Parents, Ex-Choirboys Rally to Defend Priest : Accusations: A church spokesman defends the O.C. diocese’s suspension of Father Coughlin, who denied molesting boys.

Parents, associates and former members of the All-American Boys Chorus reacted with shock and disbelief Wednesday over allegations that Father Richard T. Coughlin, the popular founding director of the choir, sexually molested four of its members and one other youth 10 to 30 years ago.

“I am absolutely flabbergasted,” said Keith Evans, owner of Evans Associates, a Studio City entertainment production company that has been booking concerts for the choir since 1986. “I think this is slander. I don’t believe it at all.”

Charlie Beuglet, father of a 12-year-old choir member, found the news equally hard to credit. The allegations “don’t seem real,” he said. “I have no reason to believe them. (Father Coughlin) is a very kind, gentle, good man. I have no reason not to leave my son with him.”

Coughlin, 68, was suspended from his priestly duties by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange and ordered to sever all ties with the singing group last month after the five men, now aged 23 to 45, alleged that he had molested them as boys.

The Times revealed the allegations and the suspension of the well-known priest in Wednesday’s editions.

Coughlin, who founded the internationally acclaimed choir in 1970, has denied the charges, saying that he “can’t recollect anything” that could have led to them. Diocese officials emphasized that none of the allegations involve current members of the chorus.

At an afternoon press conference called by the diocese, Msgr. Lawrence J. Baird said he did not know what Coughlin’s plans are, except that he still lives with an Orange County family and has worked out an “equitable retirement arrangement” with the diocese.

“He seems to be a broken man today,” said Baird, the diocese’s director of communications.

“Over time, all of us who have come to know Father Coughlin in the diocese have had great admiration and respect for him,” said Baird. “What happened is a great concern. In a sense we are all victimized.”

Baird defended the diocese’s action when asked if he felt Coughlin’s career was being ruined without any judicial determination that the molestation charges are true.

“It is the prudent action to take at this time,” Baird said, noting that the five men made similar complaints.

Baird said Coughlin’s discipline was handled according to guidelines established by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in 1992. The norms set up a mechanism for dealing promptly with all sexual abuse allegations made against clergy. The system provided Coughlin a forum from which to defend himself.

Before the priest’s suspension, Baird said, Coughlin met twice with Bishop Norman McFarland, head of the Diocese of Orange, to defend himself. Coughlin denied the allegations, Baird said, adding that he did not know what evidence, if any, Coughlin presented to the bishop in an attempt to clear his name.

Meanwhile, parents of chorus members telephoned the diocese throughout the day to express their support for Coughlin.

Several former members of the choir told The Times that they could not believe the allegations.

Sean Tobin, a 28-year-old Corona del Mar bartender who sang in the choir from 1976 to 1979, during which some of the molestation incidents were alleged to have occurred, said he couldn’t remember even a hint of impropriety during his years with the group. “I would have known if there was anything wrong,” Tobin said. “I used to tour with the choir for months at a time and we were all very close. Mostly we talked about (Coughlin) being a wonderful man with whom we could talk.”

While Coughlin sometimes kissed choir members, Tobin said, it was always on the forehead, never on the lips. “He was very affectionate,” Tobin said. “But not in a sexual way. He was like a father to us. Many of the kids had problems at home and his hugs were like between a father and a son.”

Those making the allegations “may have misinterpreted what was happening to them,” said Bill Hyink of Huntington Beach, whose 17-year-old son is a former chorus member and now works on lighting for the group. “This is a guy who could give a hug out of a warm mutual feeling. It was not a sexual thing. I never felt that there was too much affection shown.”

While Costa Mesa police have been advised of the church’s investigation, Sgt. Mike Millington said no one has filed a police report containing any such allegations so no criminal investigation has been initiated.

The father of a current choir member said Coughlin may have inadvertently become a scapegoat for the frustrations experienced by some of his erstwhile charges later in life. “They either didn’t get the attention they needed or things happened later,” said the man who spoke on the condition that his name was not published. “He is a scapegoat for unhappy boys later in life.”

News of the allegations against the priest prompted a flood of telephone calls Wednesday to the chorus office on the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa. Former and current chorus members as well as a string of parents inquired about the allegations, according to Anthony S. Manrique , a member of the group’s board of directors.

“They are supportive (of Coughlin) and want to know what to do to support” him, Manrique said. “A lot of people are just shocked and want to talk a little bit.”

Some also expressed concerns about the group’s economic future and public image.

Evans, the booking agent, said he had already received a call from someone considering canceling an upcoming appearance by the chorus in light of its recent publicity. And many said they were frustrated by the damage to the group’s reputation already produced by the widespread publication of allegations that have yet to be proven.

“The bad thing about this now,” Hyink said, “is that, no matter the outcome, he is guilty in people’s minds (when) there are many who feel he is not guilty.”

Chorus officials, meanwhile, were looking to the future. “This is a very bad time for us,” said Manrique, adding that it is important now for the chorus to continue its work and move ahead.

Board member John H. Bovaird said the group needs to focus on “going full steam ahead and putting this behind us.”

Times staff writer Dan Weikel contributed to this story.