Albert Cutie served as a Miami-based Catholic priest and television and radio personality until early May 2009, when the Spanish-language magazine TV Notas featured an eight-page spread of compromising photos of Padre Cutie and an unidentified woman.Fox (Miami): Father Cutie Caught Caressing Brunette (May 6, 2009) In a television interview, he admitted to having a sexual relationship with the woman and said they were in love.CBS News: Priest In Racy Photos: I Had Sex With Her (May 11, 2009) The controversy has sparked a debate over the celibacy required of priests by the Catholic Church.Miami Herald: Poll: Most Miami-Dade Catholics Oppose Celibacy Vow (May 11, 2009)

On May 27, 2009, Cutie joined the Episcopal Church, where priests are allowed to be married. Cutie and Ruhama B. Canellis, the woman in the tabloid photos, were married in Coral Gables, Florida, on June 16, 2009.http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/06/17/father.cutie.married/index.html

The results of a poll regarding the celibacy requirement in Catholic priests was published in the Miami Herald on May 11, 2009. The results were based on responses from 400 Miami-Dade Catholics interviewed on May 8 and May 9, 2009. "The sample is representative of the county's Catholic population by ethnicity, age, gender and geographic distribution. The margin of error is plus or minus five percentage points."Miami Herald: Poll: Most Miami-Dade Catholics Oppose Celibacy Vow (May 11, 2009)

• Approximately 80 percent had a favorable view of Cutie; 10 percent had an unfavorable viewMiami Herald: Poll: Most Miami-Dade Catholics Oppose Celibacy Vow (May 11, 2009)
• 57 percent thought the Archdiocese were right for suspending Cutie from his religious duties; 33 percent disagreedMiami Herald: Poll: Most Miami-Dade Catholics Oppose Celibacy Vow (May 11, 2009)
• 74 percent oppose the Roman Catholic Church's prohibition of priests engaging in any type of sexual relations or marrying; 22 percent said they supported the prohibition; 4 percent were unsure or unresponsiveMiami Herald: Poll: Most Miami-Dade Catholics Oppose Celibacy Vow (May 11, 2009)
• 81 percent believe "celibacy requirement for Catholic clergy is antiquated and no longer viable"Miami Herald: Poll: Most Miami-Dade Catholics Oppose Celibacy Vow (May 11, 2009)

The Archdiocese of Miami announced on May 5, 2009, that Padre Cutie will no longer serve as the head of St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church in Miami Beach or on the Radio Paz and Radio Peace broadcasts.Miami Herald: Compromising Photos Force Out Miami Priest (May 5, 2009) Padre Cutie issued a statement on his website asking for forgiveness.Official Site: Padre Alberto

Compromising photographs of Padre Cutie were published by TV notas in May 2009. The eight-page spread "featured the priest in blue shorts, lying on his back next to a woman in a bathing suit on Miami Beach." Approximately two dozen images were taken over a three day period in Miami. One of the photos shows Padre Cutie kissing an identified woman and another shows him with his hand inside the woman's bathing suit.Hispanic Business: Public, Clergy Divided on Padre Alberto Cutie's Fall From Grace (May 6, 2009)

The paparazzi who took the photographs had reportedly been trying to sell them for six figures for six weeks.Miami Herald: Compromising Photos Force Out Miami Priest (May 5, 2009)