergy record, verified July 7, 2026. The Attorney General’s Appendix A publishes a substantially similar history with minor differences in years and place names (e.g., St. James Church through 1974; St. Margaret Church listed in East Providence, of which Rumford is a village) and adds the 2013 retirement and 2015 faculties revocation (Appendix A, p. 165).
What the official lists say
The Diocese of Providence includes Edward Kelley on its List of Credibly Accused Clergy – Deceased, with the status: “Removed from Ministry 5/19/2015; Died 9/26/2022”. The Rhode Island Attorney General’s report (March 4, 2026) includes Father Edward Kelley among the 72 clergy “determined by the Attorney General to have been credibly accused of child sexual misconduct in the Diocese of Providence,” and notes that his criminal case was pending at his death (Appendix A, p. 2). He is one of the 75 names on the Diocese of Providence credibly accused list, explained.
The report’s summary of the allegations states: “Father Edward Kelley reportedly sexually abused three victims during his more than forty years in ministry as a Diocesan priest,” and notes that the Bishops transferred him five times between his 1968 ordination and the 1976–1978 Cranston assignment, when Diocesan records indicate the Diocese first addressed his “moral problems” (Appendix A, p. 165). The report elsewhere recounts that he reportedly met a 14-year-old victim in 1976 while serving as a Boy Scouts troop chaplain (Report, p. 80). A footnote adds that the Attorney General found no personnel document confirming that chaplaincy; a May 1973 letter shows he asked to be appointed assistant to the Scout Chaplain — a role records show was then held by Father Edmund Micarelli (Report, p. 80, n. 118). For abuse connected to Scouting, note that such claims were channeled into the Boy Scouts of America Settlement Trust through the BSA bankruptcy, and the deadline for filing trust claims has passed — that path is likely barred for anyone who did not file; a diocese-side claim under Rhode Island’s revival window is evaluated separately, on its own facts.
As the Attorney General’s report itself states, unless otherwise noted, the details in its Appendix A are allegations — not facts proven in a courtroom or admitted by the accused — and the individuals named are generally entitled to a presumption of innocence (Appendix A, p. 2).
If you were at these parishes: the Rhode Island revival window
His Rhode Island record touches more communities than almost any name on the list — including six years at St. James in Manville, five at St. John the Evangelist in Slatersville, and six at St. Agatha in Woonsocket. Rhode Island’s revival window allows civil claims for childhood sexual abuse regardless of how long ago it occurred, until June 30, 2028. His death does not bar a claim — claims are brought against the responsible institution:
- How Rhode Island’s revival window works
- Can you still sue if the priest has died?
- The June 30, 2028 deadline
- Who can file a claim
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Edward Kelley on the credibly accused list? Yes. He appears on the Diocese of Providence’s published List of Credibly Accused Clergy (Deceased) and in Appendix A of the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 report.
Was Father Kelley convicted? No. He was criminally charged following the Attorney General’s investigation, was deemed incompetent to stand trial in 2022, and died while the case was still pending. The charges were never resolved in court.
Does the unresolved criminal case affect a civil claim? No. Civil claims under the revival window are independent of any criminal proceeding and are brought against the responsible institution. The deadline is June 30, 2028.
Confidential help
If something happened to you at one of these parishes, you can speak with a Rhode Island attorney confidentially, at no cost and with no obligation. Contact Marin & Murphy Law Firm confidentially.
Other credibly accused clergy who served at these parishes
The official assignment records above overlap with those of other clergy on the official lists — the same institution of record, at any period, which is not an assertion that they served there at the same time:
- Father Peter Scagnelli — also served at Sacred Heart Church, Woonsocket (+1 more shared)
- Father Armand Ventre — also served at St. Joseph Church, Pascoag
- Father Dennis Brodeur — also served at St. Catherine Church, Warwick
- Father Hugh Rafferty — also served at St. Matthew Church, Cranston
Related town records: see all verified Providence records, Cranston records, Pawtucket records, Woonsocket records, and Warwick records, plus East Providence records.
Reporting resources
Anyone with information about abuse may contact the Rhode Island State Police Special Victims Unit at (401) 764-0142, the RI Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-RI-CHILD (1-800-742-4453), or the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office at (401) 274-4400.
Questions About These Records? Talk With Marin & Murphy — Confidentially
If the assignment history on this page overlaps with your own — a parish, a school, a set of years — and you want to understand what it may mean for a claim under Rhode Island’s revival window, our attorneys can review it with you. Marin & Murphy Law Firm is a Rhode Island law firm representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse under the revival window (July 1, 2026 – June 30, 2028). A conversation is free and confidential, nothing is filed and no one is contacted unless you decide, and there is no fee unless you recover. Call (401) 269-3381, or start with our Rhode Island clergy abuse lawyer page.
Corrections: we maintain a corrections policy for these pages, with a named contact and a 48-hour review commitment. If you believe anything on this page is inaccurate, please tell us.
Verification: every fact on this page is checked against both official sources — the Diocese of Providence’s published records and the Rhode Island Attorney General’s report — with source conflicts stated, not silently resolved. See how this database is verified.
Sources: Diocese of Providence, List of Credibly Accused Clergy and individual clergy record (verified July 7, 2026); Rhode Island Attorney General, Report on the Diocese of Providence and Appendix A (March 4, 2026). Where the two official sources differ (status characterization; assignment years and place names), both are stated with attribution. Information current as of July 7, 2026; official lists are working documents and may change.