PHILADELPHIA (PA)
CBS News
Philly DA seeks 7-year sentence for Monsignor William Lynn, priest convicted of felony child endangerment
By Paula Reid Topi
(CBS) PHILADELPHIA – The Philadelphia District Attorney is seeking seven years in prison for Monsignor William Lynn, the Archdioceses of Philadelphia official convicted of felony child endangerment.
The District Attorney filed a motion today arguing that the maximum sentence of seven years is the only way to impress upon Lynn that, “[T]he protection of children trumps the reputation of abusers and the institution that harbors them.”
Lynn was convicted on June 22. He is the first American church official who has not actually abused children to be convicted of endangering the welfare of a child in a jury trial and subsequently incarcerated.
Lynn’s lawyers have asked the court to show leniency. They argue that Msgr. Lynn poses no danger to the public and has been sufficiently rehabilitated during the legal ordeal, which began in 2002.
Advocates for survivors of sex abuse want to see Lynn jailed. The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), released a statement saying that Lynn still poses a threat to public safety. SNAP argues that Lynn put “hundreds” of children at risk by helping “perhaps dozens of predators stay hidden, employed, and around kids.”
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