Eight Years of work by authors
and Mike Piaskowski
culminate in The Monfils Conspiracy
Denis Gullickson and John Gaie, with the collaboration of Mike Piaskowski, have combined their unique talents, abilities, and knowledge to create what unquestionably is the most definitive, accurate, and well-researched account of the astonishing miscarriage of justice that occurred in the Tom Monfils case.
Denis is the au
thor of two books and many articles on the Green Bay Packers. With his wife, Kathy, and daughter, Rachel, he owns and operates Sugar Moon Farm, where they raise horses. Denis is also an educator. He teaches journalism and serves as the family coordinatorat Oneida Nation High School. Denis is knowledgeable on the history of the Packers and of football in general, speaking to many groups on the subjects. He recently appeared in the Wisconsin Public Television special Wisconsin Hometown Stories: Green Bay.
John earned his M.S. in chemistry at the University of Notre Dame and went on to teach biochemi
stry, physics, and mathematics at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College for twenty-five years.Previously, he polished his writing skills teaching high school English.Now retired after a forty-year career in education, he enjoys alpine skiing, golfing, and traveling. He has also been blessed with a cherished family of six children, three stepchildren, and eighteen grandchildren.
Mike Piaskowski was one of the six codefendants found guilty inthe Monfils case. After nearly 
five and a half years in prison, he was exonerated of all guilt and released in April 2001 on a writ of habeas corpus. Mike has been an invaluable resource for this book as well as an experienced writer and researcher in his own right. Without his twenty years of expertise operating paper machines at the James River mill and his eyewitness knowledge of the events surrounding the Monfils case,this book would not have been possible.
This book exposes one of the greatest travesties of injustice in Wisconsin history. What exactly happened to Tom Monfils that fateful day? Any chance of determining exactly what happened may have slipped through the fingers of a police force and a district attorney’s office hell-bent on sending these six men to prison. The book breaks new ground in examining the evidence—providing startling new revelations. The authors trace the narrow, tainted investigation of the police. They debunk the state’s case—including the district attorney’s key piece of evidence. They lay bare a mountain of reasonable doubt that should have produced acquittals. They introduce a juror beset by second thoughts. In the process, the real conspiracy is exposed. “The Monfils Conspiracy tells the story of a grave human tragedy. It is a story of a profound injustice which continues to destroy the lives of several wrongly convicted men and their families.”—Professor Lawrence C. Marshall, Stanford Law School (and Former Legal-Director, Northwestern University Center on Wrongful Convictions.) “With the amount of questionable investigating, I would not object to a review of this case on both sides of justice.”—Cal Monfils, brother of Tom Monfils. “It was too much to process and too easy just to make the same decision for all of the defendants.”—A Monfils Juror
Denis, John, and Mike crossed paths many times, as can only happen in a small town like Green Bay. Denis was a student at Premontre High School in the late 1960s when John tuaght chemistry there. John married Mike's sister, Francine, in the mid-1970s. Around the same time, Denis worked at Sears with Mike's beloved father, Fran. In the mid-1990s, after retirement from NWTC, John was asked to teach chemistry at Oneida Nation High School and was reunited with Denis.
When John described Mike's arrest and conviction in the Monfils case, Denis said, "No son of Fran Piaskowski's ever killed anyone." John agreed wholeheartedly and stated, "Mike Piaskowski is one of the finest men I've ever known. He would be the first to step in and stop a fight."
Fascinated by these contradictions and by the facts of the case as related by John, Denis said, "There's a book in this!" Indeed there is.
Other Books by Denis Gullickson
Before They Were the Packers: Green Bay's Town Team Days
Vagabond Halfback: The Life and Times of Johnny Blood McNally
