The Newark archdiocese released Feb. 13 a list of clerics credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors. Capparelli was among the 63 names.
Capparelli was ordained in 1980, and was assigned at three parishes, a prep school, and as a temporary chaplain at a hospital. The school, Oratory Prep in Summit, N.J., currently serves boys in grades 7-12.
According to the archdiocese's list, Capparelli had multiple victims, and had been "Permanently removed from ministry/Laicized". Accusations against him date from the 1970s through the early 1990s. The Star-Ledger reported that he was removed from parish ministry in 1989, suspended from any ministry in 1992, and was dismissed from the clerical state around 2013.
In 2011, the archdiocese said that though he had not been dismissed from the clerical state, he was not receiving a stipend.
In 1993, one year after being suspended from ministry, Capparelli became a public school teacher in Newark. In 2011 he was teaching math to ninth graders, according to The Star-Ledger.
The Newark school district learned of the allegations from the The Star-Ledger in 2011, and reviewed his record, but said there were no allegations against his time as a teacher. Spokeswoman Renee Harper said, "we will remain vigilant in ensuring student safety for all of our kids acting in accordance of the law." He was soon after removed from the classroom and given an administrative position at the school district's headquarters. Harper said that "he has not been demoted and remains an employee in good standing."
He also served as an adjunct professor at Seton Hall University from 1990 to 2009, The Star-Ledger found.