PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Daily News
BY JULIE SHAW
Philadelphia Daily News
shawj@phillynews.com 215-854-2592
IN A SHOCKING turn of events, a former priest pleaded guilty to two charges Thursday instead of facing trial in the high-profile clergy-sex-abuse case that is set to begin Monday.
Defrocked priest Edward Avery, 69, pleaded guilty to a count of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse involving a 10-year-old altar boy.
He also pleaded guilty to a count of conspiracy to endanger the welfare of children.
Avery was sentenced to 2 1/2 to 5 years in state prison under a plea deal with prosecutors and was told to surrender on April 2 to begin his sentence.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.