Alexander Salazar

Alejandro Salazar (born November 28, 1949) is a Costa Rican-born American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Salazar served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles from 2004 to 2018.

Salazar resigned as auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles in 2018 after a sexual misconduct charge against him was deemed credible by the archdiocese and the Vatican. In August 2023, Salazar was convicted of two sexual abuse felonies following a no contest plea. He attended Daniel Murphy High School in Los Angeles, then entered East Los Angeles College in Monterey Park, California.

Salazar then attended California State University, Los Angeles and Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in bilingual studies in 1978. From 1968 to 1979, Salazar taught at St. Albert the Great School in Compton, California. After his ordination, Salazar served as associate pastor at the following parishes in Southern California:

St. Gregory the Great in Whittier Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Pasadena Cathedral of St. Vibiana in Los Angeles

According to a 2018 statement by Archbishop Jose H. Gomez, a person accused Salazar of sexual misconduct during the 1990s when Salazar was a parish priest in Pasadena. Salazar denied any wrongdoing. In 2002, the claimant reported their allegations to the Pasadena Police Department; after an investigation, the district attorney declined to press criminal charges against Salazar.

When Mahony learned about the accusations against Salazar in 2005, he submitted them to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome while allowing Salazar to still perform ministry. The Congregation then "conducted an investigation and imposed certain precautionary measures on the ministry of Bishop Salazar" in 2005. Mahony also requested another review by the Pasadena district attorney, who again declined to indict Salazar.

Resignation and legacy Pope Francis accepted Salazar's letter of resignation as auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles on December 19, 2018. It was submitted before the mandatory age 75 limit. Per the plea agreement, Salazar received a six-year prison sentence (suspended), five years of formal probation, required registration as a sex offender, and other sentencing requirements.