The Express-Times
October 30, 2009
http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/easton/index.ssf/2009/10/background_doublecheck_may_hav.html
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| Jose Feliciano is escorted by sheriff's deputies during his Superior Court appearance in Morris County. |
In March, the Diocese of Paterson began a push to make sure everyone serving in its parishes and schools had undergone a background check.
The Rev. Edward Hinds' discovery that St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church janitor Jose Feliciano had either not undergone a check or failed one may be why the priest is dead today.
“In March, it just so happens, we re-emphasized and redoubled our efforts to ensure that every single school, every single parish, was compliant,” said Kenneth Mullaney, an attorney for the Paterson Diocese. “My speculation is that perhaps the current issue had to do with that effort.”
Days before his slaying, Hinds told the parish school's principal that Feliciano's job was in jeopardy because of a problem with his background check.
Authorities said Thursday that Feliciano was wanted for the 1988 indecent assault of a minor and has used false names and Social Security numbers over the years.
Feliciano, charged with stabbing Hinds in the church rectory, made his first court appearance Thursday in Morris County.
Police found the priest's blood in Feliciano's home, on a kitchen knife and bloody rags in the park opposite his house and on his cuticles. They also traced Hinds' cell phone to the park.
“That the Father was stabbed 32 times created a situation where there was a lot of blood at the crime scene,” a county prosecutor told the judge. “We can start to see how the defendant was trying to cover up this crime.”
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