February 15, 2005

Defrocked Priest to be Sentenced Today

BOSTON (MA)
CBN

By Denise Lavoie
Associated Press Writer

February 15, 2005

CBN.com – BOSTON (AP) -- Defrocked priest Paul Shanley, one of the most recognizable figures in the Boston Archdiocese sex scandal, faces the possibility of life in prison for his conviction on child rape charges. Shanley is scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday.

But some inmate advocates say whatever term Shanley gets could amount to a death sentence.

Another key figure in the scandal, former priest John Geoghan, was beaten and strangled behind bars in 2003, a year after being convicted of molesting a 10-year-old boy. A fellow prisoner later told investigators he killed Geoghan "to save the children."

"He's so high-profile that that puts a big target on his back," said James Pingeon, a lawyer at Massachusetts Correctional Legal Services, a group that provides civil legal services to inmates. "We feel concerned. Obviously he's a vulnerable person because of his notoriety and his age."

Posted by kshaw at February 15, 2005 09:11 AM