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	Delray Beach Ex-Priest Suicidal, Has Cancer Should Be Reassigned to House Arrest, His Attorneys to Argue By Sonja Isger Palm Beach Post May 19, 2009 http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/local_news/epaper/2009/05/19/0519skehan.html He hasn't yet served three weeks in prison, but the former Delray Beach priest who pleaded guilty to his part in stealing millions from his church wants out. His attorney says John A. Skehan is suicidal and suffering from recently diagnosed prostate cancer - both ailments that weren't mentioned at his April sentencing. And ailments, he argues, the prison system isn't equipped to handle. They will see a judge Thursday to see if their requests to alter the sentence and put the former priest on house arrest will be granted, court records indicate. Skehan was sentenced to 14 months in prison and seven years' probation after he pleaded guilty to grand theft over $100,000 from St. Vincent Ferrer in Delray Beach, where he served as pastor for more than 40 years. It's a sentence Skehan's previous attorneys fought, but one Circuit Judge Jeff Colbath found fit the crime he described as "pure greed unmasked." Authorities say Skehan and his successor at St. Vincent Ferrer, Father Francis Guinan collectively misappropriated $8.6 million from their church. A jury convicted Guinan on related theft charges and was sentenced last month to a four-year prison sentence. Skehan's new attorney, James L. Eisenberg, says the former priest's health has rapidly deteoriated because of the stress the 82-year-old is under. Skehan turned himself into the county jail on May 1 and entered Martin Correctional Institution on May 4. In Eisenberg's petition for re-sentencing, he says Skehan's shame, the stripping of his rights to function as a priest and the "character defamation by the constant media coverage," as well as the loss of his home and his "reduced financial state" all have piled on to bring Skehan down. "He is in danger of hurting himself," the report says quoting his doctors. They say he "continues to discuss death and the hearafter." Additionally, the former priest was diagnosed in late April with prostate cancer and his attorneys say the treatment may require eight weeks of radiation five days a week. That treatment must be coordinated with care for his mental health, the petition says. "Both treatment plans require monitoring and are subject to modification over a several month period of time," the attorney's petition states. Skehan came into the system with a litany of other health problems, including type 2 diabetes and hypertension. "Obviously, this kind of medical treatment cannot be provided in the State of Florida Department of Corrections,"Eisenberg writes. "Skehan's various doctors all concur that Skehan cannot possibly receive the required psychiatric care in the prison setting... In addition, at Skehan's advanced age, the treatment for prostate cancer is not a matter of routine procedure." While it's up to a judge to make the final call, a spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Corrections notes that the state takes a mental and physical health inventory of each inmate entering the system and places them accordingly. Gretl Plessinger said the system handles thousands of inmates who are mentally ill, have cancer and other illnesses. The petition notes that the prosecutor in the case, Preston Mighdoll objects to the motion, but adds that the counsel for the Diocese of Palm Beach does not. Eisenberg says the former priest remains remorseful. He also notes that Colbath weighed the man's sincere contrition and the $786,767 restitution in his favor. The petition also addresses a lingering question posed by the court at sentencing: Why there was not more outrage from his church's parishioners? Eisenbert's answer: Skehan left the church debt free, established large endowments that benefitted the parish, including a $4 million one for the parish school. He raised another million to help build Pope John Paul High School in Boca Raton. "It is clear that the overall good that Skehan did for the church community is the reason that many of the parishioners continue to support him." Contact: sonja_isger@pbpost.com
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