St. Cloud Priest Charged With Sexual Assault in Counseling Case

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- Stearns County prosecutors have charged a priest in the St. Cloud Diocese with criminal sexual conduct involving a woman he was counseling.

THE CHARGES

According to the criminal complaint filed in Stearns County District Court, 61-year-old Joseph Herzing is charged with 3rd-degree criminal sexual conduct, stalking, and three counts of threats of violence.

Court records allege Herzing began spiritually counseling the woman in May 2018 while he was serving as a priest in Little Falls. Herzing was transferred to St. Cloud later that year and gave the victim regular spiritual guidance moving forward.

ALLEGED ABUSE TIMELINE

Court records allege the sexual abuse took place from December 2021 until October 2022. During that time, the victim said Herzing sexually assaulted her at his St. Cloud home, choked her, and threatened to kill her. During that time, multiple people reported to church leadership seeing conduct of an inappropriate intimate relationship between Herzing and the woman.

REACTION FROM THE ST. CLOUD DIOCESE

In a statement from the St. Cloud Diocese, the church then placed Herzing on administrative leave, where he completed a residential treatment program for exhibiting "inappropriate boundaries" with the victim.

The diocese says once they learned criminal charges were filed on November 26th, Herzing was immediately placed on leave from serving parishes in Browerville, Clarissa, Grey Eagle, Long Prairie, and Swanville.

HERZING ORDAINED IN 1999

Father Herzing was ordained to the priesthood on June 5th, 1999, at St. Mary's Cathedral in St. Cloud.

He's due to make his first appearance in court on December 29th.