PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Wall Street Journal
By PETER LOFTUS
Cardinal Anthony J. Bevilacqua, the former leader of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia who faced criticism for his handling of allegations of sexual abuse of children by priests, died Tuesday at the age of 88, the diocese said.
Cardinal Bevilacqua’s death came a day after a state judge reaffirmed he was legally competent to testify as a witness in a criminal trial of three priests charged in connection with alleged abuse of children during his tenure as archbishop from 1988 to 2003. Defense attorneys for the priests had argued Cardinal Bevilacqua wasn’t competent to testify because he was senile. He provided videotaped testimony in November that may be played at the trial, scheduled to start later this month. Cardinal Bevliacqua wasn’t charged with any wrongdoing in connection with the abuse allegations.
A spokesman for the archdiocese didn’t provide a cause of death. According to a 2011 court document, Cardinal Bevilacqua’s lawyer said he suffered from dementia and cancer. The diocese said in a statement that he died in his sleep at the Philadelphia seminary where he lived.
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