Bishop of Northampton David Oakley neither pleaded guilty nor not guilty at his September 10 appearance before the Old Bailey, London’s central criminal court. His defense instead filed a motion to dismiss the case, so the arraignment was suspended and the proceedings were adjourned. The court set January 4, 2027, to examine that petition, according to reports by The Pillar and International Business Times UK.
Oakley faces two counts of rape and one of indecent assault. The alleged incidents took place between February 2000 and 2001 in Staffordshire, when the now-bishop was a priest of the Archdiocese of Birmingham, and the accusation concerns a minor under 16. According to IBTimes UK, the events reportedly began after a pilgrimage to Lourdes, during which Oakley allegedly kissed the young woman, and the assaults allegedly occurred later in a parish house and on a canal boat. The prelate remains free on bail with conditions.
The motion filed by the defense seeks to have the court dismiss the case before it reaches trial. The Old Bailey will examine the arguments on January 4; if the motion is unsuccessful, the criminal proceedings will continue. The schedule set means the case will not be resolved before 2027, with the bishop charged and the diocese in an interim governance situation that will last at least another four months.
Oakley stepped aside from his duties in October 2025 citing “personal reasons,” a formula the diocese maintained for months. He was arrested in September of that same year, according to IBTimes UK, although the charges were not formally filed until June 2026, when Northamptonshire Police brought the indictment and the diocese publicly confirmed it.
On June 30, the Holy See appointed the Archbishop of Westminster, Richard Moth, as apostolic administrator sede plena et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis. Oakley retains the title of Bishop of Northampton for now, while Moth governs the diocese as apostolic administrator.
The Pillar adds a detail that broadens the scope of the case beyond the accused himself: officials of the Archdiocese of Birmingham are said to have been informed in 2006 of possible inappropriate sexual conduct by Oakley and, according to sources cited by that outlet, the archdiocese allegedly did not report it to civil authorities at the time nor initiate canonical proceedings. If confirmed, the interval between that communication and the first police report would exceed seventeen years, much of it with Oakley at the head of Oscott Seminary, which he led before his episcopal appointment in 2020.
That point is now the institutional flank of the matter. Criminal liability for the alleged acts is being decided at the Old Bailey and rests solely with the accused, who has not admitted the facts and is protected by the presumption of innocence. The question of what Birmingham knew in 2006, who knew it, and what was done with that information belongs to another order: that of ecclesiastical governance and the procedures the Church itself has established for cases of this kind. Neither the Archdiocese of Birmingham nor the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales has issued a public explanation on that point.
The Holy See has also not publicly stated whether a parallel canonical process exists. In cases of this type, ecclesiastical actions must be coordinated with the criminal investigation and proceedings so as not to interfere with them. For now, Rome has not announced what decision it will take regarding the see of Northampton while the case against Oakley continues.