Disgraced Alabama priest, 30, who fled to Italy to marry 18-year-old he 'groomed' has his priesthood stripped by Pope Francis at Vatican
A disgraced Alabama priest has been stripped of his priesthood by the pope after fleeing to Italy and marrying a teenager.
The Archdiocese of Mobile “received notice that the laicization of Alex Crow is complete, effective immediately.”
Crow, 30, had previously requested removal from the priesthood. The request was recently granted by Pope Francis.
Mobile Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi supported Crow laicization, the process by which a Catholic Church figure is formally removed from service.
Crow no longer possesses “privileges or responsibilities of the priesthood.” The former pastor did not appeal during his removal process.
Disgraced former priest Alexander Crow, 30, was formally removed from the Catholic Church last week after his laicization was signed by Pope Francis
Crow met his current wife when she was in high school at McGill-Toolen High in Mobile, where he regularly visited to give guest lectures to the students.
The archdiocese became aware of Crow's questionable courtship when local police obtained Valentine's Day love letters the priest had sent to the teen.
“First of all, I love you, and I thank Jesus for you every day. You have made my life astronomically more complicated and incredibly better at the same time. You are his gift to me,” read part of his letter to the teen.
Archbishop Rodi condemned the relationship at the time, calling Crow's behavior “totally inappropriate for a priest.” Priests in the Catholic Church are instructed, among other things, to maintain celibacy.
He then said the newly ordained pastor “may no longer practice his office as a priest, nor tell people that he is a priest, nor dress as a priest.”
Last summer, Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch said he believes there was “some kind of grooming” between Crow and his teenage wife. “You have a much older adult interacting with teenage girls in an inappropriate way.”
Prior to the sheriff's statement, Crow had fled to Europe with his young lover. He had told people he was crossing the Atlantic to perform exorcisms across Europe.
Crow reportedly has a long-standing fascination with demonology.
When the couple returned from abroad, they married in Alabama.
Crow married the Mobile teen on Nov. 17, according to a notarized Alabama marriage certificate from the probate judge's office.
Fired priest Alex Crow has since returned to the US after disappearing to Italy with an 18-year-old girl he was allegedly grooming, but no charges will be filed
The prosecutor interviewed thirty witnesses and examined thousands of documents, including this love letter from the priest to the girl sent on Valentine's Day, but found no evidence of criminality
The letter was sent on Valentine's Day of this year and was sent when the girl was a senior at McGill-Toolen Catholic High School. She was reportedly 17 at the time
According to local law enforcement findings, Crow, who claims to have been exorcised as a child, told his lover that Jesus had told him to go with her.
Ultimately, the Mobile County Prosecutor's Office explained that prosecutors had interviewed 30 witnesses and reviewed “thousands of pages of documents” provided by the archdiocese, but did not want to file charges because of the “private relationship between two now adults.”
“When the young lady and the priest returned, we summoned the young lady to meet with our office to determine what had happened and whether there was any criminal action,” a statement from the office said.
“She appeared to be in apparently good health and said she is safe.
“However, she brought an attorney with her to the meeting, and together they declined to answer questions about the circumstances surrounding her disappearance in July, or any other questions.
“Without being able to speak to the young lady about these events, we do not have sufficient admissible evidence at this time to charge a crime.” Therefore, this investigation is currently closed.”
Church bosses said they found out about his return through the media because the disgraced priest had not been in contact with them since his suspension.
“While Crow's conduct is outrageous, the Archdiocese does not have any information indicating that Crow committed a crime,” the statement said.
“To the extent that law enforcement continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding Crow's conduct, the Archdiocese will continue to cooperate fully.
“As law enforcement concludes their investigation into Crow, the Archdiocese thanks them for their thorough and thoughtful attention to this case.
“Crow's sudden departure caused scandal, pain and confusion within the archdiocese. We continue to pray for God's grace to bring healing to everyone in this situation.”
Crow, who claimed to have been exorcised as a child, is said to have 'restricted' the girl's contact with the outside world while she was in Rome.
The couple married on Nov. 17, according to a notarized marriage certificate in Alabama from the probate judge's office.
The couple's return came after a lawyer for the girl's family claimed Crow cut off her contact with them while she was in Rome.
The lawyer, Christine Hernandez, said he had “restricted” the girl's communications with the outside world.
She also said other parents reported disturbing cases involving Crow and their children on school and church trips, including claims that he paid some students to attend his confessions, where they shared details of their sins with him.
The dismissed clergy member, who was initially ordained in 2021, previously attended Sant' Anselmo in Rome, Italy, where he earned a bachelor's degree in sacred theology and studied demons and exorcisms.