Robert Nugent Lynch

Robert Nugent Lynch (born May 27, 1941) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, who served as bishop of the Diocese of St. Petersburg in Florida from 1996 to 2016.

Lynch entered the Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary in Weston, Massachusetts, graduating with a Master of Divinity degree in May, 1978.

[citation needed] On June 6, 1998, Lynch was appointed as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Palm Beach, while remaining the bishop of St. Petersburg.

[citation needed] On June 2, 2011, Lynch published a letter detailing how the diocese had spent $4.7 million since 1990 to settle sexual misconduct cases.

[2] Pope Francis accepted Lynch's resignation as bishop of the Diocese of St. Petersburg on November 28, 2016, and named Gregory Parkes as his successor.