Jury can hear how church handled past abuse cases, judge rules

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Inquirer

By John P. Martin
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

Prosecutors at the child endangerment and sex-abuse trial of three current and former priests will be allowed to tell jurors how the Archdiocese of Philadelphia handled at least 22 other sex-abuse allegations over decades, a judge ruled Monday.

The decision by Common Pleas Court Judge M. Teresa Sarmina represented a significant victory for prosecutors in their case against Msgr. William J. Lynn, the former archdiocesan official accused of recommending parish assignments for two priests he allegedly knew or suspected would molest boys.

Prosecutors have argued that Lynn’s decisions as Secretary for Clergy in those cases reflected a broader, decades-long practice by church leaders to conceal and protect sexually abusive clergy.

They asked to introduce evidence of allegations against nearly 30 other priests, arguing it was necessary to give jurors a “complete picture” of how the archdiocese routinely responded, or failed to respond, to complaints or signals that priests were sexually assaulting children

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