PHOENIX (AZ)
Arizona Daily Sun
By ANABELLE GARAY
Associated Press Writer
12/24/2004
PHOENIX -- The retired Catholic bishop who was convicted in a fatal hit-and-run has completed half of the community service hours he was ordered to perform as part of his sentence.
Bishop Thomas O'Brien, former leader of the Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, was halfway through the required 1,000 community service hours by last week, said diocese spokeswoman Mary Jo West.
O'Brien has kept regular weekly appointments at a hospital and nursing home, ministering to patients and residents, West said. ...
O'Brien resigned in June 2003 after police arrested him on suspicion of striking 43-year-old pedestrian Jim Reed with his car and leaving the scene of the accident.
Shortly before his arrest, O'Brien had signed an agreement with the prosecutor's office that protected him from any potential charges of criminal cover-up related to allegations of abuse by clergy.
In the agreement, O'Brien acknowledged that priests accused of sexual misconduct had been allowed to work with children and were sometimes transferred to other parishes without the knowledge of supervisors or parishioners.
Posted by kshaw at December 24, 2004 08:37 AM