The Racine Police Department is investigating a “possible” third victim related to alleged actions by Fr. Michael E. Nowak, pastor of St. Therese of Lisieux Parish, Kenosha, who was placed on administrative leave and restricted from ministry at the beginning of the month because of an alleged inappropriate phone conversation with a minor female.Sgt. Martin Pavilonis, public information officer for the Racine Police Department, told your Catholic Herald in a phone interview Tuesday that the police department received the information last week.“We were advised by the Kenosha Police Department late last week that they had a possible victim and the incident possibly occurred in the City of Racine,” he said, noting that it is the only victim that they’ve had contact with in the City of Racine.Sgt. Pavilonis confirmed that the possible victim is also female, but couldn’t release any further information about the ongoing investigation.Your Catholic Herald reported May 12 that Detective Felicia Labatore, the Kenosha Police detective assigned to the case, sent two separate counts of unlawful use of a telephone to the district attorney’s office from complaints filed by two minor females May 1 and 2.
Please keep our priests in your prayers! We rarely hear about the good they do, and priests give their whole lives in service to the Church.
Incidences like this also affect the perception of priests in our society. A friend of mine has a brother who is a priest. My friend was on a date, and the topic of siblings and "what they do" came up. When she shared that her brother is a priest and how proud she is of him, her date [since I find it difficult to write "gentleman" or "man" here, the word "date" will suffice] asked, in all honesty, "So he's a pedophile then?" The date ended shortly thereafter.
If you attend First Friday Mass tonight... pray for our priests!
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