On August 4, 2025, Father Clemente Olvera Guerrero was arrested in the parking lot of St. Ann Catholic Church in Clayton, North Carolina. Deputies say they encountered him around 1 a.m. while searching for a missing child in the area. According to police, Father Olvera attempted to flee and was later charged with felony solicitation of prostitution — allegedly attempting to purchase sex from a man on church grounds.

In response, the Diocese of Raleigh and St. Ann Catholic Church released a statement saying Olvera’s priestly faculties were revoked and that he would be returned to his religious order. But for a priest to be charged with a felony — on the property of a church trusted by families — this response is not enough. Quiet removal is not accountability.

The church owes more to its congregation and to the wider community. Parishioners have the right to know if there were any prior complaints or red flags before Olvera was assigned to St. Ann. Community members deserve transparency about how the church screens clergy and whether this situation could have been prevented. And the individual Olvera allegedly solicited may need legal protection, support, or access to services — not silence from an institution that holds immense power.

This petition calls on the Diocese of Raleigh and leadership at St. Ann Catholic Church to publicly release any prior disciplinary history related to Father Olvera, fully cooperate with legal authorities, and commit that he will not be reassigned to any other parish in the future. This is about restoring public trust and ensuring the church does not repeat past patterns of quiet transfers and cover-ups.

Sign your name if you believe churches must be transparent, victims must be protected, and clergy must face consequences — just like anyone else.