Michigan Priests Accused of Abuse

Clergy abuse within the various Michigan Dioceses has an unfortunate and long history, with many sexual abuse allegations coming to light. The Catholic Church has many instances of clergy members sexually assaulting members of the church, but a lot of people don’t come forward.

Many don’t report clergy sexual abuse until many years later, and when they’re ready, Injury Lawyer Team, along with local law enforcement, is ready to be your trusted ally. Whether the abuse occurred in Detroit, Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, or anywhere else, our Michigan clergy abuse attorneys will help fight for your rights and bring your abuser to justice.

List of Accused Priests in Michigan by Catholic Diocese

Archdiocese of Detroit, Michigan

Benedict Adams

• Accused

Benedict Adams was a Capuchin priest ordained in 1957 and affiliated with the Archdiocese of Detroit. He was later identified in internal Capuchin records and publicly reported summaries as having abused minors. His name appeared in disclosures tied to historical abuse within the Capuchin order. Adams died on April 15, 2002, prior to broader public accountability processes implemented in later decades.

Roman Ament

• Accused

Roman Ament was a Capuchin priest ordained in 1934 who later served in Michigan and appears on publicly released lists of accused clergy associated with the Archdiocese of Detroit. His inclusion stems from allegations of sexual abuse of minors documented in Capuchin province disclosures. Ament died on January 12, 1984, long before the publication of diocesan abuse lists.

Harry S. Benjamin

• Convicted

Harry S. Benjamin was removed from ministry in 1989 after allegations that he sexually abused a 14-year-old boy during overnight gatherings at the rectory and on a trip to Europe. He admitted the abuse in a November 1989 resignation letter, though his name was not made public until May 2002. Criminal charges were filed in 2002, and he was sentenced to one year in prison following a 2003 plea agreement. Benjamin was laicized in 1992 but continued saying Mass without permission through 2005. He was listed on the Virgini

Gary D. Berthiaume

• Accused

Gary D. Berthiaume was convicted in 1978 of abusing two boys in Detroit and served six months in jail. He was later reassigned to ministries in Ohio, Maryland, and Illinois, including work as a hospital chaplain until 2002. Civil suits were filed in 1983 and 1999 alleging abuse in Michigan and Ohio. He was laicized in November 2007 and listed as credibly accused by Detroit in 2019. Arrested in Illinois in 2020 and charged again in Michigan in 2021, Berthiaume pleaded guilty in late 2021 and was sentenced in 2022 to 20 months to 15 years in prison.

Joseph Baker

• Accused

Joseph Baker appears in publicly compiled lists of accused clergy associated with the Archdiocese of Detroit. His inclusion is based on allegations of sexual abuse of minors reported through ecclesiastical or civil channels. Public summaries do not indicate a criminal conviction, but his name remains part of documented abuse disclosures tied to the diocese.

Gael N. Biondo

• Accused

Gael N. Biondo is named in accused-clergy listings connected to the Archdiocese of Detroit. Public records and compiled abuse databases identify him as having been accused of sexual misconduct involving minors. The available information reflects acknowledgment of allegations rather than a criminal court outcome.

Brian Bjorklund

• Accused

Brian Bjorklund is included in Michigan-based accused clergy records associated with the Archdiocese of Detroit. His name appears in public compilations of priests accused of sexual abuse of minors. The disclosures reflect allegations documented through church or survivor-reporting channels, without a publicly noted criminal conviction.

Edmund S. Borycz

• Accused

Ordained on June 1, 1968, Edmund S. Borycz served in parish assignments in Detroit and later held leadership roles in Taylor and Livonia. He was released for service with the Archdiocese for the Military Services in 1989 and remained there until 2001. Administrative leave began in July 2002, followed by removal from active ministry on May 30, 2006. He died on January 8, 2018.

William B. Brennan

• Accused

Ordained in 1953, William B. Brennan was placed on leave in 2003 after allegations of sexual misconduct tied to his early years of ministry. A Vatican action permanently removed him from public ministry in September 2005. No criminal prosecution is reflected in the publicly described case timeline, with limitations noted in contemporary reporting. He died on February 5, 2012.

Gary Bueche

• Settled

Ordained in 1970, Gary Bueche was removed from a parish assignment in April 2002 after a prior cash settlement connected to an allegation from his period as a high school chaplain was identified. He was transferred into archdiocesan office work, later returned to parish duties, and was ultimately removed from public ministry. A civil filing dated May 2004 named him in connection with abuse claims, and he appeared on a credibly accused list dated June 10, 2019.

Thomas J. Cain

• Accused

After decades of parish service, Thomas J. Cain’s ministry included assignments in Pontiac, Monroe, Mt. Clemens, Detroit, and Livonia across 1960–1984. He was ordained in 1945 and died on October 1, 1984. Allegations were raised after his death and were later reviewed as credible by an archdiocesan process announced on October 27, 2014. His name appeared on a credibly accused list dated June 10, 2019.

Robert N. Burkholder

• Convicted

Ordained in 1947, Robert N. Burkholder moved to Hawaii in 1981 and served as an Army chaplain at Schofield Barracks starting in 1982. He was removed from ministry in 1993 after a written admission describing abuse of at least 23 boys, and a settlement was noted in 1995. In 2002, extradition proceedings in Honolulu addressed Michigan charges; he later entered a no contest plea and received 30 days in jail plus five years’ probation. He died on June 6, 2006.

Arthur Cooney

• Accused

A Capuchin friar, Arthur Cooney held assignments that included Saginaw, Michigan, with roles at St. Anthony Parish from 1986–1990 and St. Joseph Parish from 1997–2002. Administrative leave was recorded in 1986, followed by later ministry work outside Michigan, including a retreat assignment in Appleton, Wisconsin, from 2005–2009. He was removed from public ministry in 2009 and later served in a development office role in Detroit through 2024. Retirement status was listed in 2024.

Augustine Cops

• Accused

Originating from the Netherlands, Augustine Cops entered the Capuchin order in 1959 and was ordained in 1986. Substantiated allegations were publicly listed in October 2020 within his religious order’s disclosure framework. His name later appeared on a major archdiocesan list connected to an assignment spanning 1986–1988, and it was also included in an Illinois Attorney General report dated May 23, 2023. The public record links his case to order-level and diocesan-level listings across multiple jurisdictions.

Anthony J. Conti

• Sued

Known in ministry as A. J. Anthony Helinski through at least 1988, Anthony J. Conti was ordained in 1976 and was removed from ministry in 2002 after allegations involving a minor that were tied to events more than 20 years earlier. A permanent ban from ministry followed, and a civil suit was filed in 2004. Laicization was recorded in June 2006. He died on October 9, 2016, and his name appeared on a credibly accused list dated June 10, 2019.

Patrick J. D’Angelo

• Accused

Ordained in 1983, Patrick J. D’Angelo served in the archdiocese until his death on December 8, 1998. A status report dated October 2009 described his case as previously handled under archdiocesan policy. Later public listings placed him among clergy presented as credibly accused, including a list dated June 10, 2019. The documented timeline reflects posthumous public disclosure paired with earlier internal handling references.

Michael J. Daly

• Accused

Ordained in 1975, Michael J. Daly was placed on leave in 1994 following a credible allegation of sexual misconduct involving minors. Beginning in 1996, he worked in a restricted capacity as a chaplain for the Felician Sisters. Archdiocesan privileges were permanently revoked in June 2002, and a Vatican action in May 2005 barred him from public ministry. He died on January 30, 2012.

Frank Luke Dalton

• Accused

Frank Luke Dalton entered the Congregation of Christian Brothers in 1955 and held education-related assignments across multiple states, including a posting in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. His career also included long periods at Palma High School in Salinas, California, spanning 1964–1969 and 1988–1999, alongside additional placements in Montana, Illinois, and Southern California. Publicly summarized accounts describe teaching and youth-facing roles over decades of service. He died on January 11, 2001.

Luis Javier de Alba Campos

• Acquitted

Assigned in the Archdiocese of Detroit in February 2004, Luis Javier de Alba Campos was accused in June 2004 of fondling a 7-year-old boy. He was arrested in August 2004 and arraigned on two counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct. A jury acquitted him in January 2005. After the case, he remained barred from duties while an internal church process continued, then later returned to Mexico.

Harold Charles Depp

• Convicted

After leaving a Detroit-area assignment in 1963 and not returning, Harold Charles Depp later faced criminal proceedings outside Michigan. He was convicted in Alaska in 1982 and sentenced to eight years in prison. In May 2003, he was arrested in California over allegations involving an 11-year-old boy from 1971–1972 during a visit at Prince of Peace Abbey in Oceanside. The California charges were dropped in July 2003.

Dennis D. Duggan

• Accused

Removal from parish ministry occurred in March 2002 after an allegation was received and assessed as credible within archdiocesan processes. Dennis D. Duggan publicly denied abuse during the early handling period. A church trial was ordered in 2004, and laicization was announced on April 20, 2007. His name later appeared on a credibly accused listing dated June 10, 2019, reflecting a finalized public disclosure outcome within the archdiocese.

Lawrence A. Edwards

• Sued

Ordained in 1939, Lawrence A. Edwards was named in a civil lawsuit filed in May 2004 that alleged abuse of a boy ages 10–12 at St. Mary’s in Milford, Michigan, with claims spanning childhood years. He retired in 1985. Edwards died on March 23, 1999, and the public case posture reflects posthumous litigation tied to parish assignment history and a specific alleged location in Oakland County.

Jude T. Ellinghausen

• Accused

A permanent removal from priestly ministry was described as having occurred more than a decade before a July 22, 2016 archdiocesan statement about Jude T. Ellinghausen. He was assigned a life of prayer and penance under church discipline, and laicization was also listed as announced in 2005 in separate public summaries. His name later appeared on an archdiocesan credibly accused listing, reflecting continued public categorization.

Lawrence T. Fares

• Accused

Added to the archdiocese’s credibly accused listing on January 15, 2021, Lawrence T. Fares was restricted from all public priestly ministry after a review-board process found an allegation credible. The archdiocese was informed in July 2019, with the allegation tied to early years of service. Public summaries also note his arrival in the United States in 1969, incardination in 1977, and retirement in 1997, followed by later restrictions.

Joseph P. Femminineo

• Accused

Joseph P. Femminineo held assignments that included Ladywood High School in Livonia, Michigan, from 1985–1987. He resigned from St. Rita Parish in Holly on October 20, 1996 after older allegations of sexual misconduct involving minors surfaced, with broader public disclosure later noted in 2002. In May 2005, a Vatican action permanently barred him from public ministry. His death was listed in May 2020, closing a timeline marked by restrictions and removal.

Egbert Heinlein

• Accused

Ordained in 1938, Egbert Heinlein was later included in a public credibly accused listing within the Archdiocese of Detroit, with the listing dated 2023. He died on October 29, 1999. The public record positions his case as a posthumous disclosure entry, linking an ordination-era cleric to later institutional publication of names and statuses, without a publicly detailed assignment-by-assignment narrative in the brief summary records tied to the listing.

Leopold Gleissner

• Accused

Ordained in 1952, Leopold Gleissner was identified in a Capuchin Province of St. Joseph audit dated June 18, 2013 as a friar with confirmed reports of sexual abuse of minors. The same public summary indicates removal from public ministry and placement under supervision. His inclusion is framed through religious-order disclosure practices connected to ministry in jurisdictions that included Michigan, with the disclosed outcome centered on removal and ongoing oversight.

