PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Newsworks
[with audio]
By Elizabeth Fiedler
The first U.S. church official convicted for his handling of sexual abuse allegations against other priests has been sentenced to three to six years in prison.
The sentence was handed down today in Philadelphia to Monsignor William Lynn, the former secretary for clergy at Philadelphia Archdiocese. …
District Attorney Seth Williams said the sentence validates years of work.
“This is a very different type of case. One that many people say is unprecedented in American jurisprudence and I am very proud of the men and women of the grand juries and the men and women of the district attorney’s office for bringing this case on behalf of all victims,” he said.
Williams says while Lynn did not abuse children, he didn’t do enough to protect them.
“As the father of three daughters, to know that someone reported potentially that my daughter was raped, didn’t call law enforcement, didn’t even try to let me know that I have a ticking time bomb in the room next to me that needs counseling — is insufficient,” Williams said. “And that is why he’s here. That is why he’s held responsible for his behavior.”
“I think this is a guide for the world,” says Marci Hamilton, the co-counsel in several civil cases brought by plaintiffs who allege abuse and cover-up by Philadelphia church officials.
“I do think that Seth Williams has set the standard so that prosecutors now know that they can get justice for victims of child sexual abuse,” Hamilton says. “And prosecutors were afraid these kinds of prosecutions even 10 years ago. They were elected officials and they were afraid of being targeted as being anti-Catholic.”
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