Star Stribune (Red Star)
HUDSON, Wis. -- A St. Croix County judge ruled today that the Rev. Ryan Erickson, who killed himself last December, probably murdered two men at a funeral home in Hudson on Feb. 5, 2002.
Judge Eric Lundell said that on a scale of 1 to 10 probability, "I would consider it a 10."
He said prosecutors had presented a very strong case of circumstantial evidence. Lundell said the testimony of a church deacon was key to his ruling. But he said that prosecutors had proven both motive and opportunity.
Lundell said probable cause is the lowest level of proof, unlike a trial, which requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt. He pointed out that no other persons had been shown to be suspects. He said that on at least 10 occasions Erickson touched a young man inappropriately
Erickson owned 16 firearms and was proficient in weapons, including the 9-mm pistol, which was the caliber of gun used in the killings. Proficiency with handguns was "critical evidence" because 99 percent of the population could not use such a gun, Lundell said. Police have not found the murder weapon, however.
Fifteen witnesses testified for the state in a day-long "John Doe" hearing to establish whether there is probable cause to believe that Erickson killed Dan O'Connell, 39, and his intern James Ellison, 22 at the O'Connell Family Funeral Home. Erickson, 31, was found hanged Dec. 19 from a fire escape at his parish in Hurley in far northern Wisconsin days after being questioned by police.
"When you look at the various pieces of evidence in isolation, it may not mean much," said prosecutor Eric Johnson. "But when you put it all together you have, I think, a pretty strong circumstantial case."
Johnson said evidence suggests O'Connell found out something about the priest, either he was sexually abusing someone or he was providing alcohol to minors, that provided a motive for the killings.
Johnson said, "We're pleased by judge's decision. He went beyond the probable cause standard." That was very significant, he said.
After the ruling, Hudson police chief Richard Trende said the case is closed, but if new evidence surfaces his department will investigate.
"James and Dan were innocent victims," he said. "My prayers also extend Erickson's family. They lost a son. It's my hope that we found a resolution to this. It's a difficult case."
Carston Ellison, James' father, said, "The public deserved these answers." They would end speculation about the case, he said.
Asked about what the case says about the Catholic Church, Sally Ellison, James' mother, said, "It's important to understand, a priest is a human being as well. A priest is as fallible as any human being."
Jennie O'Connell, Dan's wife, was asked if case had shattered her faith. "Yes," she said. "And that's all I'm going say about that."
Erickson's parents did not attend the hearing.
Some of today's most powerful testimony came from the deacon and two police officers.
The deacon, Russ Lundgren, testified that Erickson said, "I've done it, and they are going to get me," after being questioned by police about the killings.
Lundgren worked with Erickson at the Church of the Seven Dolors in Hurley, Wis., where the priest was transferred after the slayings occurred and testified this morning about a conversation he had with the priest after Erickson was questioned by Hudson police.
Lundgren said he and the priest were alone in the church office at the time and Erickson was angry.
"He was staring out the window. Throughout the whole conversation, we never made eye contact,'' Lundgren said.
The priest also told the deacon, "Do you know what they do with young guys in prison, especially priests?'' Lundgren testified.
Lundgren said Erickson then got up and left the room, and they never talked about it again.
A police investigator, Shawn Pettee, testified that Erickson appeared to know details about the crime that had not been publicly divulged. Those details included that the two victims were each shot once in the head, that O'Connell's body was found behind the desk and that Ellison was shot as he entered O'Connell's office through a door.
"That was an immediate red flag," Pettee said. He also testified that some 40 pornographic images were found on Erickson's computer.
Lt. Paul Larson of the Hudson Police Department said police believe O'Connell was shot once in the head, and then the gunman left. Ellison then came to the office to see what had happened. The gunman returned and shot Ellison in the head from close range.
Larson said that after interviews with about 800 people, he believes Erickson was the killer.
Other witnesses included a man in his early 20s, who testified that Erickson gave him alcohol and sexually touched him on several occasions at the rectory of St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Hudson, where Erickson was a priest at the time of the murders.