Leonard R. Foisy

• Sued

Ordained on June 15, 1957, Leonard R. Foisy served as administrator of St. John’s Seminary in Plymouth, Michigan, during the 1960s. A lawsuit filed in 1994 alleged abuse of a boy over four years in that decade while he held the seminary role. He was placed on sick leave in 1996. Foisy died on April 29, 2016, with the public case posture anchored to Michigan seminary leadership and civil litigation.

Louis E. Grandpre

• Accused

Restricted from all public ministry after an allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor, Louis E. Grandpre was publicly described as having faced a review-board determination that the allegation was substantive, with the restriction announced on September 17, 2013. Born March 13, 1934 in Hale, Michigan, he was ordained June 3, 1961 in Detroit and died February 20, 2016. The documented arc centers on late-career restriction and formal public notice.

Robert W. Haener

• Accused

Allegations involving psychological and sexual abuse of boys were tied to two parishes and two Catholic schools in the 1960s and early 1970s. Robert W. Haener was removed from a parish in 1992, later worked as a hospital chaplain, then was removed again in 2002. A Vatican action in 2005 permanently removed him from public ministry. His name appeared on a credibly accused listing dated June 10, 2019, reflecting sustained public classification after restrictions.

Kent Hajduk

• Accused

Public disclosure by the Province of St. John the Baptist Franciscans in January 2021 identified substantiated allegations of child sexual abuse tied to Kent Hajduk. His name was also added to an Archdiocese of Detroit public listing dated January 14, 2021. He left the Franciscan order, was laicized, and died on January 24, 2018, following decades of clerical and religious-order affiliation.

Clarence (Rudolph) Grosser

• Accused

Clarence (Rudolph) Grosser was identified in a Capuchin Province of St. Joseph audit dated June 18, 2013 as a friar with confirmed reports of sexual abuse of minors. The public audit-style entry frames the outcome as removal from public ministry and placement under supervision. His inclusion is tied to order-level disclosure practices rather than a single parish announcement, with the published record centered on status and oversight.

Albert Hillebrand

• Accused

Ministry and education leadership in the Detroit area are central to the public record for Albert Hillebrand, including service as principal at Austin Catholic Preparatory High School during the mid-1960s through mid-1970s. He was later named on an Archdiocese of Detroit credibly accused list dated June 10, 2019. Public summaries describe removal from public ministry. He died on July 20, 1999, with disclosure occurring years after his death.

Neil Kalina

• Convicted

A former priest linked to St. Kieran Catholic Church in Shelby Township from 1982–1985, Neil Kalina was tied by prosecutors to a 1984 assault of a 14-year-old. He was arrested in 2019 in Littlerock, California, convicted in 2022 of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, and later resentenced on January 9, 2025 to 7–15 years with lifetime registry requirements. Court review in April 2024 affirmed the convictions.

Thomas J. Johnston

• Sued

Litigation in 2000 placed Thomas J. Johnston, a Dominican ordained in 1986, into the public record through allegations tied to 1999 events involving a parish employee’s teenage son. He acknowledged inappropriate sexual behavior and language while denying sexual contact in the same case narrative. He was removed from parish assignment and sent to Illinois, then released from the Dominican order in 2006. His name appeared on a June 10, 2019 listing.

Arthur Michael Karey

• Accused

A posthumous allegation received in 2017 led to a public archdiocesan statement dated June 22, 2018 regarding Arthur Michael Karey, a monsignor whose ministry was associated with Detroit, Ecorse, and Orion. The archdiocese described its investigative and review process as reaching a credible finding. Karey died in 1993. The public timeline centers on a late disclosure, a defined review outcome, and the cleric’s prior assignments in southeast Michigan.

C. Richard Kelly, Jr.

• Sued

Leave from ministry began in February 2004 for C. Richard Kelly, Jr. after an archdiocesan investigation into an allegation involving a minor boy tied to conduct roughly 30 years earlier. The matter had been reported to civil authorities in 2003, and an internal review committee deemed the allegation substantive. He was sued in May 2004 and permanently removed from public ministry in 2005. His death was reported on January 3, 2021.

Kenneth Kaucheck

• Accused

Public handling for Kenneth Kaucheck includes an Archdiocese of Detroit press release dated April 24, 2009 describing restrictions following allegations, alongside later reporting that he was banned from public ministry in 2009. In 2016, controversy surfaced tied to his role at a pregnancy center in Eastpointe, Michigan, followed by his resignation from that position. He was ordained in 1976, with the public record focusing on restrictions and later non-parish activity.

John Baptist Kurcz

• Accused

Order-level disclosure placed John Baptist Kurcz on a Capuchin Province of St. Joseph audit dated June 18, 2013 as a friar with confirmed reports of sexual abuse of minors. He was ordained in 1953, left the Capuchin order in 1958, and later married, as summarized in the same public listing. The record emphasizes removal from public ministry within the order’s framework and the early end of his religious-order status.

Theresa Marie Kulwicki

• Accused

Known in religious life as Theresa Marie Kulwicki and identified by given name Patricia Kulwicki, she left the Felician order in 1973. An accusation made public in 2019 described abuse lasting about ten years beginning when the complainant was 14, tied to Our Lady of Mercy High School in Farmington Hills, Michigan. The same public narrative states the family reported the matter to church authorities in the late 1980s, with later public disclosure decades afterward.

Dennis Laesch

• Settled

Ordained in 1996, Dennis Laesch was accused of abusing a 17-year-old in 1997, with the report coming forward in 2002. Civil authorities declined prosecution in the reported timeline, and a $125,000 settlement was paid by the archdiocese. A Vatican action in 2007 permanently barred him from public ministry. Public reporting also described a leave beginning in 2002 while the archdiocese investigated and moved through its internal procedures.

Richard Lauinger

• Accused

Ordained in 1956, Richard Lauinger was laicized at his own request in 1975, according to diocesan-era summaries later cited publicly. An Archdiocesan Review Board determination, announced in late March 2016 and reported on April 1, 2016, identified him as accused of sexual abuse of minors. The public record highlights a long gap between clerical status change and later public classification, with disclosure anchored to the 2016 announcement timeline.

Walter J. Lezuchowski

• Accused

Archdiocesan action in 1991 barred Walter J. Lezuchowski from parish ministry after allegations were deemed credible involving a girl over age 16, and he was sent for treatment. A separate criminal complaint was made in 2002 while he had been ministering at St. Ronald’s in Clinton Township, Michigan, prompting immediate suspension. He was permanently banned from ministry in 2005. He died on December 29, 2006, after years marked by restrictions and removal.

Michael D. Malawy

• Accused

Removal from ministry in 2004 followed allegations of sexual misconduct tied to early years of service for Michael D. Malawy, who was ordained in 1981. A Vatican action in June 2006 permanently removed him from public ministry. His name appeared on an Archdiocese of Detroit credibly accused list dated June 10, 2019. Public summaries list his death in July 2015, commonly recorded as July 25, 2015, closing a timeline shaped by restriction and later public disclosure.

Dennis L. Martell

• Accused

Listed in archdiocesan status reporting in September 2002, Dennis L. Martell was later laicized in public summaries. Catholic directory snapshots cited in case synopses place him at Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M. in Lapeer, Michigan, during 1992–1993, followed by an “Absent on Leave” designation in 1993–1994. Ordained in 1976, he was included on the Archdiocese of Detroit credibly accused list dated June 10, 2019.

Bruce C. Maxwell

• Accused

A Crosier priest, Bruce C. Maxwell held assignments that included Detroit from 1983–1989, then service as a U.S. Navy chaplain from 1989–2002 across multiple duty locations in public summaries. He was removed in 2002 in connection with abuse of a minor and later appeared on an Archdiocese of Detroit credibly accused listing. He died on February 17, 2006, with the timeline emphasizing ministry roles, removal action, and subsequent public categorization.

Patrick L. McLaughlin

• Accused

Public disclosure entries for Patrick L. McLaughlin, a Jesuit ordained in 1939, place reported abuse in 1957–1959 at University of Detroit High School in Detroit, Michigan. He died in 1970. A Jesuits USA Midwest Province listing dated December 17, 2018 included his name, linking a mid-century school setting to later province-level publication. The record is framed as retrospective disclosure of allegation timing and location decades after his death.

Alfred J. Miller

• Accused

Civil litigation in the early 2000s described abuse said to have occurred no later than the mid-1970s, with family disclosure dated July 11, 2002. Alfred J. Miller retired in 2002 amid the allegations, and a Vatican action in 2005 removed him from public ministry in later summaries. He died on May 19, 2021. The public timeline centers on decades-old conduct allegations, retirement, later church discipline, and post-2000 civil proceedings.

Frank Mullen

• Accused

A complaint received in December 1993 led to leave status for Frank Mullen, identified in public summaries as a deacon and teacher connected to Most Holy Trinity Parish and Holy Redeemer Parish Elementary School. Later status reporting summarized in compiled records lists laicization by October 2009. His name appeared on a credibly accused listing dated June 10, 2019. The public record emphasizes leave action, later laicization, and subsequent archdiocesan disclosure.

Timothy J. Murray

• Guilty plea

Removal from ministry occurred in 2004, followed years later by federal criminal proceedings. In July 2013, Timothy J. Murray pleaded guilty in federal court to distribution and possession of child pornography. Sentencing on January 23, 2014 imposed 15 years and 8 months in federal prison, with reporting tying the case to Novi, Michigan. The public arc is anchored to removal, a later federal plea, and a defined prison term with a specific sentencing date.

Lawrence Nawrocki

• Convicted

A criminal case in 1989 resulted in a conviction tied to abuse of three boys in 1987 at St. Isidore Church in Macomb Township, Michigan. Lawrence Nawrocki received a 4–15 year prison sentence and was released in 1994 in later summaries. Separate reporting referenced St. Lawrence School in Utica, Michigan, within a complaint pathway discussed in press coverage. The public timeline emphasizes the 1987 setting, 1989 conviction, incarceration term, and release year.

Loren O’Dea

• Accused

An archdiocesan announcement dated October 2014 stated that two allegations of sexual misconduct with minors were deemed substantive and dated to just prior to Loren O’Dea’s ordination. The matter was turned over to civil authorities, and church action centered on administrative leave and restriction following review-board consultation. Public summaries frame the case through the review outcome and the stated timing of alleged conduct relative to ordination, with formal disclosure tied to the 2014 announcement.

Edward Theodore Olszewski

• Convicted

After ordination for Detroit in 1960, Edward Theodore Olszewski later transferred to the Archdiocese of Miami in 1976 and was incardinated there in 1981 in compiled summaries. A jury found him guilty on December 18, 2002 of indecent liberties with a minor, and sentencing on January 30, 2003 imposed three years’ probation. A civil suit filed on December 22, 2003 was also noted in the same public case summaries.

Thaddeus Ozog

• Accused

A public archdiocesan statement dated November 10, 2018 described an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor reviewed by the Archdiocesan Review Board and deemed credible. Thaddeus Ozog was identified as ordained in 1956 and listed as deceased, with lifespan stated as 1930–1994. The record is structured around a posthumous disclosure, a defined review-board determination date, and the cleric’s mid-century ordination, with the announcement serving as the central public action.

Eduard Perrone

• Accused

Restrictions announced on July 5, 2019 barred Eduard Perrone from public ministry and from presenting himself publicly as a priest, including prohibitions on clerical attire and exercising ministry. He was pastor at Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Grotto) Parish in Detroit at the time the restriction was issued. Archdiocesan updates in 2021–2022 described a canonical disciplinary process focused on conduct during the investigation period from August 2018 through March 2021, with penalties issued in early 2022.

