Infamous John Feeney released from prison

John Patrick Feeney

A former Roman Catholic priest convicted of four counts of sexually assaulting children has been released from prison after serving fewer than eight years of a 15-year sentence.

John Patrick Feeney's legal issues, however, will continue to surface in Outagamie County court well into 2012.

Feeney, 84, reached his mandatory prison release date on Nov. 1 and is living in an Appleton halfway house, according to the state Department of Corrections. He was sentenced on April 30, 2004.

Peter Isely, Midwest director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said Feeney won't be able to again harm children because he's so well-known to the public and will be under Department of Corrections supervision.

Feeney's widely publicized 2004 convictions in Outagamie County stemmed from the assaults of brothers Troy and Todd Merryfield when Feeney was parish priest at St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Freedom in 1978.

A civil lawsuit filed in 2008 by the brothers against the Diocese of Green Bay following Feeney's convictions remains unresolved. John Peterson, an attorney for the Merryfields, said the lawsuit has been difficult for the men.

"They think it's necessary and the right thing for them to do, but it is a burden on their recovery from this," he said.

The Merryfields were 12 and 14 at the time of the assaults.

Isely said the Merryfields represent just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the lives damaged by Feeney. The damage extends to many communities and likely to many people who've remained silent about what happened to them.

"That impact is going to last forever," Isely said.

continue at Appleton Post Crescent

Ex-monk admits sexual misconduct while under Abp. Hamus at Conception Abbey

A former Benedictine monk who directed a boys choir at a northwest Missouri abbey in the 1980s admitted on Thursday that he had inappropriate sexual relations with several members of the group.

Bede Parry, who led the Abbey Boy Choir of Conception Abbey from 1982 to 1987, told The Kansas City Star that he had sexual contact with five or six of the choir members as well as a student at a Minnesota university.

One of the former choir members filed a lawsuit on Thursday, contending that Parry molested him in 1987 during a summer camp at the abbey.

The lawsuit, filed against Conception Abbey by a Missouri man under the name John Doe 181, alleges that the abbey knew that Parry had sexually abused other students prior to abusing him but covered it up.

"Frankly, those allegations, most of them are true," Parry said in a phone interview with The Star from Las Vegas. "As far as I’m concerned, great harm was done to those people. To lie and not recognize that would be a gross injustice to those folks.

"The whole thing is terrible. I feel so terrible. I’m just praying for everybody, and I ask for prayers."

Most of the inappropriate sexual contact was with males over 18, Parry said. Two of the encounters, he said, involved males ages 16 to 18. He said he has not had inappropriate sexual relations since the 1987 incident.

Jeff Anderson, a Minnesota lawyer who represents the plaintiff, called the situation "a grave institutional failure."

"Bede Parry wasn’t able to control himself, but it was the (Conception Abbey) abbot and the top officials who knew that and made the choice to protect themselves at the peril of many kids and young adults," he said.

Conception Abbey is a Benedictine monastery with a 30-acre campus. It is home to one of the largest Roman Catholic college seminaries in the nation and the largest priest-training center in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. The seminary, which the monks run, draws students from about two dozen dioceses in the United States.

Between 1973 and 1979, the lawsuit says, Parry told the Conception Abbey abbot that he had inappropriate sexual contact with three people at the abbey. And in 1981, the lawsuit says, Parry had sexual contact with a student at St. John’s in Minnesota. Parry admitted that misconduct to several people, including abbots at Conception and St. John’s, according to the lawsuit.

Parry confirmed to The Star his three relationships between 1973 and 1979 at Conception Abbey and one in 1981 in Minnesota. He said he reported those incidents to then-abbot Jerome Hanus at Conception Abbey and to the abbot at St. John’s Abbey in Minnesota.

Hanus is now head of the Archdiocese of Dubuque, Iowa. His office did not return phone calls for comment on Thursday.

Parry said he first opened up about his sexual misconduct last fall, when a Seattle area man named Pat Marker showed up at his doorstep. Marker, a sex abuse victim who had attended St. John’s Preparatory School in Minnesota, had learned about Parry while researching other cases from St. John’s.

