BishopAccountability.org
	White Plains Priest Charged in Parish Thefts Journal News May 23, 2008 http://lohud.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080523/NEWS02/805230440/-1/SPORTS WHITE PLAINS - The former longtime pastor at Our Lady of Sorrows Church was arrested this morning, accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from church accounts - including money intended for Hurricane Katrina victims. The Rev. Patrick Dunne, 63, was arraigned in White Plains City Court after surrendering to investigators at the Westchester County District Attorney's Office. Parishioners at the church on Mamaroneck Avenue were devastated in late March when they learned Dunne - their pastor since 1991 - had been removed from the parish, had a serious gambling habit and was the subject of a criminal investigation. The probe began in the fall when staff members at the church noticed that undocumented checks were being cashed on church accounts and alerted the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. The District Attorney's Office was notified in February that money was missing. The money that was stolen had been donated by parishioners to various fundraising efforts by the church: the building fund, a collection for Katrina victims and the weekly offertory used for general church expenses. The District Attorney's Office said the money was stolen over a six-year period beginning in 2002 and that Dunne used the money for personal expenses and recreation. Dunne would write and endorse checks to himself and to "cash," authorities said. According to the criminal complaint, he "failed to provide an accurate accounting to church officials and deliberately concealed the books and records relating to the parish development account." His lawyer, Richard Ferrante, said Dunne remains in treatment at an undisclosed location outside New York. He said Dunne, who was accompanied in court by some friends and relatives, appreciates the support he has received from several parishioners. "We're asking that people withhold any judgements. There's more to this than has been reported," said Ferrante, himself a parishioner of the church. "Evidence will come to show he wasn't doing this for personal gain." He would not elaborate. Dunne was released without bail and is due back in City Court on June 27. He faces up to 15 years in state prison if convicted. Read more on this story tomorrow in The Journal News and at LoHud.com.
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