BishopAccountability.org
 
  Wempe's Civil Jury Trial Set for October 9
Baker's January 7, Plus One More Attempt to Get Mahony to Talk Some Blessed Sacrament [Falvey] Background

City of Angels [Los Angeles]
May 20, 2007

http://cityofangels3.blogspot.com/

The pace is accelerating and content changing as pretrial hearings get within one month of the first Jury Trial in civil cases against the LA Archdiocese. Roger Mahony says on his website he "prays daily for a generous payout from the insurance companies" but he's ready to sell some real estate to settle local claims. I fantasize they'd sell several of their crumbling churches and start a foundation for ALL victims of priest rape walking around the world seeking the rebuilding of their souls, whether they're in California or Illinois or Boston, with the Vatican chipping in a couple gold columns from its vestibules. But I'm a dreamer.

Jury trials are now on calendar for survivors of two currently incarcerated priests: Michael Edwin Wempe's jury civil trial will be October 9, 2007; and Michael Stephen Baker's, January 7, 2008. (See the calendar of 15 jury trials so far for 2007-2008 at left.) Both men were serving time when the 2003 Supreme Court decision set them free, and both men were re-arrested when new crimes came out that fit the statute of limitations. I wonder if they'll walk into the courtroom hand in hand in chains. Will they even be at their civil trials? I don't know.

A schedule of hearings for the coming weeks is copy and pasted below. Two motions by defendant the church to make plaintiffs produce medical records were to be heard Tuesday May 22 but were removed "per moving party."

I think most significant coming up: "MOTION - COMPEL FURTHER RESPONSES (BY DEFENDANT DOE 1 TO STANDARDIZED INTERROGATORIES 1-8; cont from 05-16-07; RE: BC307225;)" per the LA Superior Court website Case Summary section.

(Just type in JCCP4286 to keep track of changes in the calendar.)

Continued from May 16th means this might be the hearings concerning Roger Mahony himself. I will have to go document diving early next week to double check. But Monday I get started with my new therapy. Thanks to everyone who wrote me with concern. I'm really doing great.

If not May 30th I'm sure there'll be more attempts to get Mahony to talk under oath. Hope he testifies in a jury trial. Going to bring a sketchbook...




PERSONAL NOTE:

Last Thursday afternoon I took a walk up Sunset Boulevard and stood in front of Blessed Sacrament Church.

This LA institution in the middle of Hollywood is part of my story, because in the 1980s in one of my many attempts to come back to the church I was singing in the choir there. I also felt compelled to schedule a long private personal Confession with one of the priests there. I know he and I were in a room together for at least a half hour, maybe longer, and I told him a long story, but I can't remember a thing I said. It's like a blackout. So I've been thinking about trying to contact that priest just to find out what the heck I said to him. I have a feeling he'd remember. I know he left the church a few weeks after that, transferred. . . .

So I walked all the way around Blessed Sacrament Church Thursday and then came home to find out the cases against Mark Falvey of the same Blessed Sacrament Church were settled that afternoon. According to the LA Times: "Jesuits Agree to Sex Case Payout, Nine People Who Say They Were Molested by Father Mark Falvey between 1959 and 1975 Will Divide $16 Million from the Order - By John Spano"

 
 

Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.