Father William O'Connell (1922–1996)

Father William O’Connell served the Diocese of Providence for thirty-five years, from Block Island and Wakefield through Riverside, Georgiaville, West Warwick, Providence, Central Falls, Pawtucket, and Tiverton, with five years as a U.S. Navy chaplain and a final thirteen years at St. Mary Church in Bristol. 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 O’Connell?

According to the Diocese of Providence’s published list, Father O’Connell was removed from ministry on February 19, 1985 and died on May 12, 1996. The Rhode Island Attorney General’s entry differs, listing O’Connell as “Suspended Apr. 26, 1988”; its assignment list records “1985 Resigned” and “1988 Suspended on leave” (Appendix A, p. 268).

According to the Attorney General’s report, a priest at St. Mary Church in Bristol raised concerns about O’Connell in a November 1978 letter to Bishop Gelineau and Auxiliary Bishop Angell, describing a “scandal of little boys” involving overnight trips; Bishop Gelineau considered the report “unconvincing,” and Angell instructed the priest to gather more evidence. A second priest raised concerns in June 1984 and was again told to gather evidence (Appendix A, pp. 268–269; Report, p. 88). In February 1985, two complainants reported to South Kingstown Police that O’Connell had sexually abused them at his South Kingstown residence; police arrested O’Connell that same month, four more complainants came forward shortly thereafter, and he was indicted twice in 1985 on a total of 26 counts in connection with three victims — the main report’s narrative separately describes that indictment as involving two children, a variance within the Attorney General’s own materials (Report, p. 105). Bishop Gelineau accepted O’Connell’s resignation and placed him on an indefinite leave of absence (Appendix A, p. 269).

In June 1986, O’Connell pled nolo contendere in both cases to a total of 12 counts of second-degree sexual assault, 10 counts of soliciting, two counts of exploiting minors, and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of minors; he was sentenced to five years in prison, of which all but one were suspended, and was ordered to the Saint Luke Institute in Maryland for treatment (Appendix A, p. 269). Records indicate that Bishop Gelineau formally suspended O’Connell in April 1988, that the Diocese never sought his laicization, and that it continued to support him financially until 1994 (Appendix A, p. 269). In July 1994, O’Connell was arrested in Lower Township, New Jersey, on 20 counts related to child sexual abuse; he pled guilty and was sentenced in February 1995 to 10 years at a New Jersey treatment center for sex offenders, where he died in May 1996 (Appendix A, p. 269; Report, p. 145). The Diocese received 12 additional complaints of sexual abuse against O’Connell after his death (Appendix A, p. 269).

Where Father O’Connell served: assignment history

The Diocese of Providence publishes the following assignment record:

Source: Diocese of Providence, individual clergy record, verified July 7, 2026. The Attorney General’s Appendix entry lists several locations by town name where the Diocese uses village names: St. Andrew Church in New Shoreham (Diocese: Block Island), St. Francis Church in South Kingstown (Diocese: Wakefield), St. Brendan Church in East Providence (Diocese: Riverside), and St. Michael Church in Smithfield (Diocese: Georgiaville); it styles the Navy assignment “U.S. Navy Chaplain Corps”; and it adds rows the Diocese record does not include — “1985 Resigned” and “1988 Suspended on leave” (Appendix A, p. 268).

What the official lists say

The Diocese of Providence includes William O’Connell on its List of Credibly Accused Clergy – Deceased, with the status: “Removed from Ministry 2/19/1985; Died 5/12/1996”. The Rhode Island Attorney General’s report (March 4, 2026) includes Father William O’Connell 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 William O’Connell was accused of sexually abusing at least 23 boys from 1950 to 1985. The victims ranged in age from nine to sixteen” (Appendix A, p. 268). Among the report’s top-line findings is this allegation finding: “This Investigation revealed that the five priests who are alleged to have sexually abused the most children were: Fathers O’Connell with 23 victims, Smyth and Robert Marcantonio each with 17 victims, Edmond Micarelli, with 16 victims, and Michael LaMountain with 12 victims” (Report, p. 26).

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 O’Connell’s case, however, the criminal convictions described above — the 1986 Rhode Island nolo contendere pleas and the New Jersey guilty plea — are established by court record as the report recounts them (Appendix A, p. 2; Appendix A, p. 269).

If you were at these parishes — Bristol, Tiverton, Central Falls, and beyond: the Rhode Island revival window

Rhode Island’s revival window allows civil claims for childhood sexual abuse regardless of how long ago it occurred — including the 1950s and 1960s — until June 30, 2028. His death in 1996 does not affect the right to bring 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 William O’Connell 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.

Is this the Cardinal William O’Connell? No. Cardinal William O’Connell (1859–1944) was Archbishop of Boston and is unrelated to this record. This page concerns a Diocese of Providence parish priest born in 1922.

Was Father O’Connell convicted? Yes. In June 1986 he pled nolo contendere in Rhode Island to 12 counts of second-degree sexual assault, 10 counts of soliciting, two counts of exploiting minors, and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of minors, and was sentenced to five years with all but one suspended; after his 1994 New Jersey arrest he pled guilty to child-abuse-related charges and was sentenced to 10 years at a treatment center, where he died in 1996 (Appendix A, p. 269; Report, p. 145).

He died in 1996 — can a claim still be filed? Yes. Under the revival window, claims may be filed until June 30, 2028, regardless of when the abuse occurred or whether the priest is living.

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. 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.

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 Charles Dolan — also served at St. Brendan Church, Riverside (+1 more shared)
• Father Alfred Desrosiers — also served at St. Michael Church, Georgiaville
• Father Barry Meehan — also served at SS. Peter & Paul Church, West Warwick
• Father Edmund Fitzgerald — also served at SS. Peter & Paul Church, West Warwick

Related town records: see all verified Providence records and Pawtucket records, plus West Warwick records and 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 (removal/resignation/suspension dates and types, assignment place names), both are stated with attribution. Information current as of July 7, 2026; official lists are working documents and may change.