DETROIT — A Wayne County judge sentenced a former Wayne parish priest to three to 15 years in prison for first-degree criminal sexual conduct related to a 2004 incident involving a minor on church grounds.
Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Bridget Hathaway sentenced Fr. Joseph “Jack” Baker on March 1 after a jury convicted him of the charge. Fr. Baker has been in the Wayne County Jail as he awaited sentencing.
During Fr. Baker’s trial, prosecutors said the priest assaulted a 7-year-old boy in 2004 on parish property at St. Mary Parish in Wayne, where Fr. Baker was pastor at the time. The guilty verdict was handed down Oct. 13, 2022, in the Third Judicial Circuit Court of Michigan. An attorney for Fr. Baker said her client plans to appeal.
Fr. Baker, 61, was arrested and charged in July 2019 after an allegation of sexual abuse was reported to the Archdiocese of Detroit. He was immediately restricted from his ministry as then-pastor of St. Perpetua Parish in Waterford, where he had served since 2008, in accord with the norms of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, also known as the Dallas Charter.
The archdiocese reported the allegation to the Michigan Attorney General’s office, which is conducting a statewide investigation into sexual abuse and misconduct in Michigan’s seven Catholic dioceses. Fr. Baker has not been allowed to present himself publicly as a priest since.
Fr. Baker, who studied at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, was ordained in 1993. He spent time as associate pastor of St. Hugo of the Hills Parish in Bloomfield Hills (1993-96) and Sacred Heart Parish in Dearborn (1996-97), simultaneously serving as campus minister at Wayne State University's medical school campus from 1996-97.
From 1997 to 2008, Fr. Baker was pastor of St. Mary Parish in Wayne, and since 2008 had been pastor of St. Perpetua in Waterford. He also spent time as administrator of SS. Kevin and Norbert Parish (2003-04) and Holy Family Parish (2003-08), both in Inkster, and St. Benedict Parish in Waterford (2011).
Individuals with knowledge of sexual abuse by clergy or other Church representatives are urged to contact local law enforcement and/or the Michigan Attorney General’s Office at (844) 324-3374 or [email protected].
Individuals also may contact the Archdiocese of Detroit by visiting protect.aod.org calling the toll-free, 24/7 victim assistance line at (866) 343-8055 or by emailing [email protected].
There are no time limits or restrictions on individuals wishing to report abuse.
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