LINCOLN (IL)
Lincoln Courier
By Nathan Woodside
GateHouse News Service
Posted Oct 22, 2012
LINCOLN —
A former priest and convicted sex offender in Lincoln has been cited for practicing clinical psychology without a license.
According to recently released records, 74-year-old Francis A. Benham was ordered by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to stop the unlicensed practice of clinical psychology after state officials discovered he had business cards printed in which he used the title “Dr.” and claimed to provide “psychotherapy services.” Even though he lacked a doctorate degree in psychology or a state license as a licensed clinical psychologist, he provided psychotherapy services to a client and advertised in a local telephone directory as a psychotherapist, according to state documents.
Online business listings show his practice located at 314 10th St. in Lincoln – the same address listed for Benham in the state sex offender registry.
Benham was released from a Maryland jail in early 2006 after being convicted of sex crimes against children while serving as a priest there in the 1970s. His original sentence included two 10-year terms, but a judge suspended most of that time.
After his release, Benham moved back to Lincoln, where he had lived after leaving the priesthood from 1987 until 2004.
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