Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has announced the release of a report by the Department of Attorney General concerning allegations of sexual abuse and other sexual misconduct that took place in the Diocese of Saginaw.
The report was released to acknowledge the reports of abuse from victims and to report the Department’s findings.
The document is a compilation of excerpts from the information obtained from the tip line, victim interviews, police investigations, open-source media, paper documents seized from the Diocese of Saginaw, and the electronic documents found on the diocesan computers, as well as reports of allegations disclosed by the Diocese.
The list of priests for which there were allegations of sexual misconduct against either children or adults since January 1, 1950, for the Diocese of Saginaw that was established in 1938, is derived from information gleaned from a search warrant that was executed against the Diocese of Saginaw on October 3, 2018, and from the tipline operated by the Department of Attorney General since 2018. There are 38 entries on this list, and of these 37 priests and 1 deacon, 30 were ordained or incardinated by the Diocese of Saginaw.
“This report is only possible because of the bravery of so many, from young children to the elderly, coming forward over decades to share their suffering,” said Nessel. “As always, I commend their strength and thank them for it. Accountability comes in many forms, and by publishing these accounts we hope to foster acknowledgment for these survivors and safer communities today.”
The Diocese of Saginaw agreed to provide reports of abuse to the Department of Attorney General. Victims often reach out to their faith leaders to share stories of alleged abuse. The willingness of the Diocese to provide information was instrumental in the compilation of the report.
The report contains detailed descriptions of allegations of sexual abuse and other sexual misconduct, including grooming and misuse of authority against minors and adults. The possible criminal prosecution of many of these allegations is barred by the statute of limitations, or because the accused priest is deceased, or for other allegations because the conduct did not violate Michigan law or the person who alleged the sexual abuse did not wish to pursue criminal charges.
The information is being released to the public as an acknowledgment to the victims of these alleged crimes and as a public accounting of the resources allocated to the Department of Attorney General to investigate and prosecute clergy abuse. I
t is important to note that a criminal charge is merely an allegation, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. It is also important to note that the inclusion in this report does not reflect a determination by the Department that the allegations are credible or otherwise substantiated or indicative of a crime. This is the sixth of what will be seven separate reports, one regarding each of the six Dioceses and the Archdiocese of Detroit. The Department of Attorney General released its report regarding the Diocese of Marquette on October 27, 2022; its report regarding the Diocese of Gaylord on January 8, 2024; its report regarding the Diocese of Kalamazoo on May 22, 2024; its report regarding the Diocese of Lansing on December 16, 2024; and its report regarding the Diocese of Grand Rapids on December 15, 2025.
In October 2018, 42 Michigan State Police troopers, five officers from different law enforcement agencies and 15 special agents from the Department of Attorney General executed search warrants at Michigan’s seven dioceses. In that effort, they seized 220 boxes of paper documents and more than 3.5 million digital documents.
“Since 2022, the department has issued six reports pertaining to abuses within the six dioceses in Michigan, and later this year will publish our seventh and final report concerning the Archdiocese of Detroit,” said Nessel. “This has been a tremendous and important endeavor by many dedicated staff in our office and with the Michigan State Police, and I thank them for their commitment to justice and tireless effort on behalf of the victims.”
To date, the department has:
• Completed the paper document review of more than 1.5 million documents;
• Completed the electronic document review of more than 3.5 million documents;
• Hired and trained a full-time victim advocate to support the hundreds of victims identified during the investigation;
• Continued to refer the completed criminal investigations back to the respective dioceses;
• Followed up with victims who have not been interviewed by a trauma-informed interviewer; and
• Issued criminal charges in 11 cases throughout the entire state and secured convictions in nine cases, delivering justice for 38 survivors.
Of the 11 cases charged criminally, none of the cases were related to priests ministering in the Diocese of Saginaw.
The report was released to acknowledge the reports of abuse from victims and to report the Department’s findings.
The document is a compilation of excerpts from the information obtained from the tip line, victim interviews, police investigations, open-source media, paper documents seized from the Diocese of Saginaw, and the electronic documents found on the diocesan computers, as well as reports of allegations disclosed by the Diocese.
The list of priests for which there were allegations of sexual misconduct against either children or adults since January 1, 1950, for the Diocese of Saginaw that was established in 1938, is derived from information gleaned from a search warrant that was executed against the Diocese of Saginaw on October 3, 2018, and from the tipline operated by the Department of Attorney General since 2018. There are 38 entries on this list, and of these 37 priests and 1 deacon, 30 were ordained or incardinated by the Diocese of Saginaw.
“This report is only possible because of the bravery of so many, from young children to the elderly, coming forward over decades to share their suffering,” said Nessel. “As always, I commend their strength and thank them for it. Accountability comes in many forms, and by publishing these accounts we hope to foster acknowledgment for these survivors and safer communities today.”
The Diocese of Saginaw agreed to provide reports of abuse to the Department of Attorney General. Victims often reach out to their faith leaders to share stories of alleged abuse. The willingness of the Diocese to provide information was instrumental in the compilation of the report.
The report contains detailed descriptions of allegations of sexual abuse and other sexual misconduct, including grooming and misuse of authority against minors and adults. The possible criminal prosecution of many of these allegations is barred by the statute of limitations, or because the accused priest is deceased, or for other allegations because the conduct did not violate Michigan law or the person who alleged the sexual abuse did not wish to pursue criminal charges.
The information is being released to the public as an acknowledgment to the victims of these alleged crimes and as a public accounting of the resources allocated to the Department of Attorney General to investigate and prosecute clergy abuse. I
t is important to note that a criminal charge is merely an allegation, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. It is also important to note that the inclusion in this report does not reflect a determination by the Department that the allegations are credible or otherwise substantiated or indicative of a crime. This is the sixth of what will be seven separate reports, one regarding each of the six Dioceses and the Archdiocese of Detroit. The Department of Attorney General released its report regarding the Diocese of Marquette on October 27, 2022; its report regarding the Diocese of Gaylord on January 8, 2024; its report regarding the Diocese of Kalamazoo on May 22, 2024; its report regarding the Diocese of Lansing on December 16, 2024; and its report regarding the Diocese of Grand Rapids on December 15, 2025.
In October 2018, 42 Michigan State Police troopers, five officers from different law enforcement agencies and 15 special agents from the Department of Attorney General executed search warrants at Michigan’s seven dioceses. In that effort, they seized 220 boxes of paper documents and more than 3.5 million digital documents.
“Since 2022, the department has issued six reports pertaining to abuses within the six dioceses in Michigan, and later this year will publish our seventh and final report concerning the Archdiocese of Detroit,” said Nessel. “This has been a tremendous and important endeavor by many dedicated staff in our office and with the Michigan State Police, and I thank them for their commitment to justice and tireless effort on behalf of the victims.”
To date, the department has:
• Completed the paper document review of more than 1.5 million documents;
• Completed the electronic document review of more than 3.5 million documents;
• Hired and trained a full-time victim advocate to support the hundreds of victims identified during the investigation;
• Continued to refer the completed criminal investigations back to the respective dioceses;
• Followed up with victims who have not been interviewed by a trauma-informed interviewer; and
• Issued criminal charges in 11 cases throughout the entire state and secured convictions in nine cases, delivering justice for 38 survivors.
Of the 11 cases charged criminally, none of the cases were related to priests ministering in the Diocese of Saginaw.
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