Michael Delaney, a New Hampshire attorney who defended the St. Paul's boarding school that tried to muzzle a teenage survivor of sexual assault, has been nominated to be a judge to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

Chessy Prout was a freshman when she was sexually assaulted as part of a ritual competition at the school known as the "Senior Salute."

The school, which depends on enrollment for tuition and obviously didn't want the case discussed in the press, had its attorney, Michael Delaney, file a motion to release Chessy's identity when she was 16, despite her request to use a pseudonym.

Chessy has since become a survivors' rights advocate and has continued to openly oppose Delaney's nomination. We wholeheartedly agree with her and support her. 

Sadly, Delaney's supporters have doubled down and even attempted to sell the public on the farce that Delaney is a survivor champion.

Nothing could be further from the truth. As St. Paul's attorney, Delaney tried to silence Chessy and her family, which goes against a survivor's fundamental right to share our stories whenever and with whomever we please.

Disturbingly, he also played a significant role in a lawsuit defending a proposed New Hampshire law requiring that parents be notified before their minor child had an abortion without any exception for medical emergencies. Thankfully, Planned Parenthood beat him in that lawsuit, and the New Hampshire legislature later overturned the law.

Still, Delaney could have stood up for women and girls in New Hampshire. He didn't. Survivors deserve better.

Sign the petition to urge all members of the Senate Judiciary Committee to vote NO on Michael Delaney's nomination!