A Jesuit priest who worked as Provincial Assistant for Social Ministries and then Provincial Assistant for International Ministries in Los Gatos has been accused by San Luis Obispo County prosecutors of child sex crimes dating back to the 1990s.
On June 12, Ted Gabrielli, 61, was arrested by San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Unit detectives after a months-long investigation. The Sheriff’s Office said Gabrielli brought three male victims to America from Mexico.
“The priest became close with the family, and he was allowed to take the three boys with him to many places in California including his parent’s residence in Los Osos,” a spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Office said in a release. “It was there, the victims stated, the priest would sexually assault them. The assaults continued over the course of about eight years.”
Gabrielli has been charged with three counts of felony aggravated sexual assault of a minor, oral copulation/force/fear and one count of felony sodomy, victim under 14, defendant 10 years older.
He worked in the Most Holy Trinity Parish in San Jose and the Dolores Mission in Los Angeles, where he served as religious superior of the Jesuit Community.
Over the years, Gabrielli was a public voice speaking to the media on behalf of various Catholic ministries.
“Ted enjoys working with Jesuits from around the world, hanging out at Homeboy Industries and Homegirl Cafe, and spending time with the people of Dolores Mission—in the Plaza, in the neighborhood, or on Peace walks throughout our community,” reads a since-deleted bio on the Loyola High School website. In 2008, he organized a Mother’s Day trip so San Jose kids could visit their incarcerated moms at the Chowchilla state facility.
“Every mother needs a hug from her child on Mother’s Day,” Gabrielli was quoted in the Mercury News as saying, “even if she is in prison.”
At a time when there was confusion about Barack Obama’s immigration policies, Gabrielli spoke with NBC LA about a community-based legal ministry assisting the undocumented community.
“This clinic is essential to the livelihood of our community,” he told their reporter in 2015. “They bring sometimes the harsh truth that’s hard to hear, but when possible, the lawyers are helping them find the path to a better future and more stability here in this country.”
And he was there when the church opened a Jesuit-led TK-8 school in the Boyle Heights neighborhood in eastern Los Angeles.
“It’s a big day for the community,” Gabrielli told local outlet Boyle Heights Beat in 2017. “Anytime we are doing positive projects that are going to serve our greater community, it’s a good day for Boyle Heights.”
On Friday, the suspect—whose official title is Fr. Ted Gabrielli, SJ—was still a member in good standing with the Jesuits West Province.
“To date, the province has not been contacted by anyone with law enforcement regarding this case, but we are committed to cooperating fully with the investigation,” said the organization’s spokesperson, Tracey Primrose, in an emailed statement. “We are praying for everyone involved. The province has both a zero-tolerance policy for credible allegations made against a Jesuit involving a minor or a vulnerable adult and stringent procedures to ensure the safety of minors or vulnerable adults.”
She added that victims of abuse can contact Jesuits West Advocacy Coordinator Griselda Cervantez at 408-893-8398.
In a telephone interview, Primrose said the social and international ministry functions that used to operate out of Los Gatos are no longer there.
Now, they run the Sacred Heart Jesuit Center, a retirement home for Jesuits, and some health care services, she explained.
A 2018 review by Jesuits West, undertaken with the help of a former FBI special agent, revealed there have been dozens of Jesuits who were credibly accused of sexually abusing a child or a vulnerable adult, who’ve lived at Sacred Heart, next to Testarossa Winery, over recent decades.
Its data shows that, out of a community of upwards of 80 residents at the senior home or in their infirmary, there are six Jesuits with credible claims against them who are currently living at Sacred Heart Jesuit Center.
“In addition to the men with credible allegations, this is the home of so many wonderful Jesuits who served the community faithfully and are beloved by former parishioners and students,” Primrose said. “The Jesuits with credible claims are under Safety Plans, which define risk reduction strategies, such as a Jesuit’s required intervention programs, restrictions (including technology and travel), access by visitors and more. Jesuits have a designated supervisor who monitors their adherence to the plan.”
There have been 17 other Jesuits with credible sexual abuse allegations against them who have lived and died at the facility since 1990, for a total of 23, according to Jesuits West figures.
“Jesuits are committed to continuing to care for their brother Jesuits, even those who have credible claims,” Primrose said. “In caring for them, Jesuits also safeguard society by housing those with credible claims in a community far from minors and supervised so they cannot re-offend.”
Some Sacred Heart residents were spotted at Jazz on the Plazz last year, which raised the question of whether it would be permitted for a resident on a Safety Plan to attend that event.
