Father Gary Carr
Diocese of Little Rock
Ordained: 1982
Retired: 2019
Assignment History:
- 1981: St. Mary Parish (Joplin, MO)
- 1982: St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish (Springfield, MO)
- 1985: St. Mary Parish (Joplin, MO)
- 1985: Joplin Area Catholic Schools Associate (Joplin, MO)
- 1987: Sacred Heart Parish (Webb City, MO)
- 1987: St. Peter Middle School (Joplin, MO)
- 1987: St. Joseph Parish (Advance, MO)
- 1987: St. Anthony Mission Church (Glennon, MO)
- 1989: St. Teresa Parish (Glennonville, MO)
- 1989: St. Ann Parish (Malden, MO)
- 1991: Priest in Residence, Sacred Heart Parish (Poplar Bluff, MO)
- 1991: Sacred Heart Catholic School (Poplar Bluff, MO)
- 1993: St. Henry Parish (Charleston, MO)
- 1993: St. Henry Catholic School (Charleston, MO)
- 1996: St. Mark Parish (Houston, MO)
- 1996: St. John the Baptist Mission Church (Licking, MO)
- 1996: St. Vincent de Paul Mission Church (Roby, MO)
- 1997: Holy Name Catholic School (Ketchikan, Alaska)
- 1999: St. Mary Parish (West Plains, MO)
- 1999: Sacred Heart Mission Church (Thayer, MO)
- 1999: St. Mary Catholic School (West Plains, MO)
- 2001: St. Joseph Parish (Billings, MO)
- 2001: St. Lawrence Catholic School (Monett, MO)
- 2008: St. Francis de Sales Oratory (St. Louis, MO)
- St. John the Baptist Latin Mass Community (Little Rock, AR)
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations Against Father Gary Carr:
Fr. Gary Carr became an ordained priest for the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau in 1982 and ended his career in the Diocese of Little Rock in Arkansas. In 2020, Carr was included on the Diocese of Little Rock’s list of credibly accused clergy outside Arkansas for whom allegations of sexual abuse of a minor have been admitted, substantiated, or determined or considered to be credible. Carr filled in at St. John the Baptist Latin Mass Community in Little Rock, Arkansas, while assigned to the Diocese of Little Rock.
In 2019, Fr. Carr retired a month after an allegation was reported. According to media reports, by July 2020, there were new credible allegations by three men that Fr. Carr sexually abused them as children in the 1980s and 1990s.
In 2020, the diocese announced that its review board had determined that there was a “semblance of truth” to a recent allegation that, 30 years prior, Carr engaged in inappropriate contact with a boy, ages 10-13. Fr. Carr had been placed on leave with restricted ministry in 2008 due to “boundary violations”. A former volunteer at the church where the abuse occured reported that she believed something “funny” was going on and kept records of incidents that included a boy running into the class room yelling, ” He’s a pedophile, get him away from me” as Carr followed behind. The woman took notes and reported the incidents per the chain of command, but nothing was ever done until the new allegations.
According to records released by the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau, Carr left Monett for health reasons in 2004 and briefly returned to priestly work in the summer of 2008 at a church in St. Louis. Fr. Carr officially retired in November 2019, but restrictions were placed on him years earlier. According to the diocese, Fr. Carr was placed on administrative leave and restricted in ministry in December 2008 for “boundary violations” and what the bishop considered imprudent behavior. Carr was restricted to celebrating Mass privately and was not allowed to present himself as a priest or be around minors. That was just five months after Carr arrived in St. Louis.
As of 2020, Carr was living in St. Louis, Missouri.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Little Rock in Arkansas. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Arkansas, contact our office today. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse in Arkansas and nationwide. We can help. Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.