KTLA
July 21, 2009
http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-oc-priest-arrested,0,1463950.story
SANTA ANA — A former priest who escaped prosecution for allegedly sexually molesting a boy more than 30 years ago is behind bars, accused of doing the same thing to another boy in Costa mesa in the early 1990s.
Denis Lyons, 75, was arrested near his home in Seal Beach Monday afternoon, according to the District Attorney's Office.
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| Denis Lyons |
Lyons is accused of molesting the boy, who was between 7 and 9 years old at the time, when he was at St. John the Baptist School, according to prosecutors.
Lyons' alleged victim, 24-year-old Jonathan Kirrer, says he was molested in 1994 and 1995 when he was in third grade at St. John the Baptist Catholic School.
Lyons was removed from the church in 2002 after admitting that he had inappropriate sexual relations with adults in 1993. He was also charged with molesting a boy in 1978, but the case was dropped because of a Supreme Court ruling that stopped the prosecution of some older sex crimes.
Several people have accused Lyons of sexual abuse, prompting the Diocese of Orange to pay out $4 million to settle such sex abuse claims.
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