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Bishop goes to Mass in the church

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A recent court filing alleges rampant sexual abuse by a priest at St. Mary’s – with officials ignoring years of abuse allegations because the priest brings in significant money and has deep ties to the Vatican.

A top priest with Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (OLS), Rev. Miroslaw Krol, has been accused of giving men jobs and then pressuring them for sex once they begin working at OLS.  According to a Complaint filed in federal court this week, when men rebuffed and refused Krol, the priest retaliated, spreading untruths about the men and firing some of them.  These acts had detrimental effects on the men’s professional lives.

The Plaintiff’s, John Doe 1 and John Doe 2, filed suit on December 14th.  John Doe 1’s allegations against Krol include Krol jumping into John Doe 1’s lap and shoving his hand down his pants (and touching his penis), continually harassing John Doe 1 with sexually suggestive overtures and comments, and continually trying to kiss John Doe 1 and shove his tongue into John Doe 1’s mouth.

John Doe 1 has also accused Krol of constantly berating and insulting him, commenting on the size of John Doe 1’s penis, and making false statements about John Doe 1’s work performance, professionalism, and sexual orientation to John Doe 1’s diocese, community and parishioners.  Krol has also allegedly contacted John Doe 1’s family members and friends – and has caused problems for John Doe 1 at his home diocese in New Jersey.

The Complaint further alleges that Krol manipulated John Doe 1 into driving him around when he was drunk.  John Doe 1 felt obligated to drive Krol because Krol threatened to do the driving himself and John Doe 1 didn’t want Krol to injure anyone.  During the drive, Krol asked John Doe 1 to make a stop: the stop was a hotel where Krol had arranged for sex workers to show up.

John Doe 2 has had similar experiences.  He has accused Krol of the following:

  • propositioning him to lay down in Krol’s bed;
  • forcing himself on John Doe 2 on multiple occasions;
  • forcibly trying to kiss John Doe 2;
  • forcibly trying to put his hands down John Doe 2’s pants;
  • pleading with John Doe 2 to have sex with him;
  • repeatedly telling John Doe 2 that he loves him; and
  • sending John Doe 2 threatening emails and texts.

According to the Complaint, Krol would repeatedly ask John Doe 2 to come over to his apartment and would make threats about his job.  This made John Doe 2 feel obligated to spend time with Krol at his apartment.

Krol was the direct supervisor of John Doe 1 and 2, and both men moved from out of state to begin their careers with OLS. According to the Complaint, when John Doe 1 told a Bishop about Krol’s sexually assaultive and harassive behavior, the Bishop advised him to leave OLS.  Afraid that Krol would prevent him from leaving, John Doe 1 told Krol that he was leaving due to greencard issues.  When John Doe 1 left OLS, Krol spread the falsehood that he had left because he was gay.

John Doe 2 lost his OLS job when he was terminated 2 days after reporting Krol’s behavior to the COO of OLS.  According to the Complaint, OLS officials did not investigate Krol’s conduct, and didn’t even interview John Doe 2 following his complaints to the COO.  Instead, the OLS Board Vice Chair and legal counsel sent a letter to John Doe 2 accusing him of bad conduct – including crimes.  These accusations were untrue and are not documented anywhere in John Doe 2’s personnel file.

OLS Officials Were Informed Years Ago of Krol’s Inappropriate & Sexually Assaultive Behavior

Krol, according to the Complaint, has a lengthy history of abusing men, and OLS officials had been warned many times of his inappropriate conduct.  Kroll, however, remained a prominent staff member of OLS.  Krol is not just a top priest with OLS – he is the current CEO and Chancellor of OLS, and he oversees a seminary, Polish cultural center, and OLS High School.

During 2017, when Krol was being considered for the position of CEO and Chancellor, priests who had worked with Krol informed the OLS Board of Regents about Krol’s inappropriate behavior, including rumored sexual misconduct when Krol had served as OLS Vice Rector and Dean, according to the Complaint.  Nonetheless, Krol was promoted.  The Complaint alleges that the reason Krol was promoted and has such power at OLS is because he has influence in the Polish Catholic community, brings money into the OLS organization, and has personal ties with the Vatican due to his friendship with a former secretary to Pope John Paul II.

