PHILADELPHIA (PA)
My Fox Phoenix
MARYCLAIRE DALE, Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – A defrocked Philadelphia priest pleaded guilty Thursday to a sex-abuse charge, just days before a landmark priest abuse trial is set to start.
Edward Avery, 69, pleaded guilty to involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and conspiracy to endanger the welfare of a child. He was immediately sentenced to 2½ to five years in prison and was ordered to surrender within 10 days.
The charges stemmed from Avery’s abuse of an altar boy at St. Jerome’s Parish in northeast Philadelphia.
Two other church officials will still go on trial. One is Monsignor William Lynn, the first U.S. church official ever charged with endangering children for allegedly failing to oust accused predators from the priesthood.
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