STOCKTON (CA)
Stockton Record
By Jennie Rodriguez-Moore
Record Staff Writer
April 06, 2012
STOCKTON – Jurors in the child sex-abuse trial of popular priest the Rev. Michael Kelly began hearing closing statements Thursday, summarizing the six-week civil trial that was focused on a 37-year-old man’s repressed memories.
Kelly, currently pastor at St. Joachim’s Church in Lockeford, is accused of molesting a former altar boy, identified in court documents only as John TZ Doe, at Cathedral of the Annunciation during the mid-1980s.
The plaintiff filed suit after learning there would be no criminal charges because the statute of limitations had run out.
“It’s not easy hearing about a child raped,” the plaintiff’s attorney, John Manly, addressed jurors. “He didn’t ask for this.”
Meanwhile, the defense countered that, while the plaintiff believes the abuse to be real, he’s clinging to recovered memories that were made up.
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.