Mary Pagel, a school bus driver, said she had met with O'Connell for coffee on the morning of the murders and he asked her if she had ever seen Erickson touch a child inappropriately.
She said, "I was surprised when he said that and it kind of made me upset.''
O'Connell indicated he had a meeting with Erickson after noon that day, Pagel said.
Pagel said she told O'Connell it was not a good idea to meet the priest alone and raise the issue that he was allegedly abusing children. She said she urged him to talk to police first.
"Dan told me, 'I can handle it,' '' Pagel said.
Pagel said she saw the priest about 11:15 a.m. that day going out the back door of the rectory.
"He wasn't dressed the way he normally was. He looked like anything but a priest. That drew my attention,'' she said.
Police have said they believe O'Connell and Ellison were killed sometime between 1:08 p.m. and 1:22 p.m., which is the time Ellison received a cell phone call he didn't answer.
Michael Swanby, who said he became friends with Erickson, testified that months after the murders, he was told by Erickson that he had argued with O'Connell a day or two before the slayings.
"We were sitting around drinking some beer. He did not elaborate,'' Swanby said.
Another time, a month or two after the slayings, the priest referred to O'Connell during a visit to Swanby's home as either the devil or a demon, Swanby said.
Swanby said he tried to get Erickson to expand on that, but the priest never did.
Witnesses this afternoon included an insurance agent who met with O'Connell in Baldwin, Wis., on the morning of the killings. O'Connell told the agent he was returning to Hudson for a meeting that day, he testified.
A secretary at the church where Erickson worked said the priest would stand at a window with a gun and pretend to shoot people he "didn't care for."
A parishioner of Erickson's testified that the priest cried all through evening mass after the shootings, then attended a small gathering at a house and dropped her off, hugging and kissing her on the cheek and saying, "Pray for me."
--The Associated Press contributed.
Randy Furst is at [email protected].
So proficiency with handguns is now "critical evidence"? And only 1 in 100 can use a 9mm? I taught my 60y.o. mother to shoot about a month ago. After an hour or so of practice she was hitting the target every time.
I think almost anyone could operate a 9mm well enough to shoot 2 people at close range.
HUDSON, Wis. -- A St. Croix County judge ruled today that the Rev. Ryan Erickson, who killed himself last December, probably murdered two men at a funeral home in Hudson on Feb. 5, 2002.
Judge Eric Lundell said that on a scale of 1 to 10 probability, "I would consider it a 10."
He said prosecutors had presented a very strong case of circumstantial evidence. Lundell said the testimony of a church deacon was key to his ruling. But he said that prosecutors had proven both motive and opportunity.
Lundell said probable cause is the lowest level of proof, unlike a trial, which requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt. He pointed out that no other persons had been shown to be suspects. He said that on at least 10 occasions Erickson touched a young man inappropriately
Erickson owned 16 firearms and was proficient in weapons, including the 9-mm pistol, which was the caliber of gun used in the killings. Proficiency with handguns was "critical evidence" because 99 percent of the population could not use such a gun, Lundell said. Police have not found the murder weapon, however.
Fifteen witnesses testified for the state in a day-long "John Doe" hearing to establish whether there is probable cause to believe that Erickson killed Dan O'Connell, 39, and his intern James Ellison, 22 at the O'Connell Family Funeral Home. Erickson, 31, was found hanged Dec. 19 from a fire escape at his parish in Hurley in far northern Wisconsin days after being questioned by police.
"When you look at the various pieces of evidence in isolation, it may not mean much," said prosecutor Eric Johnson. "But when you put it all together you have, I think, a pretty strong circumstantial case."
Johnson said evidence suggests O'Connell found out something about the priest, either he was sexually abusing someone or he was providing alcohol to minors, that provided a motive for the killings.
Johnson said, "We're pleased by judge's decision. He went beyond the probable cause standard." That was very significant, he said.
After the ruling, Hudson police chief Richard Trende said the case is closed, but if new evidence surfaces his department will investigate.
"James and Dan were innocent victims," he said. "My prayers also extend Erickson's family. They lost a son. It's my hope that we found a resolution to this. It's a difficult case."
