Retired priest who served at St. Joseph Parish in Libertyville asked to step aside pending sexual abuse allegations

A retired priest who had served in different roles at St. Joseph Parish in Libertyville has been asked to step aside from all ministry to parishes and live away from any parish pending allegations of sexual abuse of a minor said to have occurred more than 20 years ago at St. James Parish in Sauk Village.

The Archdiocese of Chicago this week distributed letters regarding the Rev. Thomas Conde to those in All Souls Parish in Lansing; Christ the King and Saint Christina parishes in Chicago; Saint John of the Cross Parish in Western Springs; and Saint Joseph in Libertyville.

The letter signed by Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, archbishop of Chicago, said the archdiocese’s Office for Child Abuse Investigations and Review had been informed a lawsuit claiming sexual abuse against Conde will be filed.

Conde has “strongly denied that he has ever sexually abused anyone,” the letter reads.

He has been asked to step aside out of an abundance of caution in keeping with child protection policies until more is learned about the allegation and it is investigated and presented to an Independent Review Board for a recommendation, according to the letter.

Cupich wrote the request to learn the exact nature of the claim from the person making the accusation has been denied and the archdiocese, as a matter of transparency, was making it known a legal case will be filed.

At St. Joseph Parish, Conde was a deacon from March to June 1987, an associate pastor from June 1987 to January 1992 and, an administrator from January to July 1991, according to the archdiocese.

Complete information about reporting sexual abuse can be found at archchicago.org.