STOCKTON (CA)
Fresno Bee
The Associated Press
Tuesday, Apr. 17, 2012
STOCKTON, Calif. — A Central Valley Catholic priest found liable in a civil trial of molesting an altar boy has left the country as the trial continues.
The Diocese of Stockton said it received a letter from Michael Kelly on Monday in which the priest said he had returned to his native Ireland. Kelly cited health problems from the stress of the trial.
A civil jury found Kelly liable earlier this month of abusing the boy, now 37. The alleged victim said Kelley abused him in the 1980s when Kelly was a priest at Cathedral of Annunciation in Stockton. Kelly has called the allegation false.
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