St. Landry, La. - Four months after Scott Peyton, a Roman Catholic deacon resigned from his position after a priest he served with sexually abused his son, is now excommunicated by his local diocese.
Peyton served as a deacon for ten years; his son, Oliver Peyton, was an altar boy then.
In June 2018, Michael Guidry, who most recently was a pastor of St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Morrow was arrested after Oliver Peyton, who was a teenager at the time, came forward to allege the priest had given him alcohol and molested him.
In 2019, Father Michael Guidry was sentenced to seven years after pleading guilty to molesting Oliver.
In December 2023, Peyton sent Lafayette Diocese Bishop Deshotel an email resigning from his position. An excerpt of the email went as follows:
“I hope this email finds you well. It is with a heavy heart and deep reflection that I am writing to inform you of my decision to leave the Catholic Church and the diaconate. This decision has not been made lightly and is a result of much contemplation, prayer, and a profound sense of moral responsibility.
This decision is not a rejection of my faith in God or my commitment to living a life guided by Christian principles. Instead, it reflects a conscientious objection to the way the Church has handled cases of sexual abuse, and a desire to distance myself from an institution that, currently, falls short of the values it professes.”
Bishop Deshotel emailed Peyton the following day. His email goes as follows:
“I was sad to receive your email deciding to leave the Church and cease to exercise your vocation as Deason. I will remember you in my prayers and masses that you be open to the gift of faith in the Catholic Church founded by Jesus Christ and built on the Apostles. Saracematenlly, you are a Deacon though you choose not to exercise your ministry."
Last week, Peyton received a signed letter saying he was excommunicated by the Lafayette Diocese.
“I was just stunned that after the 33 priests listed on the diocese credible accused there was no mention of any of those individuals excommunicated,” Scott Peyton told KATC.
After years of wrestling with his faith, Peyton wonders if this will be a never-ending battle. “It was really hard because in the beginning, we really tried to keep it lowkey even amongst family, but they saw what it was doing to my wife and me. I mean, we cried almost every day in disbelief and horror at what had happened,” he said.
Last Friday, the Louisiana Supreme Court struck down a law that would have major implications for hundreds of child sexual abuse survivors.
The decision reversed a lower court ruling that the laws "constitutionally revived the claims set forth herein upon which prescription had already accrued."
Kristi Schubert, Peyton's family attorney, believes excommunicating Mr. Peyton sends a detrimental message to survivors of sexual abuse.
“Never before have I had a client excommunicated for speaking out against abuse. This is frankly a new low, and I’m worried about the message that it sends. It’s not just survivors and their families watching this; it’s also pedophile priests watching this, and they’re thinking to themselves, where can I go so that I will be safe, and right now, I would imagine that the Diocese of Lafayette is looking pretty good to them,” she said.
Petyon and his family are clinging to their faith and picking up the pieces. They now attend an Anglican church.
Father Michael Guidry is still in prison and is set to be released in November 2026.
How to get help
KATC recognizes that hearing these stories will trigger memories and anguish for victims.
If you’ve been the victim of a sexual assault and you need help, there is help available.
We’ve put together a list of locations to find help, and numbers to call for help. You can find it here.