Thomas R. Physician

• Sued

A civil suit filed in May 2004 alleged abuse at Precious Blood parish in the early 1970s involving a boy described as ages 14–17. Thomas R. Physician was placed on leave on January 3, 2004, and the same public summary referenced a police investigation with no charges filed. He died on August 23, 2004. His name appeared on a credibly accused listing dated June 10, 2019, tying posthumous disclosure to earlier civil proceedings.

Ralph Quane

• Accused

Removal in May 2002 followed allegations tied to early years of ministry, with public summaries stating Ralph Quane was taken off a hospital chaplain assignment and ordered not to wear clerical garb or represent himself as a priest. Laicization was announced in May 2005. His name appeared on a credibly accused listing dated June 10, 2019. The documented trajectory emphasizes early-ministry allegations, 2002 removal and restrictions, formal laicization, and later public listing.

Hurmiz Risko Ishak

• Convicted

Service as a deacon at St. Joseph Chaldean Church in Troy, Michigan, is central to the public description of Hurmiz Risko Ishak’s case. A diocesan statement dated August 29, 2019 referenced a guilty verdict in Oakland County Circuit Court. The public record frames the outcome through the court result and the diocesan acknowledgment date, placing the case within southeast Michigan and identifying the cleric’s role as a deacon attached to the Troy parish.

Gary Schulte

• Accused

Administrative leave took effect on October 28, 2011 after an allegation received in September 2011 involving a person under 18, tied to the early years of his ministry. Ordained in 1972, Gary Schulte held assignments at Guardian Angels in Clawson (1972), Our Lady Queen of Martyrs in Beverly Hills (1973), Macomb County Community College in Warren as chaplain (1975), and later roles in Royal Oak, Madison Heights, and Warren.

Gerald Shirilla

• Accused

Public allegations emerged in March 2002 shortly after Gerald Shirilla was reassigned to St. Mary Catholic Church in Alpena, Michigan. The allegations described abuse beginning when a complainant was 15 and continuing into the late teen years during the 1960s. He died on June 16, 2004 in Alpena at age 66. The public record centers on the Alpena assignment, the 1960s timeframe, and the 2002 disclosure period.

Joseph Sito

• Guilty plea

A Vatican decree announced on January 12, 2004 dismissed Joseph Sito from the clerical state after he had been on leave since 1993. Public summaries describe a credible allegation tied to the 1960s, a 1999 criminal charge involving a 17-year-old, and a guilty plea to a lesser charge with a fine, followed by treatment and prohibition from public ministry. He died on January 4, 2016 in a multi-vehicle crash in Livonia, Michigan.

Kenneth Stewart

• Accused

Placement on a public credibly accused listing appears under cases involving priests of religious orders, where Kenneth Stewart is identified as a former Capuchin priest. The listing context ties his name to the Archdiocese of Detroit’s public disclosure framework. The available entry emphasizes identity and categorization rather than assignment-by-assignment detail, with the core public marker being inclusion on a Detroit-area list of credibly accused clergy connected to religious-order cases.

Timothy J. Szott

• Guilty plea

Leave began in February 2003 after child abuse images were found on Timothy J. Szott’s computer, followed by arraignment in June 2003. A no contest plea led to sentencing in September 2003 to 18 months of probation on a possession of child pornography charge, and permanent removal from ministry was recorded in 2005. His assignment history included being named pastor of St. Lawrence Parish in Utica, Michigan in 1995. He died in August 2008 in Arizona.

Jason E. Sigler

• Charged

Charges announced in late August 2002 placed Jason E. Sigler in a Detroit-area criminal case grouping while he was reported as living in New Mexico. Public case summaries describe ordination for the Archdiocese of Winnipeg, placement in the Diocese of Lansing in 1968, and dismissal from Lansing in 1970 amid allegations involving boys. A later acceptance by the Archdiocese of Detroit was described as conditional, including psychiatric help and treatment periods connected to New Mexico.

Austin Schlaefer

• Accused

Order-level disclosure identified Austin Schlaefer as a deceased Capuchin friar with confirmed reports of sexual abuse of minors in an audit dated June 18, 2013. He died on June 19, 1992 in Saginaw, Michigan. His ministry was described as spanning work in Milwaukee, Detroit, and Chicago, with later public listings placing him on a Diocese of Saginaw disclosure list by August 9, 2019 and on an Archdiocese of Chicago list by October 2022.

Wendelin Shafer

• Accused

Born on March 5, 1919 in Jackson, Michigan, Wendelin Shafer was listed in Capuchin disclosure materials as a deceased friar with confirmed reports of sexual abuse of minors. His ministry included long-term missions in Nicaragua beginning in August 1947, later assignments in Milwaukee from June 1973 to August 1977, and postings in Midland, Michigan and Saginaw, Michigan, with a Queen of Angels assignment noted from January 1983. He died on October 9, 2005 in Appleton, Wisconsin.

Gerald F. Smola

• Accused

A Jesuit profile entry links Gerald F. Smola to reported abuse at University of Detroit Jesuit High School in Detroit during the 1950s. His Illinois assignment history includes Saint Ignatius College Prep in Chicago from 1953 to 1955. Public summaries note he joined the Society of Jesus in 1938 and was dismissed from the order in 1969. The record is framed through school settings, decade-level timing, and order-level actions rather than a criminal case timeline.

Francis Mary Sparacino

• Accused

Placed on a Capuchin Province of St. Joseph public list on June 18, 2013, Francis Mary Sparacino appears in an attorney-general dataset entry that identifies him as a Capuchin with an Illinois assignment at the De Porres Capuchin Community in Chicago from 1983 to 1984. The same entry lists retirement in 2004 and death in 2015. The published record centers on order disclosure, assignment location, and lifecycle milestones rather than a dated allegation narrative.

Joseph Smetana

• Accused

Disclosure materials dated June 18, 2013 identified Joseph Smetana as a Capuchin friar with confirmed reports of sexual abuse of minors, describing removal from public ministry and living under supervision. Public summaries also describe 31 years as a priest in Nicaragua and note later appearance on a Diocese of La Crosse list, with an assignment connected to St. Henry in Eau Galle, Wisconsin. The record emphasizes removal from ministry, supervision status, and cross-jurisdiction listing.

Robert Spader

• Accused

A Capuchin audit dated June 18, 2013 listed Robert Spader as a former friar with confirmed reports of sexual abuse of minors. Public summaries describe him as ordained in 1964 and identify him as no longer a member of the order in the disclosure framework. The published material is structured as an order-level accountability entry, focusing on confirmed reports, former status, and a specific ordination year without a publicly detailed parish-by-parish timeline.

Jan (John) Tyminski

• Accused

A public archdiocesan statement dated May 17, 2019 named Jan (John) Tyminski after an allegation was reviewed and found credible in that disclosure context. Ordained in 1935 in Loma, Poland, he arrived in the United States in 1950 and spent a year at SS. Cyril and Methodius Seminary in Orchard Lake, Michigan. He served in five archdiocesan parishes from 1951 until retirement in 1976. He died in 1984.

Peter J. Van der Linden

• Accused

Public handling described Peter J. Van der Linden as removed in 1993 after a serious and substantive allegation of sexual misconduct dating to early years of ministry. He had been on medical leave since 1991 and was working part time at Cardinal Mooney High School in Marine City, Michigan, in 1993. A May 2005 action permanently removed him from ministry in later summaries, and he was publicly named in an October 2002 archdiocesan release. He died in February 2007.

Lawrence M. Ventline

• Accused

Inclusion on an archdiocesan credibly accused listing dated June 10, 2019 placed Lawrence M. Ventline under restrictions from public ministry in the published record. A separate state licensing action followed, with the Michigan Board of Counseling revoking his educationally limited counselor license on September 6, 2019 and imposing a $5,000 fine in a Lansing, Michigan announcement. The licensing matter was framed around an allegation of sexually assaulting a young boy, aligning the public timeline with church listing and state discipline.

Gerald John Vesnaugh

• Convicted

A public case summary described Gerald John Vesnaugh as forced from the priesthood in 1975 and later convicted in 1979, receiving a suspended sentence and two years of probation. The available summary record focuses on the 1975 removal and the 1979 criminal outcome as the timeline anchors. His profile is framed through a defined separation from clerical status followed by a criminal judgment, without a publicly detailed parish assignment list in the summarized entry.

Aloysius Volskis

• Accused

Aloysius Volskis was identified as a priest of the Diocese of Telšiai, Lithuania, in reporting that linked him to a Detroit civil case publicized in March 2021. The lawsuit described an allegation of assault involving an 8-year-old boy in 2010 at Bishop Kelley Catholic School in Detroit. The public timeline ties the alleged conduct to a school setting and a specific year, then connects disclosure through later litigation and press coverage more than a decade afterward.

Ronald R. Williams

• Accused

Temporary administrative leave took effect on September 8, 2002 for Ronald R. Williams while he served as pastor of St. Mary’s of Redford Parish in Detroit, tied to a substantive allegation of sexual abuse of a minor dating to early years of ministry and received in late spring 2002. Born March 6, 1952, he died on July 6, 2010 at age 58. The record emphasizes parish leadership in Detroit, a dated leave action, and the early-ministry timeframe of the allegation.

David F. West

• Accused

A posthumous allegation brought forward years after his death led to an archdiocesan statement dated December 3, 2015 regarding David F. West. The Archdiocesan Board of Review reviewed the matter and found the allegation credible within that process. He was identified as ordained in 1964 and listed with lifespan dates of 1938–2004. The public profile is anchored to the 2015 disclosure date and the archdiocesan review outcome tied to a deceased cleric.

Robert Witkowski

• Accused

Restrictions from any public ministry became effective on October 9, 2018 for Robert Witkowski after credible allegations of sexual abuse of minors, and his name was added to an archdiocesan credibly accused listing. He was ordained in 1961 and retired in 2013, with public reporting linking the allegations to early years of ministry. A civil suit filed in December 2019 in New Jersey alleged abuse at St. Cecilia’s in Iselin in the early 1990s. He died on May 10, 2021.

James R. Wysocki

• Accused

Leave in 2003 followed an archdiocesan review of an old allegation of sexual misconduct involving a minor that was later deemed substantive in public summaries. A second allegation described in 2004 placed misconduct in the early 1970s, and a Vatican-ordered church trial was noted in compiled case records. Ordained in 1967, James R. Wysocki’s public timeline is framed through post-2000 archdiocesan action and earlier alleged conduct windows tied to the period shortly after ordination and the early 1970s.

Robert Wyzgoski

• Accused

Resignation as pastor occurred on June 28, 2002 when Robert Wyzgoski left Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Catholic Church in Beverly Hills, Michigan after allegations of sexual misconduct with minors were described as credible in reporting. The allegations were tied to earlier years of ministry in the same public narrative. He was born May 2, 1933 in Pontiac, Michigan, and died on December 30, 2006 in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. The public record centers on the dated parish exit and the Beverly Hills assignment.

Harold A. Walsh

• Accused

Assignment history entries list Harry (Harold) Walsh with a posting at Holy Redeemer Church in Detroit, Michigan from 1965 to 1967. The same structured record places him under permanent removal from ministry in 2005. Public timelines also link later scrutiny to reporting in the early 2010s, but the core spine is the dated Detroit assignment followed by the 2005 removal action. The profile is shaped by documented placement, later discipline, and cross-jurisdiction disclosure.

Hilary Zach

• Accused

A Capuchin audit dated June 18, 2013 identified Hilary Zach as a deceased friar with confirmed reports of sexual abuse of minors. He was described in the same public summary as having served at St. Lawrence Seminary as a teacher and novice master, then later as a hospital chaplain. He died on March 22, 1997. The record is framed through order-level disclosure, institutional roles in formation and chaplaincy, and a posthumous accountability entry anchored to the audit date.

