MADISON (WI)
Journal Sentinel [Milwaukee WI]
August 26, 2025
By Sophie Carson
A Catholic priest in the Diocese of Madison who was once a leader at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Catholic student center has been charged with child sex crimes in Waupaca County and restricted from ministry.
In a criminal complaint, prosecutors said Andrew J. Showers, 37, sent sexually explicit online messages and traveled to Waupaca County to meet someone he believed to be a 14-year-old girl to have sex with her, unaware he was actually corresponding with a Clintonville police officer.
Prosecutors charged him Aug. 27 with attempted second-degree sexual assault of a child, attempted child enticement and attempted use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime. If convicted of all counts, he faces up to 50 years in prison.
Showers connected with the officer, posing as a 14-year-old, on a Reddit page. The two exchanged messages on Reddit as well as on the Telegram app, and Showers was aware the individual claimed to be 14, according to the complaint. Showers sent explicit texts and photos and arranged to meet up in Clintonville, the complaint said. When he arrived on Aug. 24, police were waiting to arrest him, the complaint said.
The Diocese of Madison learned of the arrest Aug. 25 and restricted Showers from ministry while the investigation is ongoing. The diocese said it had not previously received any allegations of misconduct connected to Showers, who was ordained in 2017.
Showers had the following assignments, according to the diocese:
- Director of diocesan office of worship, 2024 to present;
- Parochial vicar for a grouping known as Pastorate 22 or Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, which collectively includes two churches, St. Raphael and Good Shepherd, and one school, St. James, all in Madison, 2023 to present;
- Priest in residence at All Saints in Berlin and Our Lady of the Lake in Green Lake, 2022 to 2023;
- Provided Spanish Mass assistance at St. John the Baptist in Waunakee, 2022;
- Pastor of St. Stephen in Clinton, 2020 to 2022;
- Parochial vicar for St. Paul’s Catholic Student Center, which serves UW-Madison students, 2018 to 2020;
- Parochial vicar of St. Cecilia in Wisconsin Dells, summer of 2017.
An archived version of the St. Paul’s staff page said Showers was born on the east side of Madison and studied architecture at UW-Milwaukee before deciding to enter the seminary. He spent five years studying in Rome before he was ordained.
The Diocese of Madison said allegations of sexual misconduct always should be brought to law enforcement, and allegations involving priests, deacons or other church personnel should also be reported to the diocese’s sexual misconduct question and reporting line, at 608-821-3162, regardless of when they are said to have occurred.
“The safety of children, youth, and the vulnerable remains our highest priority and we continue to work daily to maintain safety in all regards. All employees, teachers, and volunteers must pass backgroundchecks and we follow closely all diocesan policies regarding the protection of children,” the diocese said in a statement.
Sophie Carson is a general assignment reporter who reports on religion and faith, immigrants and refugees and more. Contact her at scarson@gannett.com or 920-323-5758.