Profile Facts
- Name
- Timothy M. Crowley
- Role
- Priest
- Diocese
- Diocese of Lansing
- Ordained
- 1976
- Status
- Guilty plea
- Records
- Diocesan and public records
Father Timothy M. Crowley pleaded guilty in 2023 to criminal sexual conduct for abusing an altar boy over many years, a case that spanned decades, a six-figure diocesan settlement, and a transfer to Alaska. Our clergy sexual abuse lawyers set out the full documented history here so survivors can see how the case unfolded.
Crowley is living and now a lifetime-registered sex offender. If he abused you, a civil lawsuit may still be available even though the criminal case has ended. Read on for the details and your options.
Sexual Abuse in the Diocese of Lansing
South-central Michigan’s Diocese of Lansing is one of seven Catholic dioceses in the state, Detroit, Gaylord, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Marquette, and Saginaw, and it was the subject of a dedicated Michigan Attorney General report released December 16, 2024. That report, part of the AG’s investigation launched in 2018, examines how the diocese handled accused priests. As a Michigan clergy sexual abuse lawyer, White Law PLLC studies these reports closely.
Settlements paid quietly in the 1990s often came with no admission of wrongdoing, and no warning to future parishes. An attorney can uncover what the diocese knew and when it knew it.
The Allegations Against Father Timothy M. Crowley
Assignments and Ministry
Published records indicate that Crowley was ordained in 1976 for the Holy Ghost Fathers and incardinated into the Diocese of Lansing in 1982. He was removed from his Lansing parish in 1993; the diocese settled with his victim that year for $200,000, and Crowley was sent to rehab for two years. In 1995 he was allowed to work in Anchorage, Alaska, with the full approval of Archbishop Hurley, and he was removed again in 2002 after the Dallas Bishops Conference. He was laicized in 2015. His name appears on the Lansing diocese’s list of September 27, 2019, and on the Anchorage archdiocese’s list of January 16, 2020.
The Criminal Case
Crowley was accused of sexually abusing an altar boy, age 10, beginning in 1982 and continuing until 1990, allegedly threatening to kill the boy if he told. Criminal charges were considered in Michigan in 2003 but not filed. After a Michigan Attorney General investigation, he was arrested in May 2018 in Tempe, Arizona, and charged with eight counts of criminal sexual conduct; those charges were dropped in October 2019 on statute-of-limitations grounds, then reinstated in 2022 after the Attorney General appealed. Crowley pleaded guilty in September 2023 and was sentenced in November 2023 to one year in jail, five years’ probation, and lifetime registration as a sex offender. He is living, and civil claims against him or the institutions that moved him remain available.
Criminal vs. Civil Sexual Abuse Cases
Criminal cases and civil lawsuits address the same abuse from different angles: prosecutors seek punishment, while survivors seek compensation for therapy costs, lost earnings, and suffering. A guilty plea in criminal court often makes the follow-on civil case substantially stronger.
Crowley’s criminal prosecution concluded with his 2023 guilty plea and sentence, so that chapter is closed. The civil chapter is not: survivors may still sue Crowley personally, the Diocese of Lansing, which settled an earlier claim and later approved his Alaska assignment, or the Archdiocese of Anchorage.
Statute of Limitations on Clergy Sexual Abuse Cases in Michigan
Michigan law (§600.5805 of the Michigan Legislature) generally requires civil sexual abuse suits to be filed within ten years or before the survivor’s 28th birthday, whichever is later. No time limit applies to first-degree criminal sexual conduct charges in Michigan.
Crowley’s victim was threatened with death if he told, a silencing tactic that kept the abuse hidden for years. Threats, shame, and trauma routinely delay disclosure, which is why you should have an attorney evaluate your deadlines rather than assuming they have passed.
View All Accused Clergy in Michigan
Pursue Justice With Help From White Law PLLC
Institutions that knew or should have known about abuse can be held accountable, for settling claims quietly while reassigning the priest, for failing to warn new parishes, for covering up reports, or for poor screening and supervision. Survivors may recover damages including medical and therapy expenses, pain and suffering, and emotional distress.
White Law PLLC handles these cases on contingency: call (517) 316-1195 for a free, confidential consultation, or come to . There is no fee unless we win.
Profiles summarize published records and allegations. Inclusion does not constitute a legal finding.