Profile Facts
- Name
- Joseph Szarek
- Role
- Priest
- Diocese
- Diocese of Saginaw
- Ordained
- 1939
- Status
- Accused
- Died
- 5/15/1999
- Records
- Diocesan and public records
White Law PLLC’s clergy sexual abuse lawyers represent survivors of abuse by Father Joseph Szarek across Michigan. Below is a summary of the public record on the allegations against him.
Read on for a summary of Father Szarek’s assignments, the reports made against him, and the paths to justice under Michigan law. Because he died on 5/15/1999, criminal prosecution of him is no longer possible. Survivors may still bring a civil claim, and White Law PLLC can evaluate the options.
Sexual Abuse in the Diocese of Saginaw
The Diocese of Saginaw, where Father Joseph Szarek served, is one of Michigan’s seven Catholic dioceses. Statewide, the Church is organized into the Archdiocese of Detroit plus the dioceses of Gaylord, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Marquette, and Saginaw, the system in which Father Szarek ministered.
The Michigan Attorney General’s 2018 investigation into clergy abuse examined files from every diocese in the state, an effort that parallels the public reporting on Father Szarek. Survivors reading reports like these often ask what the diocese knew, a Michigan clergy sexual abuse lawyer can investigate the Diocese of Saginaw’s records and response regarding Father Szarek.
The Allegations Against Father Joseph Szarek
Where He Served
Father Joseph Szarek was ordained in Poland in 1939, he was also known as Father Joseph Shar, and began his priesthood as a St. Vincent de Paul missionary before coming to the United States in 1941. He worked in the Diocese of Saginaw from 1952 until December 1958, when he was removed from ministry. He was later accepted by the Diocese of Albany, where he was incardinated in 1976. He died on May 15, 1999.
What Survivors Reported
According to the Michigan Attorney General’s June 25, 2026 report on the Diocese of Saginaw, the record against Szarek is extensive. In a December 1958 letter to the Apostolic Delegation in Washington, D.C., Saginaw’s Bishop Woznicki wrote of Szarek’s ‘unnecessary fondling’ of little girls and advised him to ‘leave the diocese and the state at once in order to avoid a possible nasty scandal’, after the parents of an 11-year-old complained that Szarek would put his arms around their daughter and other girls, some as young as 8, from behind while making ‘peculiar motions with his knees.’ In 1988 the diocese received an allegation that Szarek sexually abused a 4-year-old girl in 1958; the accuser said he abused six to nine other children, ages 4 to 10, and that when she confronted him at his then-parish in Troy, New York, he did not deny it and told her to ‘say nothing.’ In 2002, a woman reported that Szarek sexually abused her at age 10 in 1957. In 1994, a nun called the Albany diocese to report allegations by two or three women that Szarek had fondled them as children in Michigan. And in 2020, another woman told the Saginaw diocese that Szarek sexually abused her at age 7 in 1958 at St. Josaphat’s in Carrolton, pinching her nipples, putting his hands down her underwear, penetrating her, and that he also abused her two friends; she said her father found out, told the pastor, and Szarek was transferred. Szarek appears on the Saginaw diocese’s 2019 list and the Albany diocese’s December 4, 2019 list. Published accounts of Father Szarek compiles the decades of reports from Saginaw and Albany.
Criminal vs. Civil Sexual Abuse Cases
Survivors of Father Szarek should know that criminal and civil cases are independent of each other. Prosecutors handle criminal charges, which may lead to incarceration, while survivors themselves file civil suits seeking damages, as those harmed by Father Szarek may do.
Criminal Prosecution
Criminal prosecution, the track that could apply to the allegations against Father Szarek, requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt; penalties can include imprisonment and mandatory registration as a sex offender.
Civil Claims for Damages
In civil court, survivors of Father Szarek sue for damages under a preponderance-of-the-evidence standard, a lower bar than in criminal court.
Statute of Limitations on Clergy Sexual Abuse Cases in Michigan
The civil statute of limitations in Michigan (MCL §600.5805) generally allows ten years from the abuse, or until the survivor’s 28th birthday, to bring a claim against Father Szarek.
For first-degree criminal sexual conduct, Michigan imposes no time limit at all. And because trauma and memory loss often delay reporting for years or decades, survivors of Father Szarek should not assume their time has run out, an attorney can evaluate the timeline.
View All Accused Clergy in Michigan
Pursue Justice With Help From White Law PLLC
Survivors may be able to sue his estate as well as the institutions that employed him, including the Diocese of Saginaw, if the Church knew or should have known about the danger Father Szarek posed, failed to prevent the abuse, covered it up, or hired and supervised him negligently.
Survivors of Father Szarek may recover compensation for medical and therapy costs, pain and suffering, and emotional distress. White Law PLLC welcomes confidential inquiries at (517) 316-1195.
Profiles summarize published records and allegations. Inclusion does not constitute a legal finding.