Former priest sentenced in Ontonagon sex abuse case

LANSING — A former Catholic priest will serve from eight to 15 years in prison following a sentencing hearing on Wednesday in Ontonagon County Court, according to a Thursday announcement from the office of the Michigan Attorney General.

Gary Jacobs, 75, a former priest in Upper Peninsula parishes in Ontonagon and Dickinson counties, was sentenced following guilty pleas on three counts of criminal sexual conduct first degree and one count of criminal sexual conduct second degree. The charges stem from the time Jacobs was a clergyman in the community during the 1980s.

“A lengthy prison sentence will never erase the pain Mr. Jacobs inflicted on those who trusted him, but it serves as an example of our pursuit of justice related to clergy abuse and, hopefully, can provide some sense of relief,” Nessel said.

Circuit Court Judge Michael Pope handed down the harshest prison sentence yet in the Michigan Attorney General’s clergy abuse investigation was initiated by a special task force organized by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. A plea agreement with Jacobs was reached for cases in both counties earlier this month.

The terms of the plea agreement require Jacobs to serve from eight to 15 years on each count, which will run concurrently. Additionally, Jacobs will be required to comply with lifetime sex offender registration related to the first degree counts of criminal sexual misconduct, a tier II registration on the second degree charge, receive sex offender counseling, and lifetime electronic monitoring upon release.

The sentencing announcement included statements from two of the victims.

Both victims said they felt the sentence was not enough. They felt it was not appropriate to blame alcoholism as a cause for pedophilia and said the abuse has lead to a lifetime of problems and expensive therapy.

One statement said the abuse has impacted physical and mental health, relationships with others including family and friends. The molesting occurred “brazenly” and sometimes with parents in the same room.

“Gary locked me and every one of his victims — of which I understand there are many — in our own prisons, of which there is NO release,” the victim stated. “He used his position of authority over us to sentence every one of us to life in prison in our own heads, with no opportunity for release. No parole. No time cut short for good behavior.”

The second statement said Jacobs took advantage of the loneliness and vulnerability that a kid has when new to the area. A church youth group meeting led to a brief series of repeated abuse before shunning the teen, leading self-blaming and parents who believed the teen seduced the priest.

“I was shunned and living at home became hell,” the statement said. “I felt abandoned, angry and betrayed by my family.”

The Attorney General’s clergy abuse team that survivors of Jacobs’ abuse be heard if they so chose. Nine people submitted or read victim impact statements during the sentencing.

“We are indebted to those who came forward to make him accountable for his actions,” Nessel said. Their courage to speak up is what drove these proceedings, so that while justice was delayed, it was certainly not denied.”

The sentencing in Dickinson County Court is scheduled for noon (EST) Friday, July 2. The guilty plea in that case involves one count of criminal sexual conduct second degree.