BishopAccountability.org
	Plaintiff: Shanley Led to Drug Use By Danny Lauridsen The Daily Free Press [Cambridge MA] January 28, 2005 An alleged sexual abuse victim took the stand twice Thursday at Middlesex Court in Cambridge to testify against Paul Shanley, a 74-year-old former Catholic priest from St. Jean's parish in Newton, who is facing three charges of raping a child and two charges of indecent assault and battery on a child. During the second day of cross-examination, the accuser, a 27-year-old Newton firefighter, answered questions from defense attorney Frank Mondano, who said the alleged victim's memories of sexual abuse were unreliable because they had been repressed until January 2001. Mondano focused on the accuser's history of substance abuse and gambling addiction. The accuser admitted to using steroids for about eight years, between the ages of 16 and 24, blaming Shanley for his "poor self-image." "People said I wasn't fat," he said, adding that because of Shanley, "I thought I was. [Taking steroids] just made me feel better about myself." The accuser said he sometimes used multiple steroids while he was a military police officer for the Air Force in Colorado and while he played semi-professional baseball in Tallahassee, Fla. He said Shanley ruined his aspirations to play professionally. The accuser testified to being kicked out of his home when he was 16 after his father found steroids in his room. Then, according to the accuser, he slept wherever he could, including on park benches in Newton. Since then, the accuser said he drank heavily until February 2002. While in Florida, the accuser said he gambled consistently, losing between $1,500 and $2,000. He owed money to bookies and at one point faced judgment for not paying rent. The atmosphere was calmer than Wednesday's, when Mondano disputed the accuser's credibility openly and pointed out discrepancies between his statements Wednesday and testimony in a 2002 civil suit.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.