OREGON
Oregonian
An Oregon priest faces as much as a year behind bars when he is sentenced this month for attempting to lure a 14-year-old girl into his car in Vancouver.
Michael T. Patrick, 59, the former pastor of St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church in Scappoose, entered a guilty plea Friday in Clark County Superior Court, according to The Columbian. He was originally charged with luring in the 2014 incident.
Patrick has been with the Archdiocese of Portland since 1998, according to The Catholic Sentinel. David Renshaw, a spokesman for the archdiocese, told The Columbian that Patrick has not been attached to a parish since his arrest and that his status remains unchanged pending the outcome of the archdiocese’s investigation.
On March 10, 2014, a girl walking home on Northeast 28th Street noticed the driver of a silver or blue car looking at her “strangely,” according to The Oregonian/OregonLive archives. The car turned around and came up behind her before driving past and parking in the bike lane. As the girl approached the car, the driver later identified as Patrick opened his door and said, “Hey, get in.”
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