CAMBRIDGE (MA)
Herald Tribune
The Associated Press
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- A jury of eight men and eight women will hear the child rape case against former Catholic priest Paul Shanley, one of the most notorious figures in the clergy sex abuse scandal.
Jury selection was completed Thursday afternoon and the 12 regular jurors and four alternates will hear opening statements from the lawyers on Monday in Middlesex Superior Court.
Shanley, 73, is accused of child rape and indecent assault and battery on a child under 14. The alleged victim, now 27, says Shanley raped him repeatedly at St. Jean's parish in Newton between 1983 and 1989, beginning when he was 6 years old.
Shanley, once a long-haired priest in blue jeans who reached out to Boston's troubled youth, was defrocked by the Vatican last year.
His lawyer, Frank Mondano, has said he will argue that the accuser made up his story to win a monetary award in a civil lawsuit.