Michigan Survivor Rights & Reporting Resources

If you were abused — recently or decades ago, in a church, a school, a foster placement, a nursing home, or anywhere else — Michigan has official channels for reporting, protection, and financial help. This guide collects them in one place, in plain language, with every fact drawn from the responsible agency or the statute itself. You control the pace: nothing on this page requires you to hire a lawyer, file a police report, or share more than you choose.

If someone is in danger right now

• Call 911 for any emergency.
• Abuse or neglect of a child, or of a vulnerable adult, anywhere in Michigan: MDHHS Centralized Intake, 855-444-3911 — one number, answered every hour of every day, year-round.
• Confidential support for survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, or trafficking, at any point in your life: Michigan's VOICES4 hotline, 855-864-2374 (call) or 866-238-1454 (text), 24/7 — or the national sexual assault hotline at 800-656-4673.

Where to report, by setting

Churches and religious organizations

The Michigan Attorney General runs a statewide clergy-abuse investigation with a dedicated tip line: 844-324-3374 (weekdays 8 a.m.–5 p.m.) and an online form that accepts anonymous submissions. Six of seven diocesan investigation reports have been released as of mid-2026. Members of the clergy are themselves mandated reporters of child abuse under Michigan law.

Schools, universities, and youth programs

For a child in danger, MDHHS Centralized Intake (855-444-3911) comes first — school administrators, counselors, and teachers are mandated reporters. Students and families can also use OK2SAY, Michigan's confidential student-safety program run by the Michigan State Police: call 855-565-2729 or text 652729, any hour. Educator-discipline concerns go to the Michigan Department of Education's educator-conduct unit, and Title IX complaints are filed with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights — generally within 180 calendar days.

Foster care and group homes

Abuse or neglect in any placement: 855-444-3911. Licensing complaints about a foster home, group home, or child-caring institution go to the MDHHS Division of Child Welfare Licensing, which accepts complaints online. And if the concern is how CPS or a foster-care agency handled a case, the Office of the Child Advocate — the state's independent review office, formerly the Office of Children's Ombudsman — takes complaints at 517-241-0400.

Nursing homes and care facilities

Four channels, depending on the concern: the state licensing complaint hotline at 800-882-6006 (LARA investigates and shares its findings); the Long-Term Care Ombudsman at 866-485-9393 for residents' rights and care concerns; Adult Protective Services through 855-444-3911; and the Attorney General's Health Care Fraud Division at 800-242-2873 for patient abuse in health facilities. Our nursing home abuse page explains the warning signs families notice first.

Your rights around the forensic exam

Under Michigan's Sexual Assault Victim's Access to Justice Act (2014 PA 319), law enforcement must give you written notice of your rights within 24 hours of first contact — including that you can have a sexual assault evidence kit administered without being billed for the exam, and without being required to participate in the criminal justice system. You also have the right to information about your kit's status, including whether DNA testing produced a match, and Michigan operates a statewide Track-Kit system survivors can use to follow their own kit.

Financial help: Crime Victim Compensation

Michigan's Crime Victim Compensation program (MDHHS) reimburses out-of-pocket losses from a crime — medical and counseling costs among them. Claims are generally filed within five years of the injury or its discovery, waivers are possible, a guardian can file for a minor, and for sexual assault a forensic exam can substitute for a police report. The victim helpline is 877-251-7373.

The criminal case and the civil claim are separate tracks

A criminal prosecution is brought by the state; a civil claim is yours. You can pursue either, both, or neither — and a civil claim does not require a criminal charge or conviction.

• Criminal deadlines: first-degree criminal sexual conduct has no time limit in Michigan. For offenses committed on or after April 2, 2025, second- and third-degree CSC can be charged within 15 years or by the victim's 42nd birthday, whichever is later; earlier offenses keep the prior limits.
• Civil deadline: if the abuse happened while you were a minor, MCL 600.5851b allows a claim until age 28 or three years after you discovered the connection between your injuries and the abuse, whichever is later. A bill that would extend this (Senate Bill 257, with companion bills) passed the Michigan Senate in 2025 and is pending in the House.
• The short-clock exception: public institutions have governmental-immunity protections, and claims against the state itself — including state universities and state agencies — require a written Court of Claims notice that, for personal injury, can be due within six months. School districts have their own immunity rules in circuit court. This family of rules catches more people than any other.

Every agency name, phone number, deadline, and statute on this page was verified against the responsible government source. If something here has changed, the agency's own site controls — and if you tell us, we will fix it.