"I confronted Bede with the allegations ... that took place at St. John’s, and he admitted to the misconduct and expressed remorse but did not disclose any information about the (Conception Abbey) boys choir at that time," Marker said. "After learning he directed the choir, I confronted him again. At first he denied anything but later admitted to misconduct."

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/11/08/3255149/ex-monk-admits-sexual-misconduct.html#ixzz1dmsmE4Ex

Eau Claire Police Chief voices concern over La Crosse Diocese abuse policy

In light of the sex abuse charges at Penn State, Eau Claire Police Chief Jerry Matisyk says this is a good reminder to both parents and organizations on how to properly report abuse.

The grand jury report which talks about the Penn State sex abuse charges, notes that the scandal was covered up for years. Matisyk says, like in the Catholic Church's case, cover ups like this happen all too often

Over the years Matisyk has vocalized his opposition to the La Crosse Catholic Diocese child sex abuse reporting policy, saying the church should have parishioners report directly to the police, rather than the church first.

Matisyk says unfortunately the church isn't alone in covering up abuses, as the Penn State scandal so clearly proves.   [Good point]

“I think the lesson here for all citizens is that child sexual abuse is a crime, a serious crime and it needs to be reported directly to the police, not to the organization where the crime occurred,” he says.

But, James Birnbaum a lawyer for the La Crosse Diocese says its policy is to report sexual abuse to the bishop, as a way of to ensure it gets reported to authorities.

“The reason that we have a policy of reporting to the bishop is the bishop is obligated by law to make the reports and we want to make sure those reports are made. If the bishop fails to make a report as mandatory reporter, he can be sued for that,” Birnbaum explains.

But, Matisyk says human nature all too often turns to protect the organization above the victim.

“The problem is with some organizations, if some people in a higher position find out about this they tend to try to cover up evidence, tend to try and tell people not to cooperate and that's destructive to the truth. Nothing is worth the price of a new victim,” Matisyk tells us.

Even if you only have suspicions, Matisyk says don't be afraid to go to the police.

“If there are people that have either witnessed suspicious activity that seems unusual, doesn’t seem to make sense, we are fine with taking that kind of information and taking a closer look,” he explains.

Chief Matisyk says the cleanest policy an organization can have is to report any criminal behavior to police.

WEAU

It was proved recently in the Diocese of La Crosse that the flip side of the coin is also true; people make false accusations against priests for personal reasons or for profit.  We also have groups like SNAP out there who have actively campaigned in Wisconsin to remove the statute of limitation, allowing lawyers to sue dioceses for actions that have taken place since 1848.  Look, if I knew of abuse, I would go right to police but the reality is that character defamation is something that is practiced against priests, and SNAP wants every last one of our churches to look like this.  Chief Matysik does not address these concerns.

SNAP quoted in article about Penn State child sex abuse scandal

Very sad discovery

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Penn State football coach Joe Paterno has decided to retire at the end of the season, saying Wednesday that the effects of a child sex abuse scandal involving former heir apparent Jerry Sandusky have been overwhelming.

"I am absolutely devastated by the developments in this case. I grieve for the children and their families, and I pray for their comfort and relief," Paterno said in a statement released just after initial reports confirming his pending retirement.

"This is a tragedy. It is one of the great sorrows of my life. With the benefit of hindsight, I wish I had done more. My goals now are to keep my commitments to my players and staff and finish the season with dignity and determination. And then I will spend the rest of my life doing everything I can to help this university."

So they had a football camp for middle schoolers where an assistant coach did the molesting.  Paterno had heard about it and reported it to the University, who in turn did nothing.  A sad tale that we all know should be brought to the police as soon as possible.  But now we see ESPN invoke SNAP in their article.

After Paterno reported the incident to Curley, Sandusky was told to stay away from the school, but critics say the coach should have done more -- tried to identify and help the alleged victim, for example, or alerted authorities.

"Here we are again,"[again?] John Salveson, former president of the Pennsylvania chapter of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said in an interview earlier this week. "When an institution discovers abuse of a kid, their first reaction was to protect the reputation of the institution and the perpetrator."

I'm not disagreeing with what he says here but why is this guy being quoted in this article?  The media is still desperately hoping to keep child abuse like this something priests do and that if there are problems with abuse in other institutions, it means they are like the Church.  Abuse is something that has happened across any number of institutions.  Why is the Church singled out here.  Paterno is Catholic I think, BTW.

