Father Stephen Kain
Diocese of Fresno (Franciscan)
Ordained: 1974
Removed: 1993
Assignment History:
- 1973-1974: SS Simon & Jude (Huntington Beach, CA)
- 1974-1976: Mt. Carmel (Fresno, CA)
- 1976-1978: SS Simon & Jude (Huntington Beach, CA)
- 1978-1982: St. Anthony’s (Tigard, OR)
- 1982-1987: St. Anthony’s Seminary High School (Santa Barbara, CA)
- 1988-1993: Catholic University of America (Washington, DC)
- 1993-2002: St. Boniface (San Francisco, CA)
- 2003-2018: San Damiano Retreat (Danville, CA)
- 2019: Elder Care Facility, CA
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations Against Father Stephen Kain:
Fr. Stephen Kain was ordained a Franciscan Friars priest in 1974, who served in the Diocese of Fresno. According to media reports, he was named in a 2004 civil lawsuit alleging he assaulted at least one student while he worked at St. Anthony’s Seminary High School in Santa Barbara, CA, during the mid-1980s. The details of the sexual abuse allegations, including the victim’s age and gender, are unknown.
In 2001, an allegation was reported that Fr. Kain sexually abused another minor while working at St. William’s in Los Altos, CA. Another priest testified that even though multiple Franciscans knew about Fr. Kain’s history of child sexual abuse before St. William’s, nothing was ever done about it. Additionally, there were never any warnings to Fr. Kain’s parishioners.
As a result of the allegations of child sexual abuse, Fr. Kain was transferred to St. Boniface in San Francisco. He was eventually removed from ministry in 1993.
Fr. Kain is named publicly on the Franciscans’ Santa Barbara Province 2019 list of Franciscan Friars from the St. Barbara Province with Credibly (sic) Claims of Sexual Abuse of a Minor, and on the Oakland Diocese’s 2019 list of Clergy Credibly Accused of Sexual Abuse of a Minor. According to the lists, reports were made in 1993, 2004, 2006, and 2008 that Fr. Kain allegedly sexually abused minors from approximately 1981 to 1987. This list also states that Fr. Kain is currently living at an Elder Care Facility in California.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of Fresno in California. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in one of California’s Catholic dioceses, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Diocese of Fresno now have legal options due to a temporary change in California law, 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 California and nationwide. We can help.
Contact us toll-free at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.