BishopAccountability.org
	SNAP Releases Letter from Bishop to Abusive Priest By Sarah Thomsen WBAY-TV - ABC2 January 11, 2008 http://www.wbay.com/Global/story.asp?S=7613091 An organization for victims of sexual abuse by clergy is releasing documents to the public which it says prove the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay covered up the repeated sexual abuse by Father John Patrick Feeney. A lawsuit filed by two brothers abused by Feeney in the 1970s alleges the diocese moved Feeney from parish to parish, knowing he molested numerous children. Feeney was convicted of the abuse in 2004 and sent to prison, and was defrocked by the Church in 2005. Survivors Network for those Abused by Priests says the documents it released Friday prove the diocese did exactly what SNAP claims — covering up for a former priest. Perhaps the most telling evidence is found in a letter to Feeney from then-Bishop Aloysius Wycislo dated October 3, 1983. The letter reads, "As I go through the total file of the hearings, your meetings with the personnel board, and your response, the conclusion seems to be that in your best interest another diocese, another atmosphere, new people, and new faces might be the answer to your problem." "It is a pity that serving the Diocese of Green Bay for thirty years ends in this way, but, really, haven't we all tried? Again and again there were so many assignments. In my case, I am capable of forgetting about all this and writing a good letter of recommendation for you to a new bishop, and I hope and pray you will find one." It goes on to say, "You have my permission to seek a meeting with another bishop, and as I said above, I will be happy to be in contact with such a bishop." [See a copy of the Wycislo letter to Feeney] The letter says Bishop Wycislo gave Father Feeney three months to find a new assignment with another bishop and he would not turn Feeney over to authorities. Then he wrote, "If you do not find a bishop willing to accept you by the time you need to report to a treatment center to begin a program to assist you with your problems, I think you see the wisdom of this alternative since time and time again I have been advised by civil servants, specifically the Attorney General, that unless the diocese promised to provide for treatment you would be prosecuted." The diocese says these documents came from it, and were turned over to the district attorney in 2002 when the diocese was subpoenaed as part of the Feeney investigation. The diocese says the letter shows it cooperated with authorities and is not trying to cover up anything. Contact: sthomsen@wbay.com
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.