5 Catholic priests charged in Michigan sex abuse investigation…
In other cases, the priests plied children with drugs such as cocaine, marijuana and alcohol before sexually assaulting them. In one case, a priest is accused of threatening to kill his victim if the boy reported the abuse.
http://archive.today/2019.05.26-215730/https://eu.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2019/05/24/michigan-catholic-priests-sexual-abuse-nessel/1221964001/
As part of the state's investigation into sexual abuse by Catholic clergy, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Friday criminal sexual conduct charges against five priests in Michigan. "Some of these clergy … preyed on young children," Nessel said at a news conference about the men who were priests at the time of the alleged abuse. She said the five cases were the "tip of the iceberg" as investigators continue to track down hundreds of tips on abuse by Catholic priests. In some of the incidents, the priests mixed their sexual activity with references to Catholic beliefs or committed the acts during Catholic rituals such as confession, according to allegations in affidavits.
Deputy Solicitor General Ann Sherman, who is helping with the investigations, said that some Catholic Church officials have alarming views on sexual abuse of children. "I am deeply disturbed by what we have discovered," Sherman said at the news conference. "I'm also disturbed by some attitudes of some of the hierarchy in the church … who demonstrated a serious misunderstanding of sexual assault." In one case, a priest "explained that this child victim needed to simply admit that he teased, enticed, or gave permission for the abuse to occur," Sherman said. "This attitude is horrific. Sexual abuse is never the fault of the victim and it certainly can never be that sexual abuse of a child is a child's fault." Nessel urged people who are victims or may have information about abuse to contact them. She was joined by several attorneys on her staff pursuing justice for victims and also an abuse victim, Andy Russell, who urged victims to come forward. "We are your voice," Nessel said. "We are here for you."