Priest-exorcist Father Carlos Martins, who in 2025 was cleared of wrongdoing after being charged with misdemeanor battery stemming from an alleged incident in 2024, is suing Kyle Clement – an assistant to priest-exorcist Father Chad Ripperger – and Catholic author/podcaster Jesse Romero for defamation.

Catholic journalist Christine Niles provides coverage of the case in an Oct. 10 YouTube video report. On her Facebook page, Niles writes:

Fr. Carlos Martins is suing an assistant to Fr. Chad Ripperger for defamation, after the assistant (Kyle Clement) essentially called Fr. Martins a fraud.

Fr. Martins is an exorcist ad actum, meaning he is commissioned by bishops on a case-by-case basis to perform exorcisms in their diocese. This has been confirmed in writing by Fr. Martins' religious superior, by other exorcists, and by Fr. Martins himself.

For whatever reason, Clement claimed in 2024 that Martins is NOT an exorcist.

Fr. Martins waited a year for a public retraction and apology, which never came – so he pursued reparation to his public reputation by filing a defamation lawsuit.

Eugene Volokh also provides details of the libel suit in an Aug. 21 post on Reason.com titled “Exorcist Files vs. Jesus 911 Libel Suit Can Go Forward.”

When asked by me (via email) for comment, Romero responded as follows:

I wish I could but my lawyer said to save all the evidence for our day in court. The only thing I will say is:

What the Bible says about lawsuits against fellow Christians

1 Corinthians 6:1-8 Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? 2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 3 Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life? 4 If then you have judgments concerning things pertaining to this life, do you appoint those who are least esteemed by the church to judge? 5 I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you, not even one, who will be able to judge between his brethren? 6 But brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers! 7 Now therefore, it is already an utter failure for you that you go to law against one another. Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be cheated? 8 No, you yourselves do wrong and cheat, and you do these things to your brethren!

Fr. Martins is using pagan courts against two lay people who claim, based on evidence, that he is ‘not an exorcist.’ This case should be taken before a Church tribunal and let a bishop render a decision based on the evidence that both sides present.

Pertinent links:

Father Carlos Martins’ website

Jesse Romero’s website

Father Chad Ripperger’s website