Victims react to the judge's ruling and deny him the opportunity to investigate clergy abuse

MILWAUKEE — The Wisconsin attorney general's request to review sealed claims from clergy abuse survivors was blocked by a federal bankruptcy judge earlier this week.

On Thursday, survivors of clergy abuse gathered on the steps of the Federal Building and Courthouse in downtown Milwaukee to criticize the judge's decision to block access to court documents sealed in a bankruptcy filing by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.

According to the denied motion, Attorney General Josh Kaul and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) would have used information from the documents to investigate hundreds of allegations of abuse.

The names are sealed as part of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee's Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, which closed nearly a decade ago due to the financial burden of settling sexual abuse claims.

Advocacy group Nate's Mission claims the documents contain direct evidence of over 10,000 incidents of abuse by nearly 300 clergy, teachers and volunteers. The attorney general had asked the court to reopen the case and allow his office access to sealed information about abuse survivors as part of its investigation.

Watch: Clergy abuse victims react to ruling blocking Wisconsin AG's authority to investigate allegations:

Victims react to judge's decision to deny Wisconsin's AG the ability to investigate allegations of clergy abuse

Judge Michael Halfenger blocked the request in a ruling on Monday, September 30. Both the ruling and the Archdiocese of Milwaukee emphasized that the listed survivors were promised that their identities and claims would remain permanently secret.

Critics on Thursday called on Attorney General Kaul to appeal the ruling, saying it was the victims who demanded the names be revealed.

“What really re-victimizes us, clergy abuse survivors, is when the archdiocese continues to hide clergy records and other documents from us and the public,” said Kevin Wester, a clergy abuse survivor and former priest at the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.

“We have all filed a petition with the bankruptcy court so that the AG can see all of our reports. What else do you need to know? Not just some of us — all of us,” said Peter Isely, a clergy abuse survivor and advocate.

TMJ4 news

The Archdiocese of Milwaukee and Judge Halfenger called the request to reopen the case “a giant fishing expedition,” adding that unsealing the documents would have had devastating consequences for abuse survivors who consider the case closed and have shared their information confidentially.

“We are grateful for Judge Halfenger's decision because such a breach of confidentiality would have been devastating to abuse survivors who view this case as closed and want their claims kept secret by the court,” said Frank LoCoco, an attorney, who represents the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. “In his ruling, Judge Halfenger reiterated the Bankruptcy Court’s finding that because the abuse occurred so long ago, in the 1950s to 1970s, there were no longer public safety concerns.”

Survivors who hosted Thursday's news conference disagree, saying there are still public safety concerns.

In a statement, an archdiocese spokesman added that it has “cooperated consistently with the investigation and will continue to do so.”

It's time to start paying attention to your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching “TMJ4” on your device.

Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and more.

Report a typo or error