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	Justice Prosser Responds to Claim of Priest Assault Cover-Up By Natalie Arnold WBAY May 16, 2008 http://www.wbay.com/Global/story.asp?S=8332598 The sexual assault victims of former priest John Patrick Feeney say they have proof that a prosecutor was part of what they believe was a Green Bay Catholic Diocese cover-up. Feeney was convicted in 2004 for sexually assaulting two brothers, Troy and Todd Merryfield, in the 1970s. David Prosser, the Outagamie County district at the time and now a state Supreme Court justice, decided not to file charges at the time of the allegations. The Merryfields say that's because Prosser agreed to keep it a secret to protect the diocese (see related story), but speaking out for the first time on the issue, Prosser tells Action 2 News he was trying to help the boys, not hurt them. The Merryfields say the proof is in a letter dated December 19, 1978, written by Bishop Aloysius Wycislo. The bishop wrote, "As is usual in such cases and out of respect for the position of the Church and in order to prevent unnecessary scandal, the D.A. came to see me merely to state that he was pursuing this case.... I had to agree with the District Attorney that the Church would prefer to keep this out of court and out of the public eye." But Prosser says this is not quite what it seems. He told Action 2 News over the phone that at the time he only knew about allegations of attempted sexual assault, no actual contact, so it was a case he didn't think he could win against a priest. Prosser says he met with the bishop to do what he could to help the Merryfield family. "My primary consideration was, I don't think I can win this case, what is the best I can get out of these facts? And that was telling the employer, so to speak — the bishop — 'You've got a bad apple here. He has to be removed from the parish.'" "It was my demand that the priest would be removed from the parish, and if it wasn't, if that didn't happen, I would be forced to prosecute. Now, I think I was bluffing a little bit because I didn't think I had a successful case," Prosser said. The Green Bay Catholic Diocese says it cannot comment on the matter since this is under litigation. Contact: narnold@wbay.com
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