BIRMINGHAM (AL)
AL.com [Birmingham, AL]
December 21, 2024
By Hannah Denham
In his previous role in Michigan, Birmingham’s Catholic bishop once ruled a sexual abuse allegation against a priest was “unsubstantiated” — a case that was later found to be credible and that the church settled, according to a new report.
Steven J. Raica, the bishop of the Diocese of Birmingham, was named in a new report by the Michigan Attorney General this week for his role at the Diocese of Lansing. The Michigan report reviewed church and tipline reports and investigated claims of clergy abuse.
Raica was a priest in the Diocese of Lansing in Michigan for nearly four decades until 2014, and then became Bishop of Gaylord before he moved to Alabama in 2020. He received multiple reports of at least 17 other priests abusing children while at the Diocese of Lansing — most of which happened years earlier – according to the report.
The report does not accuse Raica of abusing anyone, but describes his role in investigating and receiving reports of abuse against other priests.
In one instance, in 2010, after a report that a deceased priest, John Slowey, had sexually abused a child at an orphanage in Lansing between 1954-55, Raica and another priest ruled the claim was unsubstantiated, per the report.
“Later, the John Doe 110 allegation was found to be credible and was settled,” the Michigan Attorney General’s report reads.
Donald Carson, spokesman for the Diocese of Birmingham, responded to questions in an email to AL.com.
“In his role as Chancellor of the Diocese of Lansing, then-Monsignor Raica managed all records for the diocese, and as such, researched diocesan records for information that could substantiate claims or allegations,” Carson said in an email. “It is not unusual that over time, additional information could be brought forth that would change initial findings.”
In another case, Raica defended a priest with criminal convictions and multiple sexual misconduct allegations who was later removed as a priest for sexual abuse against an adult man, the report says.
That priest at the Diocese of Lansing had been convicted of disorderly conduct after twice being arrested for sex charges, was rejected by another diocese, was investigated for sexual harassment at a college, and was reported for allegedly abusing children at a school, per the report. Raica wrote a letter in 2010 defending that priest on behalf of the Diocese of Lansing’s bishop, saying that, beyond a 1985 arrest, “[t]here has never been any further episode of indiscretions,” and that the diocese had “no reservations” about his priestly service, per the report.
Then, in 2018, a man alleged that that priest sexually assaulted him in 1980 when he was 18 years old, and claimed he had informed the Diocese of Lansing about it in 2004 and accused the diocese of “gross negligence,” per the report. The diocese investigated his claim in 2018, which resulted in the priest being removed that year, per the report.
This report – the fourth of seven total – is part of a yearslong investigation into clergy sexual abuse in the Catholic Church throughout Michigan. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office found that 56 priests and other clergy in the state, including 42 incardinated in the Diocese of Lansing, may have engaged in sexual misconduct since 1950.
Most of the reports of abuse or assaults were against children and occurred before 2002, peaking in the 1970s and 1980s, per the report.
Raica’s name appears 171 times in the report, which identifies him as currently overseeing the Diocese of Birmingham.
“Throughout the report on the Diocese of Lansing, you will see Bishop Raica, then-Monsignor Raica and serving as Chancellor of that diocese, cited repeatedly in expressing deep sorrow in face of the horrendous actions of accused clergy, in thanking abuse survivors for their courage in coming forward, and in tending to their long-term spiritual and mental health,” Carson said. “In addition, you will see his consistent, methodical, and professional handling of every allegation.”
A Michigan native, Raica was ordained as a priest of the Diocese of Lansing in 1978 and served there until he was installed as a bishop of Gaylord in Michigan in 2014. He also had an 11-year stint in Rome, including serving as spiritual director and adjunct faculty for the North American College between 1999 and 2005. He now leads more than 104,000 Catholics across north and central Alabama, as Pope Francis nominated him to the position following the retirement of the previous bishop, Robert J. Baker.
His participation in internal investigations listed in the report occurred mostly between 2008 and 2014, per the report. His role included receiving reports of abuse and interviewing alleged victims, informing priests of allegations against them and recording their responses, as well as in some cases filing paperwork and letters, according to the report.
Raica’s response to victims, on behalf of the Diocese of Lansing, was often to refer alleged victims to Catholic healing retreats, to speak with the diocese’s bishop, and offer compensation for counseling and sometimes other stipends, such as for tuition assistance, the report says.
In many of the cases, alleged victims told Raica and other church officials that they had attempted to report sexual abuse years earlier, but nothing happened, or they were told to not speak of it again, according to the report.
“I truly regret that the Diocese did not respond differently in the past,” Raica wrote to one alleged victim in 2010. “I certainly and sincerely apologize for what happened to you and so many others by this priest who wielded so much power in the local community. As a priest, it is as though I have been slugged in the gut once again. I ache.”
At a school in Michigan that Raica previously served at when he first was ordained as a priest, an alleged victim said that another priest named Vincent DeLorenzo sexually abused him for three or four months in 1979 when he was 8 years old, per the report. The alleged victim said that he told Raica that the priest “made [him] take his clothes off,” and that Raica allegedly told him that it would stop, and it didn’t happen again, according to the report.
“John Doe 18 believed Fr. Raica talked to Fr. DeLorenzo because, after he told Fr. Raica, it never happened again,” the report reads. “John Doe 18 stated that Fr. Raica never reported the sexual abuse to the school principal or to John Doe 18’s parents.”
Raica said in a 2007 memo that he didn’t recall receiving any complaints “regarding sexual impropriety” about DeLorenzo while he was at the school, per the report. Carson called the details of the attorney general’s report “confusing.”
The attorney general report includes at least seven sexual abuse claims against DeLorenzo, at least three of which were ruled as “unsubstantiated” by the Diocese of Lansing. DeLorenzo died in jail in January while serving a sentence for the attempted sexual abuse of a 5-year-old.
“According to the police report,” reads the Michigan report, “‘John Doe 18 said he holds a grudge to this day against Fr. Steve, because [he] could have stopped future issue[s] right then and there if he would have called his parents.’”
The Diocese of Lansing has published a list of 17 priests with credible allegations of sexual abuse of a minor. The cases span a period for the priests’ service going back to 1937.
So far, the Michigan Attorney General’s office has brought 11 cases involving all seven of the state’s dioceses, and nine of them resulted in convictions, per the report. But for most of the cases, a criminal prosecution isn’t possible because the statute of limitations expired, the priest died, the person who alleged sexual abuse didn’t want to pursue criminal charges or the conduct didn’t violate state law.
The Michigan Attorney General’s investigation intends to determine whether any criminal charges for sexual misconduct or abuse could be filed against any of the clergy members — as well as to determine if the Archdiocese and Dioceses properly reported the sexual abuse to law enforcement, the report said.
“It is our intent to share what was learned during the investigation as to ensure that any past failure to report sexual abuse will never happen again,” the report reads.