Late yesterday afternoon, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) called on Ron Johnson to help in their efforts to release names of pedophile priest that the Green Bay Diocese is aware have committed sexual assaults, but keeps their identity secret.
Johnson attempted to defuse the situation by releasing a statement before the SNAP press conference, saying that he would ask the Green Bay Diocese to release the names. The media, of course, is only reporting that Johnson is asking the Diocese to release the names and ignoring the fact that Ron Johnson served on the Finance Council for years and was in a prime position to release the names, which SNAP has been demanding for nearly a decade!
The question of the day is: Why now, Ron?
The reason why SNAP wants these names released is to insure that pedophile priests have been brought to justice... in other words to insure that they are not still on the street and putting additional children at risk. Why didy't you work to right this wrong when you were in a prime position to fix it on the Finance Council?
Too little, too late, and it's disgusting that Johnson is only now willing to do the right thing, now that he is running for office.
In fact, Johnsons culpability goes well beyond that. Under Canon Law, the Finance Council has ultimate authority, among other things, in the settling of law suits. And what is the main kind of law suit Johnson dealt with as a member of the Finance Council? Sex abuse claims by children assaulted by priests and other clergy of the Green Bay Diocese. In other words, Johnson vary may well have been party to quietly settling law suits and protecting pedophile priests from the authorities.
Johnson even went to the Wisconsin State Senate to strongly lobby against a bill that would have removed the statute of limitations that prevents child victims of sexual assault from suing their assaulters and the institutions that enabled them. And when Johnson got down to Madison, he not only spoke out against the Child Victims Act, he categorically spoke out against ALL law suits against dioceses and other employers that get sued because they reassign instead of arresting employees they know to be pedophiles.
Here's the kicker: Johnson testified before the Wiconsin State Senate while his Green Bay Diocese Finance Council was trying to get a law suit dismissed. Not on grounds that the diocese was guilty-- they transferred predator priest John Feeney 14 times in 14 years-- but because... wait for it... the statute of limitations had expired. And here's the best part: the guy that was responsible for reassigning the predator priest, Rober Morneau, is still the auxiliary bishop at the Green Bay diocese and one of his functions is to head-up the Finance Council, which Johnson was a member!