This page concerns James D. Campbell, born June 25, 1945, ordained May 27, 1972, a priest of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (M.S.C.) who served in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence and died in 2007. The Attorney General's Appendix A prints his name as “James Campbell”. This page 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.
Talk With Us — Confidentially
If you'd like to talk with someone about whether Rhode Island's revival window applies to your situation, you can reach us below. What you share is confidential, there is no cost to ask, and contacting us does not commit you to anything.
Confidential · Free · Speak with a Rhode Island attorney — in person, by phone, or by video.
Father James Campbell was a religious-order priest — a Missionary of the Sacred Heart — whose Rhode Island service, per the Diocese’s record, was concurrent assignments at St. Joseph Church in West Warwick and Rhode Island Medical Center in Cranston from 1975 to 1977. He is named on the Diocese of Providence’s published List of Credibly Accused Religious Order Priests 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 Campbell?
According to the Diocese of Providence’s published list, his status reads, in full: “Left the Diocese of Providence 9/1977; Removed from Ministry 3/2005 by M.S.C.; Died 2007”. The Attorney General’s Appendix A header records that Campbell was laicized in 2005; the Diocese’s status separately records his removal from ministry by the M.S.C. in March 2005 — both are stated here as each source publishes them (Appendix A, p. 41).
According to the Attorney General’s report, a complainant first reported abuse to the Diocese in an August 1994 letter addressed to a priest at St. Joseph Church, which was forwarded to Bishop Louis Gelineau and to OEC Director Robert McCarthy — but “it does not appear that any investigative action was taken at that time nor was there a referral to law enforcement” (Appendix A, p. 41). The report records that McCarthy revisited the case in May 2002, after the priest who had forwarded the letter asked for follow-up; McCarthy related at that time that, because Campbell had moved out of state and was not a priest of the Providence Diocese, the Diocese had no reason to move forward in 1994. When McCarthy called the order’s Provincial Supervisor in Illinois in May 2002, he was advised that other complaints had been filed against Campbell while he was in Illinois (Appendix A, p. 42).
The report further records a criminal conviction: “Father Campbell was convicted in Massachusetts in December 2004 of molesting two children, a boy (‘Complainant B’) and a girl (‘Complainant C’), on separate occasions in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, from 1975 to 1978 while assigned to St. Joseph Church in West Warwick” (Appendix A, p. 41). The report’s main volume lists James Campbell among the 14 credibly accused clergy who were convicted of crimes in connection with sexual misconduct (Report, p. 91). He died in 2007 (Appendix A, p. 41).
Where Father Campbell served: assignment history
The Diocese of Providence publishes the following assignment record:
| Assignment | Location | Years |
|---|---|---|
| St. Joseph Church | West Warwick, RI | 1975–1977 |
| Rhode Island Medical Center | Cranston, RI | 1975–1977 |
Source: Diocese of Providence, individual clergy record, verified July 7, 2026. The two assignments appear as concurrent in the published record. The Attorney General’s Appendix A prints a fuller assignment history for the order priest, including the M.S.C. Center in Shelby, Ohio (1974–1975), missionary service in Bogota (1978–1982), a parish and monastery in Aurora, Illinois (1982–2000), the M.S.C. Foreign Missions in the Marshall Islands (2000–2002), Sacred Heart Villa in Center Valley, Pennsylvania (2002), and a 2005 laicization line (Appendix A, p. 41).
What the official lists say
The Diocese of Providence includes James D. Campbell, M.S.C., on its List of Credibly Accused Religious Order Priests – Deceased. The Rhode Island Attorney General’s report (March 4, 2026) includes Father James Campbell among the 72 clergy “determined by the Attorney General to have been credibly accused of child sexual misconduct in the Diocese of Providence” (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 James Campbell, a priest of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart religious order, reportedly sexually assaulted a 15-year-old boy (‘Complainant A’) on multiple occasions from 1975 to 1976 in the rectory of St. Joseph’s Church in West Warwick, at a hotel in Narragansett, and once in a hotel near Youngstown, Ohio” (Appendix A, p. 41).
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. In Father Campbell’s case, the report records an exception established by court record: his December 2004 conviction in Massachusetts involving two children (Appendix A, p. 2; Appendix A, p. 41; Report, p. 91).
Religious-order priests: who a claim is brought against
Father Campbell belonged to a religious order (the M.S.C.) while serving in Diocese of Providence assignments. In cases involving order priests, which institution — the order, the diocese, or both — bears responsibility depends on who assigned, supervised, and knew what, when. That is a fact-specific question a Rhode Island attorney evaluates; the revival window’s June 30, 2028 deadline applies either way.
If you were at St. Joseph’s in West Warwick in the mid-1970s: the Rhode Island revival window
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 in 2007 does not affect the right to bring a claim:
- 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
Common questions
Is James Campbell on the credibly accused list? Yes. He appears on the Diocese of Providence’s published List of Credibly Accused Religious Order Priests (Deceased) and in Appendix A of the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 report.
Was Father Campbell convicted? Yes. The Attorney General’s report records that he “was convicted in Massachusetts in December 2004 of molesting two children, a boy (‘Complainant B’) and a girl (‘Complainant C’), on separate occasions in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, from 1975 to 1978” (Appendix A, p. 41), and lists him among the 14 credibly accused clergy convicted of crimes in connection with sexual misconduct (Report, p. 91).
He wasn’t a Diocese of Providence priest — does that change anything? It can change who a claim is brought against, not whether one can be brought. The revival window applies to qualifying claims regardless of whether the priest was diocesan or belonged to a religious order.
He died in 2007 — can a claim still be filed? Yes. Under the revival window, claims may be filed until June 30, 2028.
Confidential help
If something happened to you at St. Joseph’s or in connection with his Rhode Island service, you can speak with a Rhode Island attorney confidentially, at no cost and with no obligation. You don’t need records or proof in hand to have a conversation, and you don’t need to have told anyone before. Contact Marin & Murphy Law Firm confidentially.
Related town records: see all verified Cranston records, plus West Warwick 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 (the name form “James D. Campbell, M.S.C.” vs. “James Campbell”; the Diocese’s March 2005 removal from ministry by the M.S.C. alongside the Attorney General’s 2005 laicization record; and the Attorney General’s fuller assignment history), both are stated with attribution. Information current as of July 7, 2026; official lists are working documents and may change.