Overview

• Theodore McCarrick, former Archbishop of Washington, died at 94, as confirmed by Cardinal Robert McElroy on April 4, 2025.
• McCarrick was the first cardinal in Catholic Church history to be defrocked by the Pope due to sexual abuse allegations, losing his priesthood in 2019.
• The Vatican found him guilty of abusing at least one minor in the 1970s and engaging in misconduct with seminarians over several years.
• Legal proceedings against McCarrick were suspended in January 2024 due to his declining health and dementia, leaving him untried for his alleged crimes.
• Advocacy groups, including SNAP, have expressed that McCarrick's death does not equate to justice for his victims, reigniting calls for institutional reform within the Church.