An internal investigation by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn has found credible three allegations of sexual abuse of a minor by a former priest and teacher at a Queens high school, the diocese announced Friday.
The allegations, dating back to the 1990s, were recently reported to the Diocese and led to the suspension of Michael Melendez, who had been teaching religion at St. Francis Preparatory High School in Fresh Meadows, Queens, since 2018.
Following the Diocesan Review Board’s findings, Melendez was terminated from his teaching position at the school and his role as Director of Religious Education at Our Lady of Grace Church in Howard Beach, which he took on in September.
The review board concluded that the allegations made by three individuals, more than 16 years after Melendez left the priesthood in 2008, were credible. According to the diocese, Melendez first requested temporary leave in 2004 before being officially laicized in 2008. It is understood that Melendez’ decision to leave the priesthood were for personal reasons, and that no allegations had been leveled against him at the time.
Details of the allegations reported to the Diocese have not been made public.
Before leaving the priesthood, Melendez served at several parishes: St. Brigid in Bushwick, Brooklyn, from 1989; St. Elizabeth in Ozone Park, Queens, from 1994; St. Michael’s in Flushing, Queens, from 1998; and Our Lady of Fatima in Jackson Heights, Queens, beginning in 2001.
Melendez has now been added to the Diocese of Brooklyn’s List of Credibly Accused Priests, which includes 119 clergy members.
This announcement comes after a recent settlement between the Diocese and New York Attorney General Letitia James, which places a secular monitor to oversee the Diocese’s compliance with strengthened policies on sexual abuse cases. James’ office began investigating New York’s eight Catholic dioceses in 2018, aiming to address what her office called “years of mismanagement” of clergy sexual abuse cases.
The Attorney General’s investigation reportedly found that the Diocese of Brooklyn — which oversees 211 churches and 84 schools across Brooklyn and Queens — was not adequately protecting children from sexual abuse and had failed to follow its own procedures for handling abuse allegations. The review board allegedly delayed investigations and applied inconsistent standards of proof in some cases, enabling certain clergy members to avoid accountability.
Under the terms of the settlement, the Diocese has agreed to expedite its complaint and investigation processes, allowing victims to file reports privately and receive protections under a new whistleblower policy.
