Fr. Emil J. Beyer

According to the report from the MI A.G. on October 22nd, the diocese was informed in 1997 about Beyer’s sexual abuse of a boy at Holy Family Orphanage between 1944 and 1956, when the boy was 14 years old. Beyer, however, denied these accusations. The brother of the accuser also claimed to have been abused by the priest. After conducting assessments, the Diocesan Assessment Teams deemed the allegations made by the first accuser to be “believable” and recommended that Beyer receive treatment at the St. Luke Institute. As a result, Beyer’s ability to minister was temporarily restricted. In 2001, the diocese announced that their investigation had led them to confirm Beyer’s denial of the allegations. A lawsuit filed in 2002 was dismissed due to the expiration of the statute of limitations.