Richard Joseph Malone (born March 19, 1946) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo in New York, from 2012 to 2019.

In 1979, Malone joined the faculty of St. John Seminary, teaching religious and theological studies and serving as registrar and dean until 1990.

[3] He received his episcopal consecration on March 1, 2001, from Cardinal Bernard Law, with Bishops William Murphy and John Boles as co-consecrators.

In September 2011, Malone was named as chairman of the Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

[10][11][12] On September 20, 2019, leaked audio recordings of Malone revealed that he diverted 40 percent of donations sent to Catholic charities in the diocese to a foundation known as "The Bishop's Fund for the Faith.

[13] On September 24, 2019, following the start of a criminal investigation against Reverend Jeffrey Novak,[14][15] Malone published an Adult Sexual Misconduct Policy and Procedures and a new Code of Pastoral Conduct for Clergy.

[21] On December 10, 2019, Malone said he submitted his resignation early so the diocese could "move forward" and added: "It's just the right thing to do, and I'll still be living in the Buffalo area because I'm still a Bishop in good standing, so you'll see me around.

"[22] On November 23, 2020, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Malone, the Diocese of Buffalo and Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus Edward M. Grosz.

After a parent complaint and comments from other staff members, principal Kristine Hider complained about Smith to the diocese, calling him a "predator".

Malone allowed Smith to serve at a church nursing home, but asked him informally not to wear clerical attire, offer sacraments, or say mass publicly.

In 2015, Malone restored Smith's ability to offer sacraments publicly and wrote concerning him, "I am unaware of anything in his background which would render him unsuitable to work with minor children."

[25][26][27] On September 28, Malone named Steven L. Halter, a former agent in the FBI's Buffalo Division, as director of the diocese's new Office of Personal Responsibility, which handles sex abuse complaints.

[28][29] In 2017, CNN reported on Malone's handling of sexual misconduct accusations against Reverend Robert Yetter, pastor of Saint Mary's Parish.