A former Oakland County priest will serve more than a year in prison after pleading guilty to sex abuse.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced the sentencing on Thursday.
“While we recognize no sentence can ever undo the harm inflicted on survivors of sexual abuse, it remains our priority to secure accountability for those who bravely share their stories,” Nessel said in a statement.
The charges against Gary Berthiaume, 79, stem from assaults in the 1970s involving three victims between ages 13 and 15. At the time, Berthiaume was a priest at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Wyandotte and later Our Lady of Sorrows in Farmington.
In November, Berthiaume pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct and no contest to one count of gross indecency.
According to the press release from Nessel’s office, Berthiaume will also register as a tier II sex offender and undergo counseling.
Nessel’s office says it’s reviewed more than four million documents related to dioceses across Michigan as part of an ongoing clergy abuse investigation that has seen 11 charged and five convicted.
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This article appears in Jan 19-25, 2022.