Diocese of Gaylord

Patrick J. Barrett

• Accused

Patrick J. Barrett was placed on leave in 2002 after a complaint alleging misconduct involving a minor approximately 30 years earlier, with the conduct reported as occurring outside the Diocese of Gaylord. 

The diocesan investigative committee determined the allegations to be credible, and Barrett was permanently removed from public ministry that year. He died in March 2006. Barrett was first publicly listed as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord on November 10, 2018 and was later included in the Michigan Attorney General’s January 8, 2024 Gaylord report.

Walter William Derylo

• Accused

Walter William Derylo was publicly identified as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord following allegations reviewed and deemed credible through diocesan procedures, resulting in removal from active ministry. 

In May 2007, a woman reported that Derylo had inappropriate physical contact with her daughter when the child was about five or six years old. The woman also stated that she had an intimate relationship with Derylo from 1985 into the 1990s, which he acknowledged. The report indicated the child recalled at least one incident occurring while Derylo was assisting her with bedtime clothing.

James Kemp Gardiner

• Accused

James Kemp Gardiner was identified by the Diocese of Gaylord as accused in connection with misconduct during his years of parish ministry. In December 1996, he admitted to unwanted sexual contact with an adult man who had sought him out while experiencing suicidal thoughts, a report received by the diocese in 1997. 

In 2015, a separate allegation described sexual assault in the early 1980s when the complainant was 17, though the diocese later deemed that allegation not credible, and the complainant stated in 2019 that no sexual conduct occurred. After a review board meeting in January 2024, Gardiner’s ministry was restricted. He died on February 1, 2025.

Ronald Vincent Gronowski

• Accused

Included on the Diocese of Gaylord’s accused list, Ronald Vincent Gronowski faced allegations of sexual abuse of a minor tied to his period of active ministry. Diocesan records state that the allegation was reviewed and resulted in removal from ministry. The published account centers on church disciplinary measures and does not describe a criminal adjudication.

Lionel A. Harnish

• Accused

Lionel A. Harnish is publicly listed by the Diocese of Gaylord as accused of sexual abuse of a minor during parish assignments. After diocesan review, restrictions were imposed and he was removed from ministry. The disclosure reflects a historical allegation addressed through church processes rather than criminal proceedings.

Wilbert (Norbert) Hegener

• Accused

Wilbert, also known as Norbert, Hegener appears on the Diocese of Gaylord’s list of accused clergy. Allegations involved sexual abuse of a minor during his clerical service. Diocesan summaries indicate that the matter was reviewed and led to removal from ministry, with the public record framed through ecclesiastical action.

James A. Holtz

• Accused

James A. Holtz was publicly identified as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord following allegations of misconduct involving minors connected to parish ministry. He resigned in August 2002 after a diocesan investigation into reported conduct dating to the early 1980s and was permanently removed from ministry that year. Holtz had previously received treatment for alcohol abuse in the mid-1980s and had served as adjutant judicial vicar on the diocesan tribunal. 

Additional allegations surfaced over time, including reports in 1988, 2017, and 2019 describing misconduct involving minors and young adults in earlier decades. He was added to the diocese’s credibly accused list in November 2018, with an updated April 2021 listing noting laicization. His case is included in the Michigan Attorney General’s January 8, 2024 Gaylord report.

Francis Karl

• Accused

Francis Karl was publicly identified as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord on November 10, 2018, in connection with allegations of misconduct involving a minor during his parish ministry. The allegation described conduct involving a 13-year-old altar server in the late 1970s, with the encounter said to have occurred at a private location away from parish property. The individual reported informing a parent at the time, who chose not to pursue a report. 

According to the same account, the individual contacted the diocese approximately eight years later, at age 21, and was told no action could be taken. Diocesan review later resulted in Karl’s removal from ministry, with the case presented as a historical matter addressed through ecclesiastical disciplinary processes.

Benedict J. Marciulionis

• Accused

Benedict J. Marciulionis was publicly identified as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord on November 10, 2018, though diocesan records state he had already been removed from ministry in 1981. He died in 2000. The Michigan Attorney General’s January 8, 2024 Gaylord report documents that in August 2007, a woman reported Marciulionis sexually abused her in the early 1980s while she was in fifth through eighth grades. The reported abuse occurred in multiple settings, including his car, bedroom, the confessional, and the rectory, and allegedly involved her siblings as well. Police investigated at the time, and he was removed from the parish several weeks after the report surfaced.

Bryan W. Medlin

• Accused

Bryan W. Medlin was publicly identified as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord following allegations of sexual abuse of a minor during clerical service, which diocesan review determined warranted removal from ministry. 

In December 2021, the diocese acknowledged that Medlin, then pastor of the National Shrine of the Cross in the Woods in Indian River and assistant director of vocations, was under investigation by the Michigan Attorney General after allegations that he sent inappropriate text messages to high school students. He was immediately placed on leave pending civil and diocesan investigations. In March 2022, the Attorney General announced that evidence supported inappropriate communications with teenagers and young men but that no criminal charges would be filed due to the legal standard of proof. The diocese then initiated its own internal investigation.

Leo Olschausken

• Accused

Leo Olschausken was born in Lithuania and arrived in Chicago in 1958, initially serving at St. Michael’s Lithuanian Church. From 1961 to 1974, he worked as a hospital chaplain at Mercy Hospital in Cadillac within the Diocese of Grand Rapids. He was removed from the Diocese of Gaylord and returned to his religious order in 1974. 

Olschausken was later assigned to St. Mary of the Assumption in Coal City, Illinois, in the Diocese of Joliet, where he served from 1974 until his death on July 21, 1987. He was first publicly named as accused on the Diocese of Gaylord’s list released November 10, 2018, where his surname was misspelled as “Olschaysken.” He was included in the Michigan Attorney General’s January 8, 2024 Gaylord report.

Raymond John Pilarski

• Accused

Raymond John Pilarski was ordained for the Diocese of Saginaw and became a priest of the Diocese of Gaylord when it was established in 1971. He retired in 1998. In February 2007, the diocese announced that he had been permanently removed from ministry in 2006 following allegations involving abuse of a 13-year-old girl and a 22-year-old woman in the mid-1970s, a decision later affirmed by the Vatican. 

Pilarski died on October 19, 2017 in Alpena, Michigan. He was first publicly listed as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord on November 10, 2018 and later appeared on the Diocese of Saginaw’s list dated April 10, 2019. The Michigan Attorney General’s January 8, 2024 Gaylord report documents multiple allegations involving girls and adult women, with conduct described as beginning as early as the 1950s and continuing for decades.

Terrence Andrew Raymond

• Accused

Terrence Andrew Raymond was ordained for the Diocese of Saginaw and became a priest of the Diocese of Gaylord when it was created in 1971. He left the priesthood in 1985 and died in 1986. Raymond was first publicly named as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord on November 10, 2018 and later appeared on the Diocese of Saginaw’s list by August 9, 2019. 

The Michigan Attorney General’s January 8, 2024 Gaylord report describes multiple allegations, including sexual abuse of girls as young as six and sexual relationships with adult women, two of which resulted in children. Diocesan review led to his removal from ministry, with disclosure reflecting ecclesiastical action rather than criminal proceedings.

Laurus R. Rhode

• Accused

First named publicly as accused on the Diocese of Gaylord’s list 11/10/2018. Noted to have been removed from the diocese and returned to his Order in 1993. Died in 1995. Included in the MI Attorney General’s 1/8/2024 Gaylord report, which shows that Laurus was accused of inappropriate hugging and of kissing and fondling girls, as young as age 6. Included on the Franciscans’ Our Lady of Guadalupe list of credibly accused as of 1/2024. (Member of the Sacred Heart Province.) 

Robert Gordon Smith

• Accused

Robert Gordon Smith was ordained for the Diocese of Gaylord and later became a priest of the Diocese of Saginaw when it was created in 1971. He died on June 24, 1980. Smith was first publicly named as accused by the Diocese of Gaylord on November 10, 2018, and was later included on the Diocese of Saginaw’s list dated April 10, 2019, which noted prior removal from public ministry. 

Allegations include a 1957 accusation of molesting a 13-year-old boy and reports made in 2004 describing sexual abuse beginning in 1965 or 1966 when a boy was about 10, including anal sex and forced sexual acts with other boys. Another complainant reported abuse between 1970 and 1972 at age 14.

Richard R. Trapp

• Accused

Richard R. Trapp was ordained to the permanent diaconate in 1975 and later served in ministry within the Diocese of Gaylord. In 1990, he was accused of recently fondling and kissing a 7-year-old girl, leading to his suspension from ministry. 

After approximately two months, Bishop Patrick Cooney restored Trapp to his duties, citing guidance from a professional consultant who advised that there was no reason he could not return to ministry. Trapp later appeared on the Diocese of Gaylord’s list of accused clergy, reflecting a historical allegation addressed through ecclesiastical review and disciplinary processes. He died in 2013.

John Tupper

• Accused

John Tupper was ordained for the Diocese of Grand Rapids and transferred to the Diocese of Gaylord at its creation in 1971, where he served until retirement. He undertook missionary work in Brazil from 1980 to 1989 with the Franciscan Friars. Faculties were removed in August 2002 after an allegation of inappropriate conduct with a minor dating to around 30 years earlier, followed by a second allegation during the investigation. 

Additional claims included misconduct toward a hospital patient in 1994 that resulted in a $20,000 settlement, and an allegation of attempted rape of a 15- or 16-year-old girl around 1969. A male complainant later acknowledged abuse. Tupper denied all allegations. He died on July 27, 2004, was added to the Diocese of Gaylord’s credibly accused list in April 2021, and was included in the Michigan Attorney General’s January 8, 2024 Gaylord report.

Diocese of Grand Rapids

Eugene F. Alvesteffer

• Accused

Eugene F. Alvesteffer died on January 18, 1998. The Diocese of Grand Rapids disclosed in May 2002 that a substantiated allegation involved sexual abuse of a minor during his assignment in Ludington in the 1970s. Reports included a 1984 allegation from a woman regarding abuse of her son, a December 1992 allegation tied to St. Simon’s Parish in August 1970, and a 2012 report of abuse from 1970 to 1978 at St. Bernadette’s. He was included in the Michigan Attorney General’s December 15, 2025 report.

Charles Antekeier

• Accused

Charles Antekeier retired in 2000, was suspended in 2003, permanently restricted in 2006, and permanently removed from ministry in August 2015 with an order of prayer and penance. Allegations span from 1966 through the early 2000s and include abuse of altar boys at St. James and St. Francis Xavier, misconduct during confession, and exploitation of vulnerable adults. No prosecution occurred due to statutes of limitation. His case is detailed in the Michigan Attorney General’s December 15, 2025 Diocese of Grand Rapids report.

Daniel C. Aerts

• Accused

In April 2002, Daniel C. Aerts admitted to sexual misconduct with a boy ages 14–16 during the late 1970s while assigned to St. Thomas and Holy Spirit parishes in Grand Rapids. Additional allegations involved abuse of a 14-year-old at the Holy Spirit rectory in 1977. Aerts resigned and was permanently removed from ministry in 2002. No criminal prosecution occurred due to the statute of limitations. His case appears in the Michigan Attorney General’s December 15, 2025 Grand Rapids report.