Taking the lead from ESPN, check out this headlines:

Like Catholic Church, Paterno, Penn State turned blind eye to sexually abused children
Is Penn State the Catholic Church?
Jerry Sandusky Sex Abuse Case Could Rival the Catholic Scandal

Certainly there is valid discussion that could happen in this regard, but the presumption that abuse only has happened in the Church is short sighted and really defeats the effort to root out this abuse from all institutions.  Wouldn't it be nice to see the public school system start to make efforts to make sure this stops happening inside their walls as well?  I don't see that being discussed anywhere.

Fr. Szatkowski charges reduced in groping incident

Prosecutors today reduced a felony charge filed against a Wisconsin priest accused of groping a 15-year-old girl last month while he was in La Crosse.

The Rev. David Szatkowski, 37, now is charged fourth-degree sexual assault and disorderly conduct.

He was charged second-degree sexual assault of a child younger than 16 on Aug. 10 after the teen said he grabbed her breast outside the downtown La Crosse Radisson in early August, according to the complaint.

She told police a drunken man approached her group of friends and put his arms around her shoulders before groping her. One of her friends snapped a picture of the man on a Szatkowski on a cell phone.

Investigators tracked Szatkowski, of Franklin, Wis., to a canon law conference for canonists and civil attorneys at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

He identified himself in the cellphone picture but denied assaulting the teen, the complaint states.

Szatkowski resigned from his position as an assistant professor of canon law and director of the English as a second language program at Franklin's Sacred Heart School of Theology. He is not assigned to a parish.

Szatkowski's next hearing is set for Oct. 7.

Read more: http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/article_4d4abe1c-e3c2-11e0-8eff-001cc4c03286.html#ixzz1Z3qThsQ9

I also got this info on Fr. Szatkowski:

Members of the U.S. Province held their summer assembly July 11-14. The kick-off for the gathering was the Province Jubilee Celebration on Monday night where the anniversaries of nine SCJs were celebrated.

Father David Szatkowski is the priest holding the mic. Yes, these guys are all priests, brothers or novitiates novices.

You can tell from their clerical garb ........ oh wait. Never mind.

SNAP files charges against Vatican, public rolls their eyes

$t. $NAP's condominiums

An international coalition of sex-abuse victims has lodged charges with the International Criminal Court at the Hague, charging Pope Benedict XVI and other leading Vatican officials with crimes against humanity.

Leaders of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), assisted by the Center for Constitutional Rights, filed an 80-page complaint, accompanied by over 20,000 pages of supporting evidence, claiming that the Holy See bears "direct and superior responsibility for the crimes against humanity of rape and other sexual violence committed around the world." The charges were directed against Pope Benedict and three Vatican officials: Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Secretary of State; his predecessor, Cardinal Angelo Sodano; and Cardinal William Levada, the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Experts in international law said that it is extremely unlikely the Hague court will take up the case. The court does not have jurisdiction over the Holy See, and the charges raised in the complaint fall well short of the standards required for an international trial. Similar charges against the Vatican had been lodged in the past, and no prosecution ensued.

However, legal experts said that the SNAP case could serve the group's purposes by "raising awareness" of their cause. In other words, the case will generate publicity.

Catholic Culture

Dad29: Abp Dolan's Big Mistake

You'll hear more about this. Abp Dolan was interviewed by 60 Minutes.

When Safer suggested that the incidence of priests sexually abusing children might be decreased if Catholic clergy were allowed to be married, Dolan responded, "I don't know if – what we know scholarship-wise would back that up, Morley. The greatest culprits in sexual abuse are unfortunately married men. So, I don't know if marriage is the answer."

The Archbishop is wrong.

A fellow named David Usher cited a study:

The study found sexual abuse – indeed all forms of abuse – to be least common in homes with married biological parents. According to the report, only about 1 in 2,000 children in such homes suffer sexual abuse.

By comparison, the report states, 5 of every 2,000 children in single-parent households – and 20 of every 2,000 children in households where a single parent welcomes a partner into the home – suffers sexual abuse.

Those results are consistent with what's been reported for over 20 years in a variety of studies.  

We expect that the Archbishop will "clarify" or retract.

Dad29

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