SW MI Priest Gets Jail Time And Registry Listing

A Catholic priest from Southwest Michigan is being sentenced to 60 days in jail. Maybe more damaging is the 15 years the reverend Brian Stanley’s name must appear on a public sex offender registry. Stanley must also meet probation requirements for the next 5 years. The sentencing follows a plea agreement with the State Attorney General’s office late last year. Stanley was originally charged with false imprisonment involving a teenaged boy he was supposed to be counseling. The new charge is attempted false imprisonment. The charges involve the priest using bubble wrap and tape to bind the teen. It happened at Otsego’s St. Margaret Church in 2013.

Investigators claim the priest’s actions were sexually motivated.  His defense attorney has disputed that assertion saying there is no evidence to back up that claim. State investigators began to probe the case after seizing documents from the Kalamazoo diocese.  A spokesperson for the church says it reported Stanley’s actions to police on two occasions but no charges were filed.