Louis Baudone

• Accused

Louis Baudone faced multiple allegations of sexual abuse of minors in Muskegon, Muskegon Heights, Lake Odessa, and Odessa, with conduct alleged from the early 1970s through 1981. He was removed from parish ministry in 1993, with privileges revoked in July 2002, and later ordered to a life of prayer and penance. Baudone relocated to Maine around 2004 and died on May 18, 2024, in West Paris, Maine. His case is detailed in the Michigan Attorney General’s December 15, 2025 report.

Shamaun Beas

• Convicted

Shamaun Beas, an extern priest from the Diocese of Faisalabad, Pakistan, was accepted into Grand Rapids in 2000 after prior misconduct disclosures. Complaints arose in 2002, followed by evaluation and counseling. He was arrested in an internet sting on May 24, 2004, convicted in March 2005, and received multiple prison sentences for sexual abuse of minors. Beas was deported to Pakistan in July 2010. His case is included in the Michigan Attorney General’s December 15, 2025 report.

Stanislaus Bur

• Accused

Stanislaus Bur, ordained for Grand Rapids and later incardinated into Saginaw, was accused in 1992 of abusing an altar boy in 1958. The diocese deemed the allegation credible, suspended him, and funded victim therapy. He was permanently removed from ministry in November 2005 and ordered to prayer and penance. Additional allegations from the 1950s and 1960s emerged between 2006 and 2008. Bur died on February 1, 2009, and is included in the Michigan Attorney General’s December 15, 2025 report.

Vincent W. Bryce

• Accused

Removal from assignment followed an April 2002 complaint made to the Dominican Order’s Chicago office alleging abuse of a boy around 1977. The matter was relayed to the Diocese of Grand Rapids, and Vincent W. Bryce was taken out of his assignment and returned to the Order. He admitted the abuse, described as occurring in another state. Public summaries frame the outcome as removal from public ministry in 2002.

Lawrence N. Hartwig

• Accused

A substantiated case disclosed in May 2002 tied Lawrence N. Hartwig to abuse in Muskegon in 1982. Court reporting from the same period describes a 1982 no contest plea to sexual assault of a 16-year-old boy and an order to pay $100 in court costs. Directory-based summaries later placed him “on duty outside the diocese” starting in 1987, with hospital chaplain roles in Hartford, Connecticut.

Donald J. Heydens

• Settled

Allegations involving Donald J. Heydens were described as abuse of four teenage girls while assigned to St. Francis Xavier Parish in the early 1970s, with out-of-court settlements in 1989 and 1994. A fifth allegation surfaced in 1993, and a civil lawsuit filed in June 1993 alleged abuse as a teenager in the late 1960s. Diocesan summaries treated the matters as substantiated within internal review processes.

Richard J. Host

• Sued

A civil lawsuit reported in November 1988 alleged Richard J. Host and a plaintiff’s former husband molested two boys, ages 4 and 6, over a two-year period. The same filing included broader claims against national Catholic conference entities. Contemporary reporting described him as remaining in ministry at the time the suit was filed. The public record for this entry is centered on the civil action and the timeframe of alleged abuse.

Joseph W. Kenshol

• Sued

A claim described in appellate litigation dated June 18, 1999 traced to an incident in spring or summer 1993 involving a 17-year-old during a haircut and full-body massage, with allegations of inappropriate touching. The matter was reported in September 1993, after which the bishop moved Joseph W. Kenshol to another parish and required psychiatric treatment. Case materials referenced brief subsequent encounters through January 1994.

David E. LeBlanc

• Accused

Ordained on June 3, 1961 at St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Grand Rapids, David E. LeBlanc was later the subject of a diocesan review-board matter dated June 16, 2006 tied to a reported incident discussed in an August 18, 1993 interview. The account referenced alleged misconduct during a long weekend at a rectory when the complainant was in fifth grade. His priestly faculties were removed on January 5, 2007. He died on August 20, 2019.

William A. Langlois

• Accused

A written allegation dated July 2, 2014 linked William A. Langlois to conduct during 2008–2013 connected to St. Patrick Parish and St. Anthony’s Catholic Community in Grand Haven. Ordained on February 24, 1974 at St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Grand Rapids, he retired to senior priest status on April 12, 2016. Faculties were withdrawn on March 29, 2018. He was dismissed from the clerical state on or about May 7, 2021.

Michael McKenna

• Accused

Ordained on March 17, 1973 at St. Francis de Sales in Holland, Michael McKenna faced documented diocesan interventions dated October 19 and October 28, 1993 tied to concerns raised during his pastorate in Greenville. A later report dated February 18, 2004 described allegations tied to 1975–1978 in Muskegon and Grand Rapids. He requested indefinite medical leave on June 10, 2003, granted July 15, 2003. He was removed from ministry on October 24, 2006, and died on October 26, 2023.

Dennis A. Wagner

• Charged

While pastor of St. Michael’s Parish in Coopersville, Dennis A. Wagner was charged in September 1983 with felony gross indecency involving a 13-year-old boy, with alleged conduct described in Egelston Township and during travel to a cabin in Newaygo County, including events at the cabin and on the Muskegon River. He resigned effective November 30, 1983 and later entered a no contest plea to a reduced misdemeanor assault and battery, receiving two years’ probation. He was removed from ministry on May 1, 2002 and laicized on April 5, 2004.

Diocese of Kalamazoo

Richard A. Fritz

• Accused

Faculties were withdrawn on February 21, 2020 after the diocese received a credible allegation of sexual abuse dated to the late 1970s through early 1980s. Richard A. Fritz was incardinated on November 24, 1981 and later granted senior priest status effective January 1, 2017. Diocesan status listings place him in Lakeport, Michigan and forbid him from functioning as a priest.

Jerome M. Heyman

• Accused

Jerome M. Heyman served in the Diocese of Kalamazoo from 1991 to 2006 and was no longer permitted to function in the diocese in 2011. Diocesan disclosures note the allegations associated with his name do not involve minors. He died on February 19, 2023. The public record centers on ministry dates in Kalamazoo and the later restriction from priestly functions.

Thomas G. Lapine

• Accused

Thomas G. Lapine was a non-diocesan priest who ministered in the Diocese of Kalamazoo from 1969 to 1981. His name appears in diocesan disclosures as accused, reflecting an allegation tied to his period of ministry in the diocese. He died in 1994. The public profile is anchored to his non-diocesan status, the 1969–1981 service window, and posthumous inclusion on the diocesan accused list.

David C. Otto

• Accused

Ordained on June 17, 1977, David C. Otto served in the Diocese of Kalamazoo from 1977 until his death on August 27, 2019. He was pastor of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Niles from 2006 to 2014 and retired in 2014. Public case records describe allegations involving multiple girls in the 1980s and later investigative interviews documented in diocesan files.

Gary William Pamment

• Unsubstantiated

Gary William Pamment served in the Diocese of Kalamazoo from 1963 until his death in 2008. Diocesan disclosures describe an allegation reviewed by the diocesan board, which concluded it could not determine credibility and that more information was needed. File materials include emails dated July 1997 through May 1999 and a bishop letter dated May 27, 1999 documenting a meeting with parents who raised concerns about his behavior toward their son.

Brian L. Stanley

• Convicted

Brian L. Stanley was ordained on June 29, 1996 at St. Augustine Cathedral in Kalamazoo and removed from public ministry on January 13, 2017. He pleaded guilty on November 20, 2019 to Attempted Unlawful Imprisonment and was sentenced in January 2020 to 60 days in the Allegan County Jail and five years of probation. Diocesan status listings place him in Coloma, Michigan and forbid him from functioning as a priest.

Jacob Vellian

• Accused

Jacob Vellian was listed as forbidden to function as a priest in the Diocese of Kalamazoo and died on December 22, 2022. Public case records summarize an allegation tied to 1972–1973, later identifying a time window from fall 1973 to fall 1974 in the investigative chronology. The published profile centers on the dated allegation window, diocesan restriction, and his inclusion in statewide investigative reporting tied to Kalamazoo.

Leroy E. White

• Accused

Leroy E. White served in the Diocese of Kalamazoo beginning in 1956 and was removed from ministry in 2002. Diocesan records include a memorandum dated July 5, 1991 referencing concerns about inappropriate physical contact with females, with later summaries incorporating multiple complainant accounts. He died on October 7, 2024. Public disclosures connect the long ministry timeline to documented internal awareness dates and the 2002 removal.

Diocese of Lansing

Joseph Emile Aubin

• Accused

Ordained on June 6, 1952, Joseph Emile Aubin later served within the Diocese of Lansing before retirement. A credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor was recorded as occurring in the 1960s, with public designation made on November 15, 2018. He died on April 15, 2020. The matter appears in diocesan disclosure as a historical allegation without a recorded criminal court disposition.

Alphonse Boardway

• Settled

Alphonse Boardway was the subject of a credible allegation involving a minor connected to ministry at Holy Cross Parish in Lansing. Ordained on May 27, 1967, his case was resolved through settlement rather than criminal proceedings. He died on September 23, 1997. The public record reflects ecclesiastical disclosure tied to past service.

Francis Gerald Boyer

• Accused

Francis Gerald Boyer is publicly listed by the Diocese of Lansing with a credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor associated with his ministry. The disclosure treats the matter as historical and handled through diocesan review processes. No criminal charges or court outcomes are reflected in the summarized public record.

Kenneth F. Coughlin

• Accused

Kenneth F. Coughlin appears on the Diocese of Lansing’s roster of credibly accused clergy. The allegation involves sexual abuse of a minor linked to ministry assignments and was addressed through internal diocesan procedures. Public documentation presents the case as historical, without reference to criminal adjudication.

Timothy M. Crowley

• Convicted

Criminal proceedings in Washtenaw County concluded with Timothy M. Crowley pleading guilty in August 2023 to two counts of Second Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct. Sentencing on November 8, 2023 imposed one year in the Washtenaw County Jail and five years of probation. The charged conduct was tied to abuse of a youth between 1986 and 1990 across multiple Michigan parish settings.

Vincent Anthony DeLorenzo

• Convicted

Vincent Anthony DeLorenzo pleaded guilty in April 2023 to attempted first-degree criminal sexual conduct in Genesee County. Sentencing on June 13, 2023 imposed 365 days in jail and five years of probation, with registration and counseling ordered. The offense conduct was tied to 1987 and involved a child age five. He died while incarcerated after sentencing.

Patrick W. Egan

• Accused

Ordained on October 2, 1966 for the Diocese of Westminster in England, Patrick W. Egan arrived in the Diocese of Lansing in 1982 without incardination. A review-board process in October 2003 declined action after determining the complainant was an adult, and he was restored to ministry. Later restrictions were communicated in September 2014. He was removed from ministry in 2018 and died on August 26, 2023.

Alexander Thomas Fitzgerald

• Accused

Alexander Thomas Fitzgerald is listed among credibly accused clergy associated with the Diocese of Lansing. A memorandum dated May 12, 1989 recorded an allegation of abuse said to have occurred 25 to 30 years earlier. Subsequent pastoral meetings in 1991 addressed counseling support. The allegation remains treated as credible within diocesan disclosure, with no criminal court outcome reflected.

Paul James Guoan

• Accused

Paul James Guoan appears on the Diocese of Lansing’s credibly accused roster for an allegation involving sexual abuse of a minor tied to ministry assignments. The public entry reflects internal review and administrative action rather than criminal prosecution, preserving the matter as a historical allegation within diocesan reporting.