On Tuesday, the Los Gatan asked Teri Hope, the founder and president of Los Gatos Music and Arts, the nonprofit that produces the musical series, for clarity.
She said, while they’ve provided seating for guests from Sacred Heart in the past, she’s unaware if any of these attendees were under a Safety Plan.
“This has not been on my radar at all,” she said, adding they haven’t received a request for tickets for Sacred Heart residents this year. “That’s something I’ll have to take up with my board.”
Hope says she’s now planning on addressing the issue as they put together future safety procedures, which they are required to submit to the Town.
“I think it’s an important topic,” she said.
Primrose said she’s unaware of whether attending Jazz on the Plazz would be considered an acceptable activity as part of a Jesuit’s Safety Plan.
Cultural shift underway
It’s not just Catholics reeling from recent abuse claims.
Earlier this month, Educational Media Foundation-owned K-LOVE, which operates Los Gatos’ KJLV 95.3FM station, yanked music from artists DC Talk and the Newsboys off its airwaves after The Roys Report published the results of a two-and-a-half year investigation into alleged assaults by singer Michael Tait, a cultural giant in evangelical circles.
But the arrest of Gabrielli comes at a particularly interesting time in the life of the Catholic Church.
On Friday, Pope Leo’s first statement on the sex abuse scandals roiling the centuries-old religious institution was read to a theater audience in Lima, Peru.
“It is urgent to root in the whole church a culture of prevention that does not tolerate any form of abuse—neither of power or authority, nor abuse of conscience, spiritual or sexual abuse,” Leo wrote in his message to Paola Ugaz, a reporter who documented the abuses of the Sodalitium scandal, the Associated Press reported. “This culture will only be authentic if it is born of active vigilance, of transparent processes and sincere listening to those who have been hurt. For this, we need journalists.”
During his 11am mass at St. Mary in Los Gatos on Sunday, retired priest David Mercer didn’t mention the Pope’s statement or Gabrielli’s arrest—though he did pray for victims of conflict in the Middle East.
Sometimes, Sacred Heart Jesuit Center residents will assist with mass.
However, Primrose, the Jesuits West spokesperson, stresses that, “If a Jesuit has a credible allegation, he does not have permission to do public ministry, so he would not be able to help with a Mass at St. Mary’s or anywhere else.”
The Diocese of San Jose told the Los Gatan that Gabrielli worked at Most Holy Trinity Parish, in San Jose, from 1996-1998, and again from 2006-2011.
“The Diocese had not received any allegations against Father Gabrielli prior to this one,” reads the statement provided by Director of Communications Cynthia Shaw. “The diocese, jointly with the Jesuits West Province, has notified the parish and school communities.”
They’re encouraging victims of improper conduct—whether a current claim, or one that dates back some time—to first contact local civil authorities, then, once a report is filed, to contact their own Office for the Protection of Children & Vulnerable Adults at 408-983-0113. (Reports to the Diocese are also accepted by a secure third-party reporting service at opcva.ethicspoint.com, or by phone at 844-372-1691.)
“Please know that all reports made with the Diocese are handled with the utmost care and confidentially, to the greatest extent possible, intended to protect the rights of the victim/survivor,” the statement reads.
Court proceedings
Gabrielli is the son of a WWII Navy veteran named Louis I. Gabrielli, who founded Pacific Capital Mortgage in Los Osos and died March 3, 2002, at home in that town.
The case was filed June 16 and is being handled by SLO Deputy District Attorney Kimberly Rebecca Dittrich. The DA’s Office declined to comment.
The offense dates are listed in court records as June 1, 1991.
Gabrielli’s first hearing was in San Luis Obispo Superior Court before Judge Rita Federman on June 17.
The lawyer who represented him at that hearing did not reply to a request for comment.
Gabrielli’s next appearance has been scheduled for July 8, where he can argue for release.
Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) told the Los Gatan she was aware of the case and said it’s tough to hear these sorts of stories emerge.
“We should be doing everything we can to prevent those crimes from happening,” she said. “I believe survivors, and I’ve always stood on the side of survivors.”
Addis authored AB 452, which became law Jan. 1.
It eliminated the statute of limitations for civil claims of sexual assault from that point onwards.
So, while it won’t impact the Gabrielli case, it will put pressure on large organizations to prevent future instances of sexual abuse, she said.
“Part of the focus for us was wanting to make sure that institutions, moving forward, are responsible,” she said. “Nobody should have to experience these things.”
Anyone with additional information about this case or other potential victims is asked to contact the SLO County Sheriff’s Detective Division at 805-781-4500, or to report anonymously by calling Crime Stoppers at (805) 549-STOP (549-7867).
