[See also other articles by Gustavo Arellano.]

The Diocese of Orange is legendary for sparing no expense, no legal strategy while fighting off sex-abuse victims or trying to cover up for its pedo-priests. Hell, they even paid for Mater Dei boys' basketball coach Gary McKnight's laughable attempt to shut this wab up. But in the current case of Denis Lyons , Orange Bishop Tod D. Brown is offering the pedo-priest no help at all that doesn't involve saving his own ass.


In a recent court motion, Lyons' attorneys asked that his alleged victim, Jon Kirrer, pay the fees so that a court-appointed discovery referre can wade through thousands of pages of documents and determine which are admissable for the civil suit, and which are not. Lyons is pleading poverty: he "is not reasonably able to pay any costs associated with such an appointment and any requirement that he must do so would cause a substantial hardship on him," wrote attorney Donald Steier. "It is unclear whether one or more of the other parties will agree to pay [Lyons'] portion of the appointed referee's fees."

Lyons is no longer part of the ministry, but the Orange diocese never officially laicized him like they did John Lenihan and other admitted pedo-priests. What does Brown's refusal to pay for Lyons' share of a discovery referee mean? Has Brown finally found a soul and will not help a pedo-priest?

E-mail: GARELLANO@OCWEEKLY.COM