Sacramento Catholic officials were shocked when a father called to charge a revered priest with abusing his teenage daughter. What followed was a time of pain that tested whether the church had learned from its past mistakes.
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The Rev. Uriel Ojeda, shown here in 2009 when he headed a Woodland parish, was a rising young star in the Sacramento Diocese, celebrated for his charisma and viewed as a role model by his largely Latino parishioners. But his image and life were shattered by sexual abuse charges.
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The Rev. Timothy Nondorf was the first Sacramento Catholic Diocese official to learn of the abuse allegations against the Rev. Uriel Ojeda, when he returned a call made by the teenage victim's angry father. Nondorf was subsequently named pastor at St John the Baptist Church in Chico.
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Chancellor Kathy Conner is the chief operating officer of the Sacramento diocese. She says she said a quick prayer "God, be with me. Holy Spirit, be with me" after hearing the charges against Ojeda. Conner then followed a diocesan abuse protocol calling for her to contact the family of the alleged victim, offer assistance, and then speak to the bishop about whether the allegations seemed credible.
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Bishop Jaime Soto, shown at an Ash Wednesday service in February 2012, took charge of the diocese's response to the allegations against Ojeda, steeling himself for the intense public scrutiny the case would generate. "We now have the procedures in place to act quickly" in abuse cases, Soto said recently.
