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Indianapolis priest accused of kidnapping, battering wife

INDIANAPOLIS (AP/WISH) – An Indianapolis Catholic priest faces charges for allegedly attacking his wife and holding her against her will.

The Rev. Luke Reese is charged with criminal confinement, kidnapping, domestic battery, battery resulting in injury and intimidation.

Reese allegedly locked his wife inside his car at Central Avenue and East 34th Street on Sept. 24 after finding her with another man. Prosecutors say, while driving through the city, the 49-year-old slapped and yelled at her while blaring heavy metal music.

He later made her kneel at an alter and slammed her against a wall at Holy Rosary Catholic Church, 520 Stevens St. in the Fletcher Place neighborhood. He is an associate pastor at the church.

Reese then allegedly drove her to another church and her grandmother’s house, both in Auburn in northeastern Indiana. She told officers he wanted her to tell relatives “what she had done by talking to another man.”

The couple later returned to their Indianapolis home where he ripped off her clothes “that he thought were slutty” and, she said, forced her to have sex, according to court documents.

The former Anglican priest was ordained a Catholic priest in Texas in 2016. He’s been on a leave of absence since September. Court documents say the couple has been married 25 years and have seven children.

Reese’s attorney, Jeffrey Baldwin, declined to comment Wednesday on the pending case.

The court case was filed in October and was first reported online Tuesday by independent reporter Damien Fisher.

. A jury trial has been set for May 3 in Marion Superior Court, Criminal Division 3.

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