Jeffrey Gregory

• Accused

Jeffrey Gregory entered the De La Salle Christian Brothers and made perpetual vows on July 16, 1965. He served at Msgr. Gabriels High School in Lansing from 1965 through 1969. A complaint received on December 12, 1994 alleged sexual abuse during the 1964–1966 school years, followed by attorney correspondence in May 1995 and renewed reporting in June 2002. A diocesan press release dated June 21, 2002 noted his placement in a California nursing home.

Michael Robert Kelly

• Accused

Born June 20, 1946, Michael Robert Kelly was ordained on September 4, 1976 and left active ministry on December 1, 1983. He was laicized on February 9, 1992 and died on November 2, 2022. A complaint recorded on August 18, 1994 alleged sexual abuse connected to his assignment at St. Michael Parish in Flint, with the complainant identified as age 14 or 15 at the time.

James William Lee, Jr.

• Accused

Born August 18, 1918 in Detroit, James William Lee, Jr. was ordained on May 8, 1948 in Flint and later entered senior priest status. He died on January 25, 1992. An attorney letter dated April 11, 1994 alleged sexual abuse of a 13-year-old connected to his ministry. The case appears in diocesan disclosure as a posthumous allegation addressed through church documentation rather than criminal proceedings.

Marian John Lesniak

• Accused

Allegations were raised that Marian John Lesniak sexually abused a student connected to St. Joseph School from 1967 to 1973, beginning at age 12 and continuing through age 18. In August 2002, diocesan officials met with the complainant, and Lesniak’s retirement to senior priest status was set for October 2, 2002. The diocese later added him to its credibly accused list in 2019, after his death.

Shaun D. Lowery

• Accused

In March 2021, Shaun D. Lowery, then pastor of St. Mary Magdalen in Brighton Township, was placed on ministerial leave during an investigation connected to the Michigan Attorney General. In May 2021, the Attorney General’s office declined to file criminal charges. In October 2022, the Diocese of Lansing announced its internal process found the allegations credible, and he remained removed from ministry in connection with that finding.

Richard C. Lobert

• Accused

Born January 13, 1948, Richard C. Lobert was ordained May 10, 1975 in Baltimore, Maryland, and served in the Diocese of Lansing from 1995 until resigning April 16, 2021 as chaplain at Father Gabriel Richard High School in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He was placed on leave in December 2020 during an Attorney General investigation, and the Archdiocese of Baltimore removed his faculties on January 5, 2021. An allegation described inappropriate conduct in Cumberland, Maryland, in the early 1980s.

John Edward Martin

• Accused

Born April 10, 1928, John Edward Martin was ordained June 4, 1955 and died April 6, 2013. In June 2010, an adult reported being sexually abused by Martin as a minor during the mid-1960s, connected to parish ministry in the Diocese of Lansing. After the report, the diocese issued a public statement in June 2010 and identified Martin in its accounting of clergy with a credible allegation, reflecting action taken after his death.

Joseph McHugh

• Accused

Joseph McHugh, who died in 2007, was identified in a complaint after a survivor recognized him from a photograph during communications with diocesan officials in 2011. The allegation involved sexual abuse connected to ministry, with discussion noting McHugh served in New Guinea from 1971 to 1974. The matter continued through exchanges into 2012 with McHugh’s religious community, including requests for further investigation and discussion of apology and financial assistance.

James M. Novak

• Accused

Born January 22, 1938, James M. Novak was ordained June 12, 1965 and died October 20, 2019. A report described sexual abuse connected to hypnosis sessions while Novak worked with students at Lumen Christi High School in Jackson, Michigan, beginning in 1977, with further allegations spanning later years. The Diocese of Lansing removed him from ministry in 2002, and he was later included among clergy with a credible allegation tied to ministry in the diocese.

John Donald Slowey

• Accused

Born October 24, 1931, John Donald Slowey was ordained June 11, 1960 and died May 13, 1998. A complainant’s allegation was addressed through a diocesan review process in January 2010, followed by a bishop’s decree dated January 30, 2010 stating the allegation had not been substantiated. On August 31, 2010, the complainant publicly stated the diocese settled the claim for $225,000, with correspondence between legal counsel documented in the file.

James S. Sullivan

• Accused

Born March 17, 1926, James S. Sullivan was ordained May 31, 1952, served as bishop of Lansing from 1982 to 2004, and died October 27, 2013. A complainant described repeated sexual boundary violations during altar service years, with conduct occurring many times over an extended period. The allegation was handled after Sullivan’s tenure as bishop and was recorded in the diocese’s investigative and reporting materials as a claim tied to his time in ministry.

Edgar Szymanski

• Accused

Edgar Szymanski, a Holy Cross priest ordained in 1943, died on December 8, 1998 and was later named publicly as accused by his order on June 12, 2019. The order’s disclosure referenced multiple allegations received in 1999 and 2018 describing abuse in the 1940s and 1950s in Michigan. His assignments included chaplain service at Boysville in Clinton, Michigan from 1951 to 1959, reflecting a long span of institutional ministry.

Chester Vincent Tomaszewski

• Accused

Born July 6, 1927, Chester Vincent Tomaszewski was ordained June 6, 1954 and died May 9, 2009. A survivor described sexual abuse while a student in Bronson, Michigan, involving being taken out of class and subjected to sexual contact tied to Tomaszewski’s priestly authority. The account placed the conduct during years when Bronson was within the Diocese of Lansing, before the Diocese of Kalamazoo was formed in 1971.

Darius Walter Wyszynski

• Accused

Ordained in 1967 and incardinated into the Diocese of Lansing in 1970, Darius Walter Wyszynski later left active ministry. Allegations reported in 2002 and 2007 described sexual abuse of minors and misconduct during a 1978 trip to Mexico. He denied the claims, and a diocesan review board initially recommended exoneration, though his ministry was restricted and the matter sent to the Vatican. Wyszynski died in 2013 and was first publicly listed as credibly accused in 2019.

Diocese of Marquette

Casimir Adasiewicz

• Accused

Decades after his death in 1981, a report received by the diocese in 2008 described alleged sexual abuse occurring around 1965. The account stated the abuse followed a child being sent from school to the rectory at Sacred Heart Church in L’Anse, Baraga County. Diocesan correspondence dated October 10 and October 24, 2008 documents internal review of the historical allegation and its handling through church procedures.

Thomas Anderson

• Accused

Reported in April 2002, an allegation described sexual abuse occurring between 1963 and 1967 while the complainant attended St. Agnes School in Iron River during grades one through five. Anderson, who died in 1981, had served at St. Agnes beginning June 27, 1961, and was transferred on June 11, 1968. The matter appears in diocesan review materials and is preserved as a historical allegation without criminal court disposition.

Emil J. Beyer

• Accused

An allegation submitted to the diocese on October 29, 1997 described sexual abuse connected to Holy Family Orphanage in Marquette beginning in 1944 and continuing through the mid-1950s. Beyer was contacted by diocesan officials on October 30, 1997, at which time he was noted to be 85 years old. He died in 2003, and the allegation was later addressed through church documentation and public disclosure.

Joseph D. Carne

• Accused

Removed from priestly ministry in April 2002, Joseph D. Carne was later publicly identified through diocesan status reporting. Allegations described sexual abuse occurring from 1976 to 1978 while he served as associate pastor at St. Anne’s Parish in Escanaba, with additional references to a cottage in Dollar Bay. Carne died on May 13, 2019, and the record centers on administrative action and subsequent disclosure.

Leonard Cornelius

• Accused

Leonard Cornelius, a Franciscan priest, was identified in diocesan review summaries in connection with alleged misconduct from the 1980s while serving as chaplain at the Carmelite Monastery in Iron Mountain. The Franciscans removed him from ministry, arranged treatment, and reassigned him outside the Diocese of Marquette. Later records noted him in active ministry in the Archeparchy of Pittsburgh, with continued status monitoring after the allegation.

Richard T. Craig

• Accused

Richard T. Craig was removed from priestly ministry in September 1993 and placed on leave from all priestly functions. Diocesan records link the matter to concerns raised in 1991 involving a minor, followed by interviews, referral to civil authorities, and psychological assessment. Prosecutors closed the investigation without charges. The public record centers on the 1993 administrative removal and subsequent disclosure through diocesan and statewide reporting.

Thomas P. Dunleavy

• Accused

Thomas P. Dunleavy died on January 30, 2002. Allegations reported in 2002 described sexual abuse occurring in the 1960s connected to St. Joseph’s Elementary School in Sault Ste. Marie and St. Williams Parish in Menominee. Diocesan records also document a transfer to St. Williams effective October 5, 1954. The case is preserved through posthumous reporting and internal church documentation.

Gino S. Ferraro

• Accused

Gino S. Ferraro died in 1976. A report received by the diocese on April 15, 2008 described childhood sexual abuse attributed to Ferraro, communicated through a third party. Diocesan correspondence from May 2008 documents follow-up and internal handling of the historical allegation. The disclosure situates the conduct during his years of ministry and reflects church review rather than criminal court proceedings.

Wilbur M. Gibbs

• Accused

During his assignment to Holy Family Home in Marquette from June 1958 to January 1964, concerns later emerged involving alleged misconduct toward minors. A report reviewed by the diocese described conduct requiring minors to expose themselves under a stated pretense. Gibbs requested a leave of absence in January 1964. The allegation surfaced decades later through diocesan review materials and was handled administratively rather than through criminal court proceedings.

Basil Goerner

• Accused

Ordained in 1993 at age 61, Basil Goerner was the subject of a report made to the diocese on March 1, 1994. The allegation described sexual abuse occurring in the early 1970s when the complainant was 18, predating Goerner’s ordination. He was removed from public ministry in 2002. Goerner died on January 12, 2008, and the matter remains documented through diocesan disclosure.

Michael F. Hale

• Accused

A diocesan letter dated August 26, 1955 referenced a complaint filed with police involving Michael F. Hale and described a recurrence of an earlier concern. The correspondence noted an allegation tied to an encounter with a hitchhiker and referenced prior awareness within church leadership. Hale died in 1975, and the record reflects internal church handling of the allegation without documented criminal adjudication.

Gerald F. Harrington

• Accused

Gerald F. Harrington died in 1962. Decades later, diocesan counsel informed state investigators on March 25, 2019 that a reported victim associated with Harrington was more than 80 years old at the time of disclosure. The allegation was addressed through retrospective documentation and inclusion in statewide investigative reporting, with no criminal court proceedings reflected in the public record.

Donald Hartman

• Accused

Removed from public ministry in 1992, Donald Hartman was directed by letter dated January 3, 1992 to enter assessment at the Saint Luke Institute in Suitland, Maryland. The action followed a recent allegation reviewed by diocesan leadership. Hartman remained barred from public ministry thereafter. He died on November 15, 1999, with the case preserved through administrative records rather than criminal prosecution.

Aloysius J. Hasenberg

• Accused

Concerns raised in 1997 while Aloysius J. Hasenberg served as pastor at St. Agnes Parish in Iron River led to later administrative action. He was removed from public ministry in 2008 and permanently removed on January 25, 2010. Hasenberg admitted to having men in the rectory while disputing reported characterizations. He died on January 24, 2016, with the matter documented through diocesan review.

Terrence M. Healy

• Convicted

Ordained on June 1, 1968, Terrence M. Healy served multiple parish assignments in the Diocese of Marquette before being removed from public ministry in 1987. Criminal proceedings in Livingston County resulted in conviction on multiple counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a 15-year-old. He served approximately four and a half years in prison. Healy died in January 2019.

Raymond J. Hoefgen

• Accused

A diocesan precept dated July 2, 2002 removed Raymond J. Hoefgen from all priestly ministry following review of an allegation tied to conduct reported as occurring roughly 25 years earlier in the Sault Ste. Marie or St. Ignace area. Subsequent violations of the precept were documented, prompting warning correspondence in January 2003. Hoefgen died on January 17, 2012.

