ILLINOIS
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
Statement by Eric Johnson, victim of Fr. Bruce Wellems
Silence should never be a choice when it comes to any case of sexual abuse. Turning your back and doing nothing only allows the predator to gain skill in his craft, while allowing the cycle to continue.
For the past 20+ years, I have tried to inform people about Wellems, only to be met with walls of silence, denial, and lies. His attitude of “that was the culture back then” and his excuse of “behavior I exhibited as a teenager was taught behavior” is reprehensible.
At no time in a civilized culture has raping a child been acceptable. His self-prescribed penance of setting himself up to work with troubled youth is even more disturbing. He was a skilled predator at 15, presenting himself as a normal youth with a girlfriend, while repeatedly committing horrendous crimes behind his façade. I can only cringe at the thought of him being placed in his environment of choice, with young boys.
Up to 2014, Wellems has led his peers and superiors to believe that this was a consensual relationship between teenagers.
A 15-year-old having sex with a 7-year-old is a crime, and was a crime in the 70s, and yes, a sin. His partial admittance of abuse, lined with fabricated timelines, locations, and minimized contact, is shameful. His claim of being abused is quite timely and suspicious, given the fact that it was never mentioned to another reporter before Manya.
Lastly, Wellems continues to shamelessly talk about himself and the repercussions, which speaks volumes. Wellems says “As much as I hate going through this, maybe it’s good”
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