By Brian Haas
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
February 18, 2009
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-021809-guinan,0,2540013.story
WEST PALM BEACH - The former pastor of St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Church in Delray Beach rarely came into their offices, except to pick up cash from the weekend offerings, a former church bookkeeper testified today.
"He was there very rarely, maybe two hours a week in the office," Renee Wardrip told the court.
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| Renee Wardrip (cq) looks at deposit slips (held by the prosecutor) she said she fabricated to show to the diocese while bookkeeper at St. Vincent Ferrer in order to hide the cash. Photo by Lannis Waters |
The Rev. Francis Guinan, 66, faces up to 30 years in prison on a charge of grand theft of more than $100,000. He is accused of stealing nearly a half-million dollars from St. Vincent Ferrer, spending it on girlfriends, trips and supporting a gambling habit.
Wardrip said Guinan was handed about $50,000 in cash when he joined the church in 2003 and that he regularly showed up to church offices only on Tuesdays -- when the weekend offertory was tallied. He'd then leave with cash, she said.
His actions weren't unusual, Wardrip said. His friend and predecessor, the Rev. John Skehan, had started the practice, she said.
Skehan, 81, pleaded guilty to an identical charge. Prosecutors said Skehan stole $370,000 from the church that he spent on a girlfriend, personal trips and homes.
Earlier in the day, the jury heard from the head financial employee of the Diocese of Palm Beach and two other bookkeepers.
Denis Hamel, chief financial officer for the diocese, testified that most of Guinan's credit card bills should not have been repaid by church funds and that the expenses didn't appear to be for church business.
Hamel and prosecutor Preston Mighdol plodded through dozens of credit card payments for stays at fancy hotels, trips to Las Vegas, vacations in Georgia and expensive meals. Each bill was paid for by church funds, which is not proper, Hamel said.
"These would not be any church expense. I'd take it a step further. ... This is a church check that's going to pay a personal American Express account," Hamel said. "The clergy would be responsible for paying this bill. These are certainly not church-related expenses."
But Guinan's attorney, Richard Barlow, got Hamel to admit that priests are allowed to spend sums of up to $50,000 without any strings attached. Barlow has argued that no money was ever stolen from the church.
Another bookkeeper said church deposits were always "thousands of dollars short" while she was employed by Guinan.
Apple Woo told the jury that cash deposits were "always less" than they were supposed to be at St. Vincent Ferrer when she was bookkeeper there. In one case, she recalled Guinan walking off with about $9,000 meant to go to the diocese.
Woo, who attended a diocese accounting meeting shortly after being hired, wrote Guinan an emotional letter upon her return, begging Guinan to conform to diocese accounting policies.
"Please consider my request to follow the guidelines of the diocese meeting," Woo read from the letter today. "I hope that you can honor my desire so I can continue to dedicate myself to my God, to my job."
Instead, she ended up quitting.
The trial is expected to take up to two weeks. A host of church employees and pastors are expected to be called as witnesses.
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