Gary Allen Jacobs

• Convicted

Criminal proceedings followed decades after ministry removal, beginning with arrest in New Mexico on January 17, 2020 for multiple counts of child sexual abuse in Michigan dating from 1981 through 1984. Ordained in 1971, Gary Allen Jacobs had been removed from ministry in December 1988 and laicized in 2010. After extradition, he pleaded guilty in April and May 2021 to charges across Ontonagon and Dickinson counties and received concurrent sentences of eight to fifteen years in prison, with sex offender registration ordered.

John G. Hughes

• Accused

Born earlier in the twentieth century, John G. Hughes died in 1979. A letter dated February 12, 1965 from an 18-year-old complainant described sexual abuse tied to ministry in Kingsford, Michigan, during the late 1950s and 1960s. The allegation was later reviewed through diocesan processes, with documentation preserved in review board materials dated June 17, 2007.

Roy Joseph

• Indicted

Listed as living in India, Roy Joseph was criminally charged in January 2020 with first-degree criminal sexual conduct connected to an alleged incident in February 2006 in Marquette County. State authorities initiated extradition proceedings, and the case remains documented as involving pending criminal process rather than solely ecclesiastical review.

Norbert Paul LaCosse

• Accused
  

Removed from public ministry on July 24, 1990, Norbert Paul LaCosse was linked to allegations raised through attorney contact on July 23, 1990. The communication referenced efforts to obtain recorded evidence of an admission. LaCosse died in July 2014, and the allegation is reflected in diocesan and investigative records without a criminal court outcome.

Clement J. LePine

• Accused

A report dated February 2, 2005 alleged sexual abuse by Clement J. LePine beginning as early as 1969 and connected to parish proximity and family access. LePine had died on November 19, 2000, and the matter was addressed posthumously through diocesan documentation and later disclosure, with no criminal proceedings recorded.

Frank M. Lenz

• Accused

Administrative action followed an allegation reviewed on March 30, 2018 involving conduct reported from the 1970s, with location references including Willow Farms in Chocolay Township. Frank M. Lenz was placed on leave in April 2018 and later permitted limited ministry under restrictions after canonical review concluded in October 2020. He remains alive and listed as a retired priest with ongoing limitations rather than criminal proceedings.

James L. Menapace

• Accused

Following retirement in 1996, James L. Menapace was placed under ministry restrictions in 2000 and permanently removed on July 12, 2002. Subsequent disclosures described reports from multiple individuals alleging abuse as boys in the late 1990s. Menapace died on February 3, 2022, and the matter remains documented through diocesan action rather than court proceedings.

Mark McQuesten

• Accused

Public identification occurred with the release of the Michigan Attorney General’s October 2022 report, which named Mark McQuesten in connection with an allegation first brought to the diocese in January 2018. The allegation described an incident during a 1986 trip to Florida, when McQuesten, then a seminarian, was accused of inappropriate touching of a teenager. Ordained in 1987, McQuesten denied the claim, and the Diocesan Review Board later determined the allegation lacked credibility. By 2022, he had retired from priesthood while remaining involved in ministry activities.

Robert J. Monroe

• Accused

Public disclosure followed inclusion in the Michigan Attorney General’s October 2022 report. In June 2002, a man reported sexual abuse by Robert J. Monroe occurring when he was ages five to seven in the mid-1960s at St. Mary’s Parish in Sault Ste. Marie, involving other boys. Additional reports in 2005 and 2018 described abuse of young children at St. Mary’s and Nativity Parish between 1968 and 1969. Diocesan review validated the allegations. Monroe was ordained in 1938 and died on September 16, 1980.

Aaron Nowicki

• Arrested

Removed from priestly ministry on January 25, 2019 following an allegation involving an improper relationship with a vulnerable adult, Aaron Nowicki was later arrested on August 16, 2021 in Chippewa County. Charges included accosting children for immoral purposes, use of computers to commit a crime, and child sexually abusive activity. Related civil proceedings were referenced in diocesan statements issued in 2023.

Vincent L. Ouellette

• Accused

Removal from ministry occurred on February 3, 2005 after an allegation involving a 13-year-old boy during a November 1993 trip to Minnesota. Vincent L. Ouellette’s case reflects administrative action taken after diocesan review, with no criminal court outcome noted.

Wilfred Pelletier

• Accused

Ordained in 1938, Wilfred Pelletier was later identified in the Michigan Attorney General’s October 2022 report following a disclosure made to the diocese in 2005. The report described sexual abuse of teenage boys in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Alpha, involving alcohol, money, and recreational outings. His personnel file documented moral concerns dating to 1950, multiple leaves, treatment in New Mexico, and a 1962 arrest warrant. Pelletier died on December 20, 1973.

Anthony J. Polakowski

• Accused

Anthony J. Polakowski, who died on October 17, 2002, was identified posthumously in connection with an allegation of abuse involving a boy in 1967. The disclosure was reviewed internally and documented without reference to criminal proceedings.

Armour R. Roberts

• Accused

Ordained in 1955 for the Diocese of Marquette, Armour R. Roberts was later publicly identified as accused, including on the Bismarck diocese list dated January 2, 2020, and in the Michigan Attorney General’s October 2022 Marquette report. He died on December 8, 1989. Allegations describe abuse of teenage boys in the late 1950s through early 1970s across Norway and New Leipzig, with documented parish transfers, police concerns in 1965, treatment, and subsequent acceptance for ministry in Bismarck.

David H. Rocheleau

• Accused

Public identification occurred with the release of the Michigan Attorney General’s October 2022 report, which named David H. Rocheleau in connection with allegations of sexual abuse. In 2002, a 53-year-old man reported to the diocese that Rocheleau made sexual advances toward him during childhood, between the ages of 10 and 13. The alleged conduct dates to the 1950s. Rocheleau died in 1984, and the matter was addressed through diocesan review rather than criminal proceedings.

Nelson Daniel Rupp

• Accused

Ordained in 1966 as an Augustinian and incardinated into the Diocese of Marquette in 1980, Nelson Daniel Rupp later drew concerns regarding interactions with teenagers. Records note issues beginning in the early 1980s, including rectory sleepovers, provision of alcohol, and allegations involving boys at camps in Alger and Marquette counties during the mid-1980s. In 1996 he resigned from parish ministry, was sent for assessment, and did not return to active ministry.

Walter J. Sheedlo

• Accused

Ordained in 1971, Walter J. Sheedlo was the subject of reports beginning in the late 1990s describing sexual advances during counseling and earlier conduct involving a minor starting in 1979. Additional allegations referenced inappropriate advances toward an adult seminarian tied to events in the 1970s. He was directed to take leave, later removed from public ministry in 2009, and remained restricted as reflected in diocesan disclosures.

Ephraem Sitko

• Accused

Ordained in 1946, Ephraem Sitko served in northern Michigan before his death on December 8, 1982. A later disclosure described sexual abuse of a child at St. Ignatius Loyola School in St. Ignace in 1963, when the complainant was eight years old. The allegation was reported decades later and documented through diocesan review and statewide investigative reporting as a historical matter.

B. Neil Smith

• Accused

Ordained in 1948, B. Neil Smith was reported in 2004 for abuse alleged to have occurred in 1951–1952 when the complainant was a teenager. Correspondence records Smith acknowledged the conduct. A later allegation referenced an incident during the mid-1950s in Munising. Smith died in 2007, and church authorities documented the matter through internal processes without criminal adjudication.

Charles J. Strelick

• Accused

Ordained in 1956, Charles J. Strelick served as pastor at St. John the Evangelist Church in Ishpeming before retiring in 1995. A report later described abuse occurring when the complainant was eight years old, tied to his period of parish leadership. Strelick died on April 7, 2017, and the allegation was addressed post-retirement through diocesan documentation and public disclosure.

Guy S. Thoren

• Accused

Ordained in 1971, Guy S. Thoren served multiple parish assignments, including Norway, Mackinac Island, and Bessemer. A report received in June 2002 described abuse occurring between 1977 and 1979 during the complainant’s middle school years. He was placed on leave and sent for assessment. Thoren died on December 17, 2011, with the case preserved through diocesan and investigative records.

Bernard Van der Schueren

• Accused

A Jesuit ordained in 1954, Bernard Van der Schueren later served as a substitute priest in Marquette. A diocesan announcement in 2013 acknowledged receipt of a credible allegation describing abuse during the summer of 1987–1988 involving a boy aged ten or eleven. Van der Schueren died on July 25, 2009, and the allegation was documented through church disclosure rather than court proceedings.

Diocese of Saginaw

Robert DeLand, Jr.

• Convicted

Criminal proceedings concluded in 2019 when Robert DeLand, Jr. entered a no contest plea to criminal sexual conduct charges involving abuse during his ministry years. The offenses involved victims who were teenagers and young adults, with conduct occurring decades earlier. He was sentenced to a prison term of two to fifteen years, later paroled in 2021, laicized in 2022, and required to register as a sex offender.

Ronald J. Dombrowski

• Accused

Ordained in the early 1970s, Ronald J. Dombrowski served multiple parish assignments within the Diocese of Saginaw. Allegations of sexual abuse of a minor were later reviewed through diocesan processes, resulting in removal from active ministry. His faculties were permanently restricted, and he was directed to refrain from public priestly functions under church discipline.

Martin Ignatius Kalahar

• Accused

Public identification occurred posthumously when the Diocese of Saginaw added Martin Ignatius Kalahar to its list of accused clergy on April 10, 2019. Ordained for the Diocese of Grand Rapids in 1916, he served in multiple Michigan parishes and institutional chaplaincies from 1916 through his retirement on February 1, 1966. He died on April 13, 1966. The allegation was reviewed decades after his death and addressed through diocesan disclosure rather than criminal proceedings.

Richard L. Howard

• Accused

Ordained to the permanent diaconate on September 10, 1977, Richard L. Howard served as a teacher at All Saints High School in Bay City and was assigned to St. Stanislaus Parish. His faculties were suspended on April 18, 1988, following allegations involving sexual abuse of minors. He was laicized on February 17, 2006. The Diocese of Saginaw publicly released his name in April 2018 as a cleric permanently removed from ministry due to credible allegations.

Dennis Kucharczyk

• Accused

Action by the Diocese of Saginaw followed allegations reported to church officials in March 2018 involving conduct with a minor said to have occurred years earlier at a Midland parish in the 1980s. Kucharczyk was suspended in May 2019 for misconduct with a minor after diocesan review. The accuser described repeated boundary-crossing behavior beginning in early grade school and continuing for years. After a canonical process, the diocese cited boundary violations but concluded evidence was insufficient to proceed further, removing his name from the public list in March 2021.

Jack J. Leipert

• Accused

Ordained in 1975, Jack J. Leipert served in numerous parish assignments across Bay City, Saginaw, Chesaning, Rosebush, Marlette, and Bad Axe from 1975 through 2001, holding pastor roles in several locations. A leave of absence began in August 1987, followed by a return to ministry in 1989. He was suspended from ministry in June 2001 and laicized on February 17, 2006.

James Andrew Marron

• Accused

A priest of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, James Andrew Marron served as chaplain at Mercy Hospital in Bay City from 1968 to 1970 and later resided at St. Joseph Parish in Bay City from 1980 to 1986. Ordained in 1927, he spent decades in missionary work in Tanzania. He retired in 1986 and died on November 17, 1987.

