Fr. Norman Rogge – Diocese of Alexandria

| Sep 13, 2021 | Abuser Profiles, Catholic Church

Father Norman Rogge

Diocese of Alexandria

 

Ordained: 1956

Convicted: 1967; 1985

Removed: 2002

Death: 2009

Assignment History:

  • 1956-1957: St. Mary’s College (Saint Mary’s, Kansas)
  • 1957-1958: St. Robert’s Hall (Pomfret, Connecticut)
  • 1958-1960: Jesuit High School (Dallas, Texas)
  • 1960-1979: Sacred Heart (Tampa, Florida)
  • 1960-1979: Juvenile Detention Home (Tampa, Florida)
  • 1979-1981: St. Ignatius (Mobile, Alabama)
  • 1981-1982: Jesuit Theological Union (Berkeley, California)
  • 1982-1985: Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Campti, Louisiana)
  • 1982-1985: St. Joseph’s Chapel (Trichel) (Natchitoches, Louisiana)
  • 1982-1985: Our Lady of the Holy Rosary (Black Lake, Louisiana)
  • 1982-1985: St. Patrick’s (Montgomery, Louisiana)
  • 1988-1989: Ignatius Residence (New Orleans, Louisiana)
  • 1989-2002: St. Charles College (Grand Coteau, Louisiana)
  • 1998-2002: St. Charles Borromeo (Grand Coteau, Louisiana)
  • 1998-2002: Christ the King (Bellevue, Louisiana)

Summary of the Sexual Abuse Allegations against Father Norman Rogge

In February 2019, the Diocese of Alexandria publicly named Fr. Norman Rogge on its list of clergy credibly accused of sexual abuse of a minor. According to the list, Fr. Rogge’s file showed evidence of sexual abuse concerning a male minor in 1985.

Fr. Norman Rogge’s 1985 Allegation and Conviction

While the diocese did not provide more information about the nature and scope of the 1985 allegation in Fr. Rogge’s file, Fr. Rogge was convicted of lewdness with a minor that year.

While visiting Tampa in July 1984, Fr. Rogge and two other men took an eleven-year-old boy to a country cabin for a weekend. Police reports say the men walked around the cabin naked and performed inappropriate acts in the child’s presence. One of the men, a convicted child molester, allegedly threatened to kill the child if he told anyone about his experience.

News clipping about Fr. Norman Rogge’s arrest in 1985.

Fr. Rogge—identified as Anthony J. Rogge, a.k.a. Norman J. Rogge, in police reports—was later arrested and charged with the Sexual Battery of a Minor. Records indicate Fr. Rogge pleaded nolo contendere or no contest, which means Fr. Rogge accepted the punishment of a guilty plea without admitting guilt. The court sentenced him to probation and confinement at Servants of Paraclete in New Mexico. Once Fr. Rogge completed probation, the conviction was removed from his record.

Altogether, it is unclear if this is the same allegation the Diocese of Alexandria referenced in its 2019 list. However, the Permanent Review Board, which evaluates all allegations of clerical sexual misconduct involving minors, investigated the allegation and determined it was credible.

1967 Conviction and Subsequent Allegations

1985 was not Fr. Norman Rogge’s first conviction. Police records indicate that two decades prior, he was convicted of molesting a fourteen-year-old boy in Tampa.

In 1967, Fr. Rogge served as a counselor in a juvenile group home when he groped the child’s genitals at a movie theatre. Police reports also reveal that Fr. Rogge admitted to asking a male minor for oral sex. Much like the outcome of his 1985 conviction, the court placed Fr. Rogge on probation and sent him to a treatment center. His criminal record was also cleared after his probation ended.

While some of Fr. Rogge’s abuses are documented in police reports and court documents, sources indicate more allegations exist outside of official documentation. In 2002, a former resident of the juvenile group home where Fr. Rogge worked said Fr. Rogge repeatedly fondled him in 1963. Multiple residents of the group home told investigators that Fr. Rogge touched them inappropriately during nude swimming lessons near a cottage Rogge owned.

Fr. Rogge’s Continued Career and Assignment History

Despite two probation sentences and two known visits to treatment centers, Fr. Norman Rogge was in ministry for nearly 50 years. Ordained in 1956, Fr. Rogge worked in parishes, schools, and youth detention centers throughout the South.

Shortly after his ordination, Fr. Rogge was assigned to the Jesuit High School in Dallas, Texas. Sources say that Jesuit High School had about 590-613 male students at the time. After his conviction in 1967, he was sent to St. Ignatius in Mobile, Alabama. According to BishopAccountability.com, St. Ignatius had nearly 500 students.

Sources say Fr. Rogge then left Alabama and moved to Florida. In Florida, records show Fr. Rogge worked at two high schools—one being Sacred Heart that had anywhere from 400-600 students. Shortly after his conviction in 1985, Fr. Rogge worked at St. Charles Borromeo, which had over 300 students.

The Diocese of Lafayette removed Fr. Rogge in 2002 after journalists highlighted his criminal record and assignment history. After his removal, Fr. Rogge lived at Ignatius Residence until his death in February 2009.

Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Alexandria in Louisiana.  If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Louisiana, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Diocese of Alexandria may now have legal options, but filing deadlines will apply so do not delay in reaching out to us. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse in Louisiana and nationwide. We can help.

Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.