PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philly.com
ALEX WIGGLESWORTH, FOR PHILLY.COM
LAST UPDATED: Thursday, December 26, 2013
Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams said he will most likely appeal the Superior Court’s reversal Thursday of the conviction of Monsignor William Lynn.
“I am disappointed and strongly disagree with the court’s decision,” Williams said in a statement. “While we are deciding what our next course of action will be, we most likely will be appealing this decision.”
Lynn from 1992 to 2004 served as the secretary for clergy for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and was tasked with handling child sex abuse complaints. He was in June 2012 found guilty of felony child endangerment for covering up sex abuse claims brought against Catholic priests by reshuffling the accused to other parishes.
The Associated Press first report the court’s reversal. The AP reported his lawyers are trying to get Lynn released from prison as early as Thursday afternoon.
Lynn was at the time the first U.S. church official criminally convicted for charges stemming covering up sex abuse claims. The case was hailed as a landmark when it came to holding large institutions accountable for such oversight. Lynn is now 18 months into a 3 to 6 year prison sentence.
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