CANADA
Northern Life
By: Heidi Ulrichsen – Sudbury Northern Life | Sep 05, 2014
‘Happy Hands’ Hod Marshall dead at 92
One of the Sudbury victims of a former Roman Catholic priest and St. Charles College staff member found guilty of sexual abuse said learning of his death earlier this summer at the age of 92 has brought a bit of closure.
The Windsor Star reported last month William Hodgson (Hod) Marshall died in Toronto on July 28.
But the victim, who cannot be identified due to a court-imposed publication ban, said his anger lingers despite his abuser’s death.
Marshall worked at St. Charles College for a total of 14 years in the 1960s and 1970s, part of the time as the school’s principal. He was given the nickname “Happy Hands” in the 1950s for his tendency to touch students.
He was convicted in Windsor in 2011 to 16 counts of indecent assault of minors and one count of sexual assault for incidents that occurred between 1952 and 1986 in Sudbury, Windsor and Toronto.
Marshall served a total of 16 months behind bars before being released in October 2012 on probation. After his release, he lived at Cardinal Flahiff Basilian Centre in Toronto, a home for retired and infirm priests.
On top of the criminal convictions, Marshall’s victims launched civil lawsuits against the priest in 2012.
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