Francis McHugh

• Accused

Born in 1912, Francis McHugh was a Norbertine priest assigned as assistant at St. John Parish in Essexville from 1954 to 1962. After solemn vows in 1938, his ministry included pastoral leadership in Montana and Illinois before returning to Essexville as pastor in 1971. He died on September 5, 1998, and was publicly identified posthumously in 2019.

James Aloysius Mulvey

• Accused

Ordained in 1905 for the Diocese of Grand Rapids, James Aloysius Mulvey held assistant and pastor assignments throughout Michigan, including extended service in Alma, Alpena, Mt. Pleasant, and Bay City. He served as a military chaplain during World War I from 1917 to 1919 before resuming parish leadership. He died on November 7, 1959, while serving as pastor in Bay City.

Neil Francis O’Connor

• Accused

Ordained in 1936, Neil Francis O’Connor served exclusively in parish ministry within the Saginaw area, progressing from assistant roles to pastor of St. Elizabeth Parish in Reese from 1944 to 1953. He later served as pastor of St. Andrew Parish in Saginaw until retiring on September 16, 1966. Born in 1908, he died on March 8, 1989.

John Steven Rabideau

• Convicted

Criminal conduct between 1985 and 1987 involving three boys ages seven to fourteen led to charges filed in 1998. He fled the United States before arrest, was located in Colombia in early February 2006, and extradited to Michigan. On October 25, 2006, John Steven Rabideau was sentenced in Bay County Circuit Court to five to ten years in prison after entering a no contest plea to three assault counts.

Thomas William Ryan

• Accused

Born August 18, 1909, and ordained April 21, 1935, Thomas William Ryan served in multiple parish assignments across Michigan, including Alpena, Onaway, Midland, Alma, and St. Charles. His longest tenure was at St. Brigid Parish in Midland from 1958 until 1970. He died on January 25, 1975. Allegations of sexual abuse were raised after his death, and he was later publicly identified by the diocese.

Elmer Stoffel

• Accused

Elmer Stoffel, a Capuchin Franciscan priest, served in the Diocese of Saginaw with assignments at St. Anthony Parish from September 1958 to September 1964 and at Queen of Angels Parish from September 1968 to September 1970. He is listed as deceased. Allegations of sexual abuse involving minors emerged posthumously, leading to his inclusion on the diocese’s public list of accused clergy.

Richard T. Szafranski

• Accused

Ordained June 13, 1975, Richard T. Szafranski held numerous parish leadership roles, including pastorates in Mount Pleasant, Vassar, Zilwaukee, and Carrollton. His final assignment involved pastoral and sacramental ministry until April 8, 2006. He was removed from ministry on that date following allegations of sexual abuse of a minor and was permanently restricted from public clerical service.

Joseph Szarek

• Accused

Born March 10, 1914, and ordained May 1, 1939, Joseph Szarek served in parish assignments in Rogers City, Harrisville, and Carrollton beginning in 1952. He was removed from ministry in the Diocese of Saginaw in October 1958 and later served outside the diocese. Allegations of sexual abuse surfaced years later. He died on May 15, 1999, and was publicly identified posthumously.

Leonard F. Wilkuski

• Accused

Ordained June 29, 1963, Leonard F. Wilkuski served as assistant pastor, pastor, and later vice-rector of the American College in Louvain, Belgium. His Michigan assignments included Midland, Bay City, AuGres, Saginaw, and Parisville. He was suspended from ministry on April 10, 2002, and laicized on February 18, 2006. He died on January 25, 2022.

John Hammer

• Accused

Born November 3, 1952, and ordained June 23, 1979, John Hammer admitted to abusing an altar boy between 1980 and 1983 and was sent to St. Luke’s Institute for treatment in 1985. He later served as a hospital chaplain in Baltimore until faculties were removed in 1990, then returned to Michigan and held parish roles for twelve years. He was suspended in May 2002, sued in September 2002 by four plaintiffs, laicized January 20, 2006, and listed by multiple dioceses between 2002 and 2018.

About Clergy Abuse in Michigan

Any sexual misconduct by clergy members, including Catholic priests, against anyone else in their congregation can be considered clergy abuse, including various clergy sexual abuse complaints.

People of any age, including vulnerable adults, can be subjected to clergy abuse, but unfortunately, it tends to be the children who suffer the most. Child sexual abuse leaves a lasting impression on the child, including emotional and psychological trauma.

Reporting the clergy sexual abuse and seeking legal counsel are the first steps in preventing the abuser from continuing the pattern, sometimes leading to the need for search warrants and local law enforcement. In some cases, the Michigan Attorney General’s office may help with criminal proceedings.

The legal process for clergy abuse cases varies slightly, but they all involve filing lawsuits, gathering evidence, and either going to trial or negotiating outside of the courtroom. Our clergy abuse attorneys know how to guide survivors in Michigan through the legal system and emotionally to ensure their rights are protected.

Legal Support for Survivors of Catholic Clergy Abuse in Michigan

Injury Lawyer Team is here to offer legal services to victims of clergy abuse in Michigan, working closely with health and human services, local law enforcement, and other organizations. We have an abundance of experience working on sexual abuse cases, including conducting victim interviews, and understand how to work with them with the utmost care and compassion every step of the way.

What Laws Govern Priest Abuse Lawsuits in Michigan?

Michigan has particular laws and regulations surrounding clergy abuse and other sexual abuse crimes. Specific laws determine how long you have to start criminal proceedings or file a lawsuit for sexual abuse allegations. Others detail mandated reporters, who are people who must report abuse according to the law. Laws are in place to protect victims and prevent future sexual abuse.

Statute of Limitations for Catholic Church Abuse

Since many survivors don’t report abuse shortly after it happens, it’s essential to know what the statute of limitations is in Michigan for these crimes.

For civil claims of child sexual abuse, the statute of limitations is until the survivor’s 28th birthday or three years after discovering the abuse. It’s important to know that the right to sue for civil suits isn’t dependent on whether they file criminal charges. For those filing criminal claims, there is no statute of limitations for first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Mandated Reporting Laws

Mandated reporting laws are active in Michigan to help stop child abuse.

The Michigan Child Protection Law is a law written decades ago that requires those who work in human services, healthcare, education, the Michigan Diocese, and other church representatives to report any suspected physical or sexual abuse of minors to the Michigan Department of Human Services (MDHHS) or local law enforcement. Mandated reporters include, but are not limited to:

• Law enforcement, including local law enforcement
• Members of the clergy, even if it requires reporting an accused priest or other diocese
• Teachers and educational employees, such as a music teacher or janitor
• Child care workers and providers
• Healthcare staff, including dentists, doctors, nurses, etc.

Age of Consent

The age of consent in Michigan is usually 16. However, the age of consent increases to 18 if the actor is in a position of power or authority over the younger person, such as a teacher, coach, foster parent, or clergy member.

A person cannot legally consent to sexual activity of any kind with a person of authority until they are 18, meaning any sexual activity between a clergy member and a person under 18 is more than likely a crime.

Filing a Lawsuit Against Those Accused of Sexual Abuse in Michigan

After a sexual assault survivor files a police report to report abuse, it’s time to start the process of holding clergy members responsible for their actions, as the vast majority of cases go unreported. The process of filing a clergy abuse lawsuit in Michigan involves cooperating with police investigations and gathering evidence.

• Initial Attorney Consultation: Meet with a lawyer who specializes in clergy abuse or sexual assault cases. The consultation is so they can hear your case and then put together a plan on how to proceed with legal action against the priests accused of sexual assault.
• Evidence Gathering: Gather evidence like various testimonies, witness statements, and documents to help prove your case. This may include files from the Catholic church about the priests accused of sexual abuse or a report from the Michigan Department of Children’s Services.
• Filing the Complaint: Officially file your civil case against the appropriate party or parties. This can include the priests accused of sexual abuse and other parties that may be liable. For example, the Catholic church or other dioceses may be liable if they knew the priests accused had a history of sexual misconduct.
• Discovery Process: Both parties will have the opportunity to review all information and evidence, and to exchange information, before settlement negotiations begin.
• Settlement Negotiations or Trial: Negotiation settlements will start. Ideally, both parties will reach an agreement during negotiation meetings, but if they can’t, the case will go to trial.

If you want a law firm that understands the nuances of clergy abuse, contact Injury Lawyer Team to get started on the road to justice.

Support Resources for Clergy Sexual Abuse Survivors in Michigan

For those who have been sexually abused by Catholic clergy members, finding ways to move past the abuse and find closure isn’t an easy road. Michigan offers a variety of support resources to survivors. Some of these include specialized counseling services, crisis hotlines, and support groups for others who have been through similar situations. Some great resources are:

• Michigan Coalition to End Domestic & Sexual Violence (MCEDSV)
• HAVEN
• Michigan Crime Victim Services Commission (CVSC)
• The Firecracker Foundation

Notable Cases and Outcomes Against an Accused Priest or Clergy in Michigan

There are hundreds of abuse allegations across the various Diocese of Michigan, and the attorney general released details of some of these cases. The Michigan Attorney General’s Office has been conducting investigations and reviewing abuse complaints against the Catholic clergy, and it’s an ongoing investigation. Some of the notable cases to come out of those police investigations are:

Brian Stanley Found Guilty

This is one of the priests accused of sexual abuse within the Kalamazoo Diocese. This member of the Catholic clergy was proven guilty of holding a teenage boy against his will in a closet in a church in Otsego. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail and was required to be on the sex offender registry for life.

The Diocese of Lansing

The Diocese of Lansing has had several credibly accused priests and other Catholic clergy members, 454 alleged abusers to be exact, who are still presumed innocent until proven guilty. One of the most recent cases was when Brian McLain stated that Father Richard Lobert sexually assaulted him. The statute of limitations issues in this case could set a new precedent in Michigan.

Father Charles Antekeier

This abusive Catholic clergy member was working at St. James within the Grand Rapids Diocese when he was accused of criminal sexual abuse. His abuse of a minor occurred between 1984 and 1985, and there are multiple allegations from before then, too.

One victim was an altar boy. The victim’s family states that the survivor has lasting effects, like becoming an alcoholic by 14 years old, but didn’t tell his father about the abuse until he was 40 years old. He was permanently removed from ministry work in 2015.

Our attorneys have taken the time to review public and private settlement data related to Michigan Catholic clergy abuse settlements. Depending on the details and circumstances of your case, these are valued between $400,000 and $950,000. For cases that go before a jury or involve extreme misconduct, they can be valued at $1 million or more.

Why Choose Injury Lawyer Team

Survivors of clergy abuse in Michigan can count on Injury Lawyer Team to help bring their abuser to justice, especially for individuals wishing to pursue legal action. We have a proven track record of helping our clients, including those abused as a five-year-old boy, receive a fair settlement for these sensitive cases.

When you choose to work with us, you’ll get a dedicated legal team with experience and knowledge about clergy abuse who will also remain compassionate throughout the entire process.

We represent those who have suffered sexual misconduct involving religious brothers of the following religious institutions:

• Archdiocese of Detroit
• Diocese of Saginaw
• Diocese of Grand Rapids
• Diocese of Kalamazoo
• Diocese of Marquette
• Diocese of Gaylord
• Diocese of Lansing

We have the experience reviewing abuse complaints you need in a legal team. Our knowledgeable lawyers aren’t scared to take on a Catholic school, other dioceses, priests, or other church representatives, or anyone else accused of sexual abuse. Instead, we take what you say seriously and will work tirelessly to help you win.

If you or someone you love has been sexually abused by a clergy member, Injury Lawyer Team is prepared to fight for your rights through a sexual abuse lawsuit. Contact us today for your free consultation.

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.