Sexual Abuse Allegations Against Jesus P. Garza

This page outlines the assignments, credible allegations of child sexual abuse, and institutional actions involving Fr. Jesus P. Garza, as part of the Injury Lawyer Team’s legal representation of survivors in Illinois clergy abuse cases.

Primary Entity Name: Jesus P. Garza
Common Variations / Aliases: Father Jesus Garza, Fr. Jesus Garza, Jesse Garza
Role/Title at Time of Incident: Parish Priest, Seminary Staff, Youth Ministry Involvement
Current Status: Resigned from the priesthood

Public Identification and Clergy Status

Fr. Jesus P. Garza was publicly identified as a credibly accused priest by Church authorities and other entities, including:

Illinois Attorney General’s Office
Archdiocese of Chicago

Church investigations determined that allegations against Garza were substantiated and involved sexual abuse of a minor during the early 1980s. He resigned from the priesthood in 2000 following the reporting of abuse allegations. Although Garza has denied wrongdoing, Church authorities concluded that the allegation met the substantiation standard under diocesan review procedures.

Entity that Listed Him: Archdiocese of Chicago, Illinois Attorney General (2023 report)
Reason for Listing: Substantiated allegation of sexual abuse of a minor

Key Status Facts

Ordination Year: 1979
Years in Active Ministry: 1979–2000
Locations Where He Served: Archdiocese of Chicago (IL)
Restrictions: Resigned from the priesthood in 2000
Criminal Convictions: None publicly reported
Church Finding: Allegation substantiated by the Archdiocese of Chicago
Public Disclosure: Named in the 2023 Illinois Attorney General clergy abuse report

Assignment History

Primary Archdiocese: Archdiocese of Chicago

Parish and Ministry Assignments (as documented in public reports):

St. Casimir Parish, Chicago, Illinois (early 1980s)
St. Sebastian Parish, Chicago, Illinois (early to mid 1980s)
Quigley Preparatory Seminary North, Chicago, Illinois (1980s)
St. John Berchmans Parish, Chicago, Illinois (mid 1980s)
St. Ita Parish, Chicago, Illinois (mid to late 1980s)
St. Aloysius Parish, Chicago, Illinois (late 1980s)
St. Margaret Mary Parish, Chicago, Illinois (late 1980s to early 1990s)
Resurrection Parish, Chicago, Illinois (early 1990s)
St. Mary Parish, Buffalo Grove, Illinois (1990s)
Our Lady of Grace Parish, Chicago, Illinois (1990s)
St. Ann Parish, Lansing, Illinois (1990s)

Non-parish assignments:

Quigley Preparatory Seminary North, Chicago, Illinois: He served in a seminary setting, which involved contact with adolescent and teenage boys preparing for the priesthood. This is consistently listed separately from parish assignments in Church records and is considered an institutional or educational assignment rather than a parish role.

Edgewood High School, Madison, WI

Public School: After resigning from the priesthood in 2000, Garza worked in public schools, including roles in student support and counseling. These positions were not Church assignments, but they later became a focus of media and government scrutiny.

Known Allegations

Fr. Jesus P. Garza was accused of sexually abusing a teenage boy during the early 1980s while serving as a priest in the Archdiocese of Chicago. According to Church investigative findings, the abuse involved repeated forced sexual acts and occurred over a period of months when the victim was approximately 15 years old.

Church records indicate that the victim reported the abuse years later. After an internal review, the Archdiocese of Chicago determined that the allegation was substantiated. Garza resigned from the priesthood in 2000 following the report.

Although Garza denied the allegations publicly, the Archdiocese concluded that the evidence met the threshold for substantiation. His name was subsequently included on official lists of clergy credibly accused of sexually abusing minors.

Summary: Fr. Jesus P. Garza resigned from the priesthood after a substantiated allegation of sexual abuse involving a minor during his time in ministry in Chicago.

Overseeing Authorities During Key Periods:

Cardinal John Cody, Archdiocese of Chicago
Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, Archdiocese of Chicago

Institutional Actions and Review

Internal Church procedures determined that the allegation against Garza was substantiated. The Archdiocese of Chicago accepted his resignation from the priesthood in 2000 and barred him from further ministry.

Subsequent public reporting revealed that after leaving the priesthood, Garza later worked in public school settings outside Illinois. Media investigations raised concerns about whether the Church’s substantiation findings were adequately communicated to civil authorities or licensing bodies responsible for child safety oversight.

In 2000, Garza went across the nation to work at a school district in Wisconsin. When questions arose regarding the substantiated allegations, such as one where he forced a boy to perform oral sex on him, Garza said the school never questioned his background.

In 2006, he became a licensed school counselor, specializing in working with young children and adolescents. Garza denied the incident after it happened, but also stated no one ever asked him about it, even during licensing. The school district utilized the FBI and other criminal websites to do a background check, but Garza did not show up because there were no criminal charges filed.

The Illinois Attorney General’s 2023 report cited Garza as one of Illinois clerics with a substantiated allegation who was not criminally prosecuted but was nevertheless confirmed by Church authorities to have abused a minor.

There is no public record indicating that Garza was criminally charged for the abuse described in the Church investigations.

Timeline

1979 — Ordained in the Archdiocese of Chicago
Early 1980s — Sexual abuse of a minor occurred in Chicago
1980s–1990s — Continued parish and ministry assignments
2000 — First known report of abuse received by the Archdiocese of Chicago
2000 — Resigned from the priesthood
2005 — Archdiocese formally substantiated the abuse allegation
2023 — Named in the Illinois Attorney General’s clergy abuse report

Speak With an Attorney

If you or someone you know was sexually abused by Fr. Jesus P. Garza or any Catholic clergy member in Illinois, you may still have legal options. The Injury Lawyer Team represents survivors of clergy abuse across the state.

Contact us to book a confidential consultation with an Illinois clergy abuse attorney. We are here to help you understand your rights and take legal action.

Sources

This page is based on public records, official Church disclosures, government investigations, and media reporting, including the following:

No criminal conviction is implied unless explicitly stated in public court records or official Church reports.

All content undergoes thorough legal review by experienced attorneys, including Jonathan Rosenfeld. With 25 years of experience in personal injury law and over 100 years of combined legal expertise within our team, we ensure that every article is legally accurate, compliant, and reflects current legal standards.

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