Judge says minister OK to not report suspected abuse

IONIA, Mich. (AP) -- A western Michigan minister was not obligated to report to authorities when a woman told him she suspected her husband of sexually abusing her children, a judge confirmed Wednesday. Ionia Circuit Judge Susanne Hoseth Kreeger upheld a district court judge's decision dismissing a misdemeanor charge against the Rev. John Prominski of Resurrection Life Church. Kreeger said the minister was protected by penitent privilege. "The circumstances that Prominski was presented with were unique," said Kreeger. The mother "was seeking guidance. There was that expectation for privilege." The county prosecutor's office said it planned to appeal, WOOD-TV reported. Authorities said the woman told Prominski of her suspicions in 2009, and he counseled her husband for several months. In 2011, the woman approached Prominski again, telling him that her daughter woke up in the night screaming, "I hate you, I hate." The girl then told the mother that she was being abused. Prominski then told the victim's mother that if she did not report the abuse, he would have to. "The people here are wonderful," said Prominski. "You can't live in fear when doing God's calling. Doing good for God and the people of the community, that is what I am called to do. You can't minister in fear." Published: Fri, Mar 30, 2012