WISCONSIN
WTAQ
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) – An Outagamie County judge has denied another request by the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay to dismiss the lawsuit by two brothers molested by a former priest.
The Diocese asked Judge Nancy Krueger to toss the case, using the legal argument known as “laches” – that Todd and Troy Merryfield waited too long to file the suit and the resulting loss in testimony and evidence has damaged the case such that it isn’t fair to try.
The Merryfields were molested by former priest John Feeney in 1978. In May, a jury made the award saying the diocese committed fraud by not telling the Merryfields about Feeney’s past history of sexual abuse. But, a judge overturned the verdict, saying a juror was not truthful during the selection process, and a new trial was ordered. No new trial date has been set.
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