McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Two seventh-grade boys facing criminal charges for swatting girls’ bottoms have received at least 250 letters and more than $15,000 in donations to a legal defense fund, part of a national outpouring of support over the past two weeks.

Many of the letter writers and donors are critical of Yamhill County District Attorney Bradley Berry, whose office initially brought felony sex abuse charges against Cory Mashburn and Ryan Cornelison in February.

As the money for the boys’ defense poured in, so have four complaints to the Oregon Bar Association accusing Bradley of overzealous prosecution. And on Thursday, an attorney for two of the five alleged victims in the bottom-slapping case said his clients do not want the boys to be criminally prosecuted.

“We never instituted this thing, and our position has always been this should have been handled internally by the school,” said attorney William Brandt. He said he decided to go on record about criminal charges now because the Aug. 20 trial date is approaching. “Now is the appropriate time for us to weigh in,” Brandt said.

Brandt notified the McMinnville School District in the spring that he intends to sue officials at Patton Middle School, claiming they failed to protect his clients from “assault and battery in the form of sexual touching.” District officials, who suspended the boys, say they acted swiftly after a teacher’s aide noticed the behavior.

Neither Berry nor his deputy, Debra Markham, who is prosecuting the case, could be reached for comment. The boys each face five counts of misdemeanor sexual abuse and five counts of harassment in a case that drew national attention after a story two weeks ago in The Oregonian newspaper in Portland.

Two other girls originally named as victims by Berry’s office refused to participate in the prosecution earlier this year, saying they felt pressured into making false allegations against the boys, their friends, by a police officer and a school vice principal. Both of those girls were dropped from the case.

Cornelison and Mashburn, both 13, were charged with felony sexual abuse after declaring “slap-butt day” at Patton and swatting several girls in a school hallway in February. Police reports obtained by the Oregonian showed that other students – including some girls – had admitted to swatting one another.

The story spread on the Internet and was picked up by newspapers and radio and TV stations across the country. Since then, a flood of checks – $10, $20, $50 and even $500 – has streamed into a legal defense fund from sympathizers.

The boys said they are stunned by the outpouring of support.

Many of those donating said they were outraged at Berry’s pursuit of the criminal case.

“Unfortunately, the actions of this district attorney are only too representative of a significant portion of our society that sit in seats of authority, but who are slowly going mad,” wrote a California donor who sent $100.

Another contributor, a lawyer, wrote that the case was brought by “an ethically and morally challenged prosecutor.” One couple wrote that if the boys and their families “choose to leave Oregon when all of this is over, you are welcome in our neighborhood here in Colorado.”

“It makes me feel a lot better because the DA is trying to tell us we’re sexual predators and all that,” said Mashburn, who, along with Cornelison, is writing thank-you notes to everyone who has contacted them. “I think it’s crazy this many people are supporting us.”

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Many of the contributors cited nationally syndicated radio talk show host Dennis Prager, who has had the boys’ attorneys on to discuss the case twice and challenged his listeners to help pay the defense.

“In my life, I have always had this debate with myself: What gives me greater joy, to punish the bad or reward the good?” said Prager, who’s been sharply critical of Berry. “On rare occasions, I get the chance to do both at the same time. This is precisely one such example.”

Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for the Oregon State Bar said a preliminary inquiry is under way in response to four complaints against Berry, including one that also names Markham.

One of the complaints, by Portland attorney Aaron Varhola, called for an investigation into Berry and his staff for “overcharging juveniles with felony sex abuse.” Varhola cites ethical rules for attorneys that prohibit “bringing claims that may not be supported by probable cause.”

Bar spokeswoman Kateri Walsh said the preliminary inquiry will establish whether to refer the complaints to the bar’s disciplinary committee.

Mashburn and Cornelison spent five days in juvenile hall after being arrested at the middle school. Under interrogation by a vice principal and a police officer, the boys also admitted to cupping or poking a girl’s breasts in the past. Two of the charges against each boy relate to a single instance of breast touching.

The school district suspended the boys for five days. If convicted of the criminal charges, they face as much as 10 years in juvenile detention and a lifetime on the sex offender registry.

The boys’ parents have said they will fight the charges but that legal fees put them in a financial bind. Each family has spent about $10,000 on lawyers so far. The Cornelison family was forced to shut off their phone.

“I appreciate everything everyone has done. … It’s helped tremendously,” said Joe Cornelison, Ryan’s father, a press operator in McMinnville.

“Ryan couldn’t believe that many people were concerned about his and Cory’s well-being.”

RB END GOLDSMITH

(Susan Goldsmith is a staff writer for The Oregonian of Portland, Ore. She can be contacted at susangoldsmith(at)news.oregonian.com.)

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