BOSTON (MA)
Boston Herald
By Associated Press
Wednesday, January 5, 2005
BOSTON - Civil commitment hearings for former priest James Porter were delayed for another three months on Wednesday after his doctor said the convicted pedophile is too ill with cancer to appear in court.
Porter is hospitalized in Boston with incurable cancer. On a conference call, his doctor told New Bedford Superior Court Judge Robert Kane, Porter's lawyer and prosecutors that Porter has lost 40 pounds while undergoing four chemotherapy treatments and is not able to leave the hospital. His cancer has not improved but has not shown signs of spreading, the doctor reported.
The next hearing was set for April 7 in Fall River.
Bristol First Assistant District Attorney Renee Dupuis said prosecutors are not ready to drop their bid to have Porter committed indefinitely as a sexually dangerous person.
``We still view Mr. Porter as a risk to reoffend. Nothing has changed that,'' she said. ``We have prosecuted many defendants who are ill and yet can lead fairly normal lives. By virtue of the fact that they're ill doesn't mean that they won't commit additional crimes. I can't see any circumstances under which we would agree to drop our petition.''