(WWJ) Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel on Monday released an update on her department's years-long investigation into alleged sexual abuse within the Catholic Church.
Today's report, the fourth of seven released to date by the AG's office, focuses on assaults within the Lansing Diocese of the Catholic Church, deals with more than 150 allegations made, dating back as far back as 1950. The AG said the Lansing report identifies 56 people, which includes 48 priests, three religious brothers, an apparent former religious brother, and four deacons.
Three individuals have been charged.
"We must break down the walls of silence that so often surround sexual assault and abuse. In the end, we hope this report provides a voice for those who have suffered in silence for so long, and shines a light on those alleged offenders whose actions allowed them to evade true accountability," Nessel said.
The named defendants who were prosecuted were Joseph Comperchip, Jr., Timothy Crowley and Vincent DeLorenzo."
View a copy of the complete report here (.PDF)
Comperchio, a church organist and Catholic school drama and music teacher at St. John Catholic School in Jackson, was sentenced to 10-30 years’ incarceration on one count of First-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct and three counts of Second-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct. Comperchio pled guilty to each count in June of 2021, he had been originally charged with two counts of First-Degree CSC and nine counts of Second-Degree CSC for sexual abuse of four minor children, some as young as nine-years-old, in the 1970s. Comperchio died from natural causes in 2022 while serving his sentence.
Crowley, a priest at St. Thomas Rectory in Ann Arbor, was sentenced in November 2023, to one year incarceration and five years’ probation on two counts of Second-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct. Crowley pled guilty in August 2023, and was originally charged with four felony counts of First-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct and four felony counts of Second-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct for sexually abusing a minor child three decades ago.
DeLorenzo, a priest at Holy Redeemer Church in Burton, was sentenced to one year in jail and five years’ probation in June of 2023 on one count of Attempted First-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct. DeLorenzo pled guilty to sexually assaulting a five-year-old boy following a service he officiated for the boy’s deceased family member in 1987. DeLorenzo died in January 2024 while serving his sentence.
To date, the Michigan Attorney General's investigation into abuses within the Catholic Church have led to criminal charges in 11 cases, securing convictions in nine of those cases involving a total of 38 survivors.
“These reports are important, not just because we made a promise to the survivors years ago, but because victims, especially in cases like these where the assaults were perpetrated by entrusted members of a community, are often silenced – in some cases for decades or a lifetime,” Nessel said, in a news release. “By publishing these reports, we are sharing their stories and validating their experiences. Criminal prosecutions are just one accountability metric. Ensuring each victim is heard, regardless of how long ago the sexual abuse and misconduct may have been, is important in acknowledging their pain and fostering a culture that prioritizes these victims over their silence.”
Further reports are expected in the coming year for the diocese offices in Grand Rapids, Saginaw and Detroit.