Fr. Albert Lambertus Watson
Named publicly as accused in the MI Attorney General’s 12/15/2025 Diocese of Grand Rapids Report. In 1993 a man told the Diocese that Watson sexually abused him at age 14 in the 1960s at St. Patrick’s in Portland MI. In 2002 a man reported that Watson sexually abused him 1974-1976, beginning when he was an 8th-grader. Watson was assigned at the time to St. Michael’s in Coopersville. In 2003 another man reported inappropriate sexual behavior when he was a high school freshman by Watson toward him and other boys at the priest’s lake cottage. A fourth man reported to the Diocese in 2014 that Watson sexually abused him when he was age 17 in the 1950s, at St. Joseph’s in Muskegon. Watson died in 1987.
Return to main database page. See abbreviations and posting policy. Send corrections.
Our Database of Publicly Accused does not state or imply that individuals facing allegations are guilty of a crime or liable for civil claims. The reports contained in the database are merely allegations. The U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.