Fr. Leonard A. Abercrombie: Substantiated Claims of Sexual Abuse of a Minor

Fr. Leonard A. Abercrombie

Ordained, 1946

Notes: Fr. Leonard Abercrombie was ordained priest in the Archdiocese of Denver. In 1993, a survivor wrote a letter to Pope John Paul II alleging that Fr. Abercrombie sexually abused him from approximately 1953 to 1957. Fr. Abercrombie has been named in at least two child sexual abuse lawsuits, one filed in 2003 in California and the other filed in 2005 in Colorado. Fr. Abercrombie was also included in the Colorado Attorney General’s Special Master’s Report on “Roman Catholic Clergy Sexual Abuse of Children in Colorado from 1950 to 2019.” According to the Special Master’s Report, at least 18 minor boys were sexually abused by Fr. Abercrombie from the time of his ordination in 1946, until 1971.

Assignments within the Archdiocese/Diocese(s) in Colorado: Denver

Assignments:

1946 St. Joseph, Golden, CO (DEN)

1946-1950 St. Francis de Sales, Denver, CO (DEN)

1950-1953 Chaplain, U.S. Army (DEN)

1953 St. Therese, Denver, CO (DEN)

1954-1956 St. Anthony of Padua, Hugo, CO (DEN)

1956-1962 Sacred Heart Church, Roggen, CO (DEN)

1963-1964 On Leave; St. Francis de Sales Cathedral, Baker City, OR (BAK)

1964-1966 All Saints, Denver, CO (DEN)

1966-1969 St. Peter’s Church, Kremmling, CO (DEN)

1969-1972 St. Anthony Hospital, Denver, CO (DEN)

1973-1976 On Duty Outside of Diocese; V.A. Hospital, Chicago, IL (CHI)

1976-1992 On Duty Outside the Diocese; Sepulveda V.A. Hospital, Mission Hills, CA (LA)

1993-1994 Retired 15461 San Jose St., Mission Hills, CA (LA)

1994 Died

Detailed Clergy Assignment Record: Fr. Leonard A. Abercrombie