BishopAccountability.org
	Briefly: Lawyers: Open Files on Priests Commercial Appeal February 13, 2009 http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/feb/13/06/ A motion has been filed in Circuit Court to unseal documents that name 15 priests accused of sexual abuse in the Catholic Diocese of Memphis. Lawyers representing a man abused by a Catholic priest want to open thousands of pages from the diocese to the public. According to attorneys Gary Smith and Karen Campbell, priests named in the documents include clergy who are dead, retired and some still active. It also includes priests whose guilt has not yet been determined. The motion is part of a lawsuit involving plaintiff John R. Doe, who was abused by Father Juan Carlos Duran, a former priest at the Church of the Ascension in North Memphis. Also named in the suit are Durran and the Order of Preachers, also known as the Dominicans. Plaintiff's attorneys plan to use the sealed documents in the trial to prove the diocese helped perpetuate abuse. The case goes to trial before Judge Charles McPherson in Circuit Court on Feb. 23. -- Lindsay Melvin Federal Court Hotel robber gets 135 years A Memphis man convicted of robbing six motels and hotels in 18 days in 2001 was sentenced Thursday to 135 years in federal prison. Ronald McNeil, 27, was convicted in September on six counts of armed robbery affecting interstate commerce and six counts of carrying or using a firearm during those robberies. U.S. Dist. Court Judge Samuel Mays Jr. sentenced McNeil to 70 months for the robbery convictions plus 130 years for the weapons offenses. McNeil and two accomplices usually hit the motels between 9 and 11 p.m. on weekends, netting between $200 and $1,500 per robbery. Federal prosecutors David Henry and Lorraine Craig said the men were caught June 16, 2001, during an attempted robbery of the Comfort Inn at 5877 Poplar. The codefendants pleaded guilty to various charges. Ulysses Woods was sentenced to 30 years in prison and Tyrone Jones was sentenced to 20 years. -- Lawrence Buser Man convicted of child porn A former security guard has been convicted in federal court on charges of producing and possessing child pornography. Courtney Knowles, 28, was arrested in April 2007 when police were called to a domestic disturbance in Frayser centered on a videotape found by the mother of two girls, ages 10 and 12. The tape, police said, showed the 12-year-old girl posing naked in various positions as instructed by a man operating the camera. The younger girl told police Knowles forced her to engage in sexual activity with him. Knowles faces 15 to 30 years in prison when he is sentenced May 27 by U.S. Dist. Court Judge Jon McCalla. Knowles still faces state charges of child rape and sexual exploitation of a minor stemming from the same incidents. -- Lawrence Buser BRIEFLY... Free spinal screenings for scoliosis will be available 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday in Cordova. They are designed for young people 9 through 16. Girls should wear a sports bra under their shirts. The screenings are provided by Scoliosis Specialist, 256 Germantown Bend Cove, suite 103. Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center is recruiting members for a family council to help guide hospital policy, programs and the design of its new hospital. Anyone interested in joining the 15-member council or serving on a committee is invited to a brunch sponsored by the hospital. The event is set for 10 a.m. Saturday. For more information or to make a reservation, call Janet Phillips at 287-6735 or e-mail phillipj@lebonheur.org.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.