BALTIMORE (MD)
Fox 23
BALTIMORE (AP) - A man who shot and wounded a former priest three years ago, accusing him of abuse, testified Friday that he was "in disbelief" when the molestation began.
The former priest, Maurice Blackwell, is charged with four counts of child sex abuse. His accuser, Dontee Stokes, served home detention for accosting him on a city street in 2002 and shooting him.
Using explicit language and demonstrating with gestures, Stokes, 29, said pats on the back and ear-tugging from the popular priest led to sexual molestation. He testified he was "in disbelief" and "disgusted."
But the former altar boy acknowledged that he told no one about the abuse until a year after it ended.
"I didn't want to get him in trouble and have him removed," Stokes said.
In opening statements earlier Friday, lawyers for Blackwell described Stokes as a confused young man afraid to admit he was a homosexual for fear of being ostrascized by his family.