Monday, January 28, 2013

Big Trial Reports - Examining The Evidence in the Philadelphia Priest Abuse Trial

After two weeks of testimony, the jury has started their deliberations. Big Trial reports on the events leading up the trial, the evidence presented in court by both sides, and the potential impact on the already convicted Msgr. William J. Lynn.


4 comments

  1. Ralph, it is neat to put a face and a voice to your articles! Great stuff. Do you believe, that with the prior Church record that Fr. Avery had, with the Archdiocese deeming all the past accusations against him as "credible" he can be believed when recanting his original guilty plea? Just want to see your take on his character, after seeing him on the stand. Thanks as always, great reporting.

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    1. Momma O, the "smiling padre" is a strange and creepy guy. I thought he was credible, though, and I kept thinking about self-interest. He had nothing to gain by saying what he did. It will only be used against him. So why did he do it? One of the possibilities you have to consider is, he was telling the truth. Also, according to legal papers, he told his lawyers and a polygraph examiner the same thing. HIs claims certainly bear more investigation. It makes you suspicious about why the judge or the prosecutor didn't ask him during his plea hearing the simple question asked at this trial, namely did you do it? Regardless of where you fall on this issue, we all owe the smiling padre a debt of thanks for enlivening what could have been a boring trial. If the prosecution hadn't taken a monumental gamble by bringing Avery in, the defense in this case would have never dared to do it.

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  2. Great video, much appreciated. I have noticed that in this video and in stories summarizing the case there is no mention of the attempted suicide. That's confusing to me. It seems like a very big part of the evidence. I guess that it's being assumed that he was just super depressed in a general way or something and that it's somehow not important. I'll be surprised if the jury overlooks it too. Thanks again for the video.

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  3. Mr. Cipriano - Just am seeing this story, and would like to believe all of the accused are innocent. However, your portrayal of "Billy Doe" as an incompetent (at best) witness in large part because of his history of drug abuse - have you ever wondered why a person would turn to such destructive behavior - what events in one's life would cause this?

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