(WXYZ) — A priest who once ministered in Shelby Township has been ordered to stand trial in a criminal sexual conduct case.
Following a preliminary examination in Macomb County Circuit Court, a judge ruled there was enough probable cause for 66-year-old Neil Kalina to stand trial on three counts. Those charges are:
- two counts of second-degree CSC with a child between 13 but less than 16, felonies punishable by 15 years in prison; and
- one count of first-degree CSC with a child between 13 but less than 16, a felony punishable by life in prison.
A second case will not move forward as the abuse survivor is unable to proceed with the prosecution at this time.
Kalina was a priest at St. Kiernan Catholic Church in Shelby Township from 1982 to 1985. He was first charged in May of 2019 and arrested in Littlerock, California. The case was brought as part of the Department of Attorney General's Clergy Abuse Investigation.
