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	Alleged Victims Deliver Letter to Diocese Bishop Urged to Stop Battle to Keep Documents Private WFSB May 26, 2009 http://www.wfsb.com/news/19571614/detail.html [with video] BRIDGEPORT, Conn. -- Those who say they were sexually abused by Catholic priests said Tuesday that the truth should finally be exposed. The Connecticut Supreme Court recently decided to make public thousands of pages of church records about the alleged abuse, which had been kept secret. But the bishop at the Bridgeport Diocese had been fighting the release of the documents. David Clohessy, Helen McGonigle, Bill Nashall and others who claim to have been abused gathered Tuesday and walked into the diocese to hand-deliver a letter to the bishop. Clohessy is the national director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. He said it's time for the bishop to stop the expensive legal battle to keep the records sealed. McGonigle claims she was 6 years old when she was abused by her priest. She said the documents will expose other child predators and confirm the names of those who helped conceal the abuse. The cases in question involve more than 23 alleged victims and the depositions taken of retired Cardinal Edward Egan, who was the bishop of the Bridgeport Diocese from 1988 to 2000. In a statement released Tuesday, the Bridgeport Diocese said, "No other institution has reached out to victims with more compassion and dignity." Staff members at the diocese accepted the letter and told the group the bishop wasn't there. The alleged victims said the documents will also have details about settlements, how much was paid out and where those priests live now and if they are threats to other communities.
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