In approximately 2018 – 2019, an anonymous letter was sent to the OLS Board of Regents, informing the Board that Krol had engaged in sexual abuse, according to the Complaint.

In 2019, an OLS Board of Regents member resigned, and in her resignation letter, she wrote about the concerns she had about Krol.  This Board member also shared her concerns of Krol’s misconduct with the Archdiocese of Detroit, but was informed that the Archbishop did not want to discuss these issues with her unless she had first-hand knowledge of Krol’s inappropriate conduct.

In January, 2020, John Doe 2 made another report of Krol’s sexual harassment to an OLS official, John Roland, who is a member of the Board of Regents.  John Doe 2 gave Roland permission to tell the entire Board of Regents of Krol’s behavior, but when Roland did this, the Board chastised him and, soonthereafter, removed him from the Board.  The Complaint further alleges that John Doe 2 then told OLS COO Todd Covert about Krol’s sexually harassive behavior.  Covert appeared sympathetic, but then, a couple of days later, John Doe 2 was terminated from his OLS position.  Nobody from OLS interviewed him about what he told Covert.   Upon termination, OLS Board Vice Chair and legal counsel, Jeff Stewart, sent a letter to John Doe 2 that was filled with false accusations of bad behavior and criminal conduct.  According to the Complaint, these accusations are not noted anywhere in John Doe 2’s personnel file.

The Complaint discusses John Doe 3, who was also sexually harassed and abused by Krol, and who had also refused and rebuffed Krol.  In December of 2019, John Doe 3 informed Krol that he would leave OLS when his contract ended.  Krol terminated him about 3 months before his contract was up.  John Doe 3 reported Krol’s sexual abuse to the Archdiocese, but nobody reached out to interview him or to conduct an investigation.  In Septmember of 2020, Krol lied and told a Polish radio personality that John Doe 3 had been fired from OLS for misappropriating seminary funds and mismanaging the seminary.

According to the Complaint, Krol had a history of not just preying on men at OLS, but of preying on young students who had failed out of seminary school or had issues with alcohol or sexual matters.  Krol would change and / or falsify the students’ records so that they could attend OLS.  Upon arrival to OLS, these students, who had dreams of becoming priests, were vulnerable and dependent upon Krol.

Krol’s reported behavior is indeed disturbing and illegal.  And the reported behavior engaged in by OLS officials is also troubling because these officials appear to care nothing about protecting employees and students from sexual abuse.  In fact, according to the Complaint, OLS officials appear to care more about money and power than they do about the safety and well-being of the students they are supposed to educate and protect – and their employees who want to serve the OLS community.

OLS officials reportedly allowed a person in a position of power to engage in rampant sexual abuse – and the officials allowed him to retaliate against those who refused him and spoke out against him.

GREWAL LAW Has Experience Holding Corporations – Including Dioceses – Accountable For Abuse.

It is possible to file a civil lawsuit against any person, business or corporation that allows sexual abuse to occur.  The nationally recognized sexual assault attorneys at Grewal Law have been fighting for the rights of victims for decades, and they have made it their mission to hold sexual abusers accountable – and to stop institutional involvement in sexual abuse.

Grewal Law represented a third of the plaintiffs in the MSU and Larry Nassar lawsuits, and the Grewal team was instrumental in obtaining the half a billion-dollar settlement from MSU. Currently, the award-winning lawyers at Grewal Law are fighting to hold USAG and USOC accountable for their roles in allowing Larry Nassar’s sexual abuse to occur. In addition, Grewal Law attorneys are working to help hold University of Michigan accountable for allowing Dr. Robert Anderson to sexually abuse over 800 student-athletes, students, and other young people for decades.  The attorneys at Grewal Law understand what it takes to prevail against sexual predators and the companies that allow their sexual misconduct to occur.

Please contact our firm’s award-winning attorneys at (888) 211-5798 for a free consultation. We’re available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to help you.

 

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