OKLAHOMA CITY — The Rev. James Mickus has been removed from Catholic ministry pending an investigation into allegations from 2002 that he sexually abused a minor, Oklahoma City Archdiocese communications director Diane Clay said. This is the second time these allegations have been under review.  

The last time in 2002 he was serving as pastor of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, in Enid, Oklahoma, and was accused of sexual abuse some 20 years before in a former parish. He was removed from ministry at that time but was reinstated in March 2003 after an archdiocese review board determined there was insufficient evidence for his removal.

According to the statement from the archdiocese, Mickus’ latest removal will continue pending investigations into the alleged abuse.

Mickus currently serves Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church in Chandler, Oklahoma, and Saint Louis Catholic Church in Stroud, Oklahoma. Archbishop Paul Coakley appeared in person before Mickus’ parishioners Sunday to deliver the news of his removal and the circumstances behind it, according to the archdiocese statement.

It is standard practice in the archdiocese to remove a priest, deacon or other religious authority from ministry “upon determination of a credible claim of sexual misconduct with a minor.”

Under Oklahoma law, incident or suspicions of sexual abuse of a minor younger than 18 must be reported to authorities. The Oklahoma Department of Human Services has established a statewide abuse reporting hotline – (800) 522-3511. The archdiocese also provides an Abuse of Minors Pastoral Response Hotline  — (405) 720-9878 — for reporting abuse by a member of the clergy or other church personnel.

The allegation against Mickus is being reviewed by the archdiocesan review board as well as McAffee & Taft, an independent firm hired by the archdiocese to investigate claims of abuse spanning from 1960 to 2018.

Lawyer may file defamation suit

Meanwhile, the attorney representing Mickus said he might soon file a defamation lawsuit against the archbishop of the Oklahoma City Archdiocese.

In a letter to Coakley, Enid-based attorney Stephen Jones wrote he is investigating whether Coakley has defamed Mickus by omitting critical facts about the allegations made against his client.

Jones, who formerly represented Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, wrote to Coakley that he “grievously omitted certain important facts, and their omission creates a totally false picture of the reasons you are doing what you are doing.”

“Your failure to give the full background of these facts which are clearly established and which the Archdiocese has knowledge are very troubling, unfair and may be defamatory,” Jones wrote. “Therefore, the possibility of litigation is present.”

Jones wrote that several omissions also present are in press statements released by the archdiocese, and in a letter “it appears” that Coakley sent out to other priests in the archdiocese.

Jones lists 11 points he said Coakley omitted, including that the allegations under review were made well over a decade ago and that a review board had previously determined there was too little evidence to support the allegations.

In the letter, Jones wrote there is no new evidence to justify another investigation.

“It appears that you have inflicted … a grievous wound, not only on Father Mickus, but on the clergy as a whole … by creating the false impression that these are new allegations, or that they are old allegations with new facts when in fact, neither is true.”

Jones wrote that Mickus is in the process of retaining a Canon lawyer, and requests that Coakley “cease further statements that are incomplete and half-truth concerning Father Mickus.” 

At the end of the letter, Jones asked Coakley to see to it that Mickus continues to receive his full salary and benefits as a priest, and that “no retaliation be taken against him for defending his rights, either in civil law or in Canon law.”

The Oklahoma City Archdiocese declined to comment on the letter.

“Once we complete the review, we will make a public report that will answer a lot of questions people may have,” Clay said.