WEST VIRGINIA
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
Posted: Wednesday, December 9, 2015
By SAMANTHA PERRY Bluefield Daily Telegraph
PRINCETON — A physical examination of an alleged victim and the question of whether a pastor violated the priest-penitent privilege were issues brought before the court Wednesday in a pretrial hearing of a former church volunteer accused of sexually abusing boys.
Timothy Probert, 57, of Mercer County, is facing 50 charges related to alleged sexual abuse of children stemming from his time spent as a volunteer at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Bluefield and for the Working to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect (WE CAN) program.
Retired Fayette County Judge Charles Vickers heard the motions in Mercer County Circuit Court. Mercer County judges Omar Aboulhosn, Derek Swope and William “Bill” Saddler recused themselves from the case earlier this year citing conflicts of interest.
Addressing the court, defense attorney William Flanigan said one alleged victim spoke of bleeding after anal and rectal sex with Probert. The victim said he had to “use tampons to control the bleeding.”
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