A priest kicks at a black funeral, supposedly called "Crackheads, Prostitutes"

Friends and family remember Agnes Theresa Hicks, 54, as a generous mother whose love of music has been surpassed only by her culinary zeal.

But his family did not have the opportunity to commemorate her at his funeral. last Wednesday at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Charlotte Hall, Maryland. Instead of directing the ceremony, Reverend Michael Briese ended up calling the cops on 200 to 300 participants – many of whom were black, like Theresa Hicks herself – after someone had spilled the chalice of the party. church, damaging the gold cup. Owner Tony Tonic told HuffPost that the damage was accidental. But that did not prevent Briese from taking the microphone and canceling the service, telling the mourners to "get rid of my church".

"I have been a funeral director for 30 years and have never experienced it," said Kim Briscoe-Tonic, who is co-owner of the funeral home with Tonic, her husband.

Tonic a says that they pulled the priest aside to try to calm things down privately. "We wanted to know what was going on, why he was doing so," said Tonic

"Maybe that's enough. he had a bad day, "suggested Briscoe-Tonic

The priest described the participants as" crackheads, prostitutes, and thieves, "and doubled his claim that everyone leave the church.

Briese did not immediately respond to a request for comment about his alleged remarks.

Police responded after being called upon to disrupt the public and destroy church property, but eventually no charges have been filed.Tonic and Briscoe-Tonic have found another pr be who s & # 39; volunteered to finish the Mass at another institution. The police escorted people in mourning to the second site.

"When they left this church, people were in tears," said Briscoe-Tonic. "They were really destroyed."

The Archdiocese of Washington apologized to the family of Theresa Hicks in a letter, saying that Briese's behavior "does not reflect the call fundamental of the Catholic Church to respect and elevate the God. "

Briese himself also apologized to the family and to the funeral home, said Chieko Noguchi, spokesman for the church. Archdiocese, at HuffPost . Noguchi said that he could not confirm whether Briese used the specific language described by Tonic and Briscoe-Tonic.

"We do not know this second-hand information but as our letter and our previous comments make clear, p. Briese's words and actions were totally unacceptable, "Noguchi said." Nothing diminishes or diminishes this statement. "

Noguchi did not comment on the repercussions that Briese might suffer as a result of his conduct.

Following the incident, Briese wrote a letter of opinion in the Maryland Independent during the weekend, reading in part:

Before the beginning of Mass Funeral Wednesday, June 27, one of the guests of the church damaged a sacred chalice used for Mass. The sight of this accident has boiled my frustration. My anger has spread in a torrent. I have uttered words that I never use, and I have treated people with whom I have lived and committed my life to serve unacceptably. "Instead of taking care of the bereaved family and friends, my attention turned to anger.

The man who canceled the funeral from his family and shipped them angry, is not the man who previously worked to support themselves. grief. Instead of lifting them, I let them down. For the anger and embarrassment that I have caused to this family, I am deeply sorry.

This story has been updated with additional comments from Noguchi.