Nearly six months after the 30-year-old Catholic priest fled to Italy with the teenage girl who is now his wife, the Vatican has announced that he has been expelled from the priesthood.
Alex Crowe of Alabama has been officially “ordained,” or removed from the priesthood, according to a Friday announcement from the Archdiocese of Mobile, Alabama, Alabama Live reported. The liberalization was reportedly confirmed in a letter from the Pope.
Archbishop Thomas J. Roddy of the Archdiocese of Mobile said, “I pray that this decision is another way we can all move toward peace after these disturbing events.” “I continue to pray that God’s grace will bring healing to all.”
AL.com reported that the Archdiocese of Mobile had already stripped Crowe of his duties in July, saying he had “abandoned his duties.” Crowe and his teenage girlfriend eventually returned to the United States in November and were married soon after. She turned 18 in June.
Crowe left home on July 24 with a then-18-year-old girl who had graduated from high school in May. The priest volunteered at the teen’s high school and the two met when she was a minor. Crow and the boy went on a trip without telling the girl’s parents, who were unable to contact them.
After news broke about Crowe and the boy’s trip, several people at the Catholic school in Mobile called police, accusing him of inappropriate behavior toward other girls, according to a previous Messenger report. That’s what it means.
A search for Crow and the boy began after Crow’s parents traveled to Rome to plead with her to return home, and the Archbishop of Alabama ordered Crow to return to the United States. The two finally returned to Japan in November.
According to WKRG News, authorities had already announced that they would not press charges against Crowe after the teen “refused to answer any questions” about her disappearance and travels.
The archdiocese has also already said that while Crowe’s actions were “scandalous,” it does not have any information to suggest he committed a crime.