Carston Ellison, James' father, said, "The public deserved these answers." They would end speculation about the case, he said.
Asked about what the case says about the Catholic Church, Sally Ellison, James' mother, said, "It's important to understand, a priest is a human being as well. A priest is as fallible as any human being."
Jennie O'Connell, Dan's wife, was asked if case had shattered her faith. "Yes," she said. "And that's all I'm going say about that."
Erickson's parents did not attend the hearing.
Some of today's most powerful testimony came from the deacon and two police officers.
The deacon, Russ Lundgren, testified that Erickson said, "I've done it, and they are going to get me," after being questioned by police about the killings.
Lundgren worked with Erickson at the Church of the Seven Dolors in Hurley, Wis., where the priest was transferred after the slayings occurred and testified this morning about a conversation he had with the priest after Erickson was questioned by Hudson police.
Lundgren said he and the priest were alone in the church office at the time and Erickson was angry.
"He was staring out the window. Throughout the whole conversation, we never made eye contact,'' Lundgren said.
The priest also told the deacon, "Do you know what they do with young guys in prison, especially priests?'' Lundgren testified.
Lundgren said Erickson then got up and left the room, and they never talked about it again.
A police investigator, Shawn Pettee, testified that Erickson appeared to know details about the crime that had not been publicly divulged. Those details included that the two victims were each shot once in the head, that O'Connell's body was found behind the desk and that Ellison was shot as he entered O'Connell's office through a door.
"That was an immediate red flag," Pettee said. He also testified that some 40 pornographic images were found on Erickson's computer.
Lt. Paul Larson of the Hudson Police Department said police believe O'Connell was shot once in the head, and then the gunman left. Ellison then came to the office to see what had happened. The gunman returned and shot Ellison in the head from close range.
Larson said that after interviews with about 800 people, he believes Erickson was the killer.
Other witnesses included a man in his early 20s, who testified that Erickson gave him alcohol and sexually touched him on several occasions at the rectory of St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Hudson, where Erickson was a priest at the time of the murders.
Mary Pagel, a school bus driver, said she had met with O'Connell for coffee on the morning of the murders and he asked her if she had ever seen Erickson touch a child inappropriately.
She said, "I was surprised when he said that and it kind of made me upset.''
O'Connell indicated he had a meeting with Erickson after noon that day, Pagel said.
Pagel said she told O'Connell it was not a good idea to meet the priest alone and raise the issue that he was allegedly abusing children. She said she urged him to talk to police first.
"Dan told me, 'I can handle it,' '' Pagel said.
Pagel said she saw the priest about 11:15 a.m. that day going out the back door of the rectory.
"He wasn't dressed the way he normally was. He looked like anything but a priest. That drew my attention,'' she said.
Police have said they believe O'Connell and Ellison were killed sometime between 1:08 p.m. and 1:22 p.m., which is the time Ellison received a cell phone call he didn't answer.
Michael Swanby, who said he became friends with Erickson, testified that months after the murders, he was told by Erickson that he had argued with O'Connell a day or two before the slayings.
"We were sitting around drinking some beer. He did not elaborate,'' Swanby said.
Another time, a month or two after the slayings, the priest referred to O'Connell during a visit to Swanby's home as either the devil or a demon, Swanby said.
Swanby said he tried to get Erickson to expand on that, but the priest never did.
Witnesses this afternoon included an insurance agent who met with O'Connell in Baldwin, Wis., on the morning of the killings. O'Connell told the agent he was returning to Hudson for a meeting that day, he testified.
A secretary at the church where Erickson worked said the priest would stand at a window with a gun and pretend to shoot people he "didn't care for."
A parishioner of Erickson's testified that the priest cried all through evening mass after the shootings, then attended a small gathering at a house and dropped her off, hugging and kissing her on the cheek and saying, "Pray for me."
--The Associated Press contributed.
Randy Furst is at [email protected].
So proficiency with handguns is now "critical evidence"? And only 1 in 100 can use a 9mm? I taught my 60y.o. mother to shoot about a month ago. After an hour or so of practice she was hitting the target every time.
I think almost anyone could operate a 9mm well enough to shoot 2 people at close range.
