By Sheila Sanchez
The Patch
August 18, 2011
http://losgatos.patch.com/articles/october-trial-possible-in-los-gatos-priest-beating-case
 |
An Oct. 17 date has been picked for jury trial motions in the case against a San Francisco man accused of beating a priest at the Los Gatos Sacred Heart Jesuit Center last year.
Attorneys representing William Lynch, 44, are expected to appear then at 9 a.m. in Dept. 34 of the Santa Clara County Courthouse in San Jose.
Lynch has been arraigned on one count of felony assault with intent to cause great bodily injury and one count of elder abuse under circumstances likely to produce great bodily harm or death.
Authorities say he walked into the center's reception area the afternoon of May 10, 2010, asked to speak to Father Jerold Lindner. He said he had a death notification about a member of the priest's family and then allegedly assaulted him. He has pleaded not guilty to both charges.
The hearing today was presided over by Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge David Cena.
Attending the trial setting conference will be attorneys from the Los Angeles-based law firm of Geragos & Geragos and Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Vicki Gemetti, who is prosecuting the case.
Gemetti said she anticipated the trial to begin sometime in October. If convicted of both charges, Lynch could face a maximum of four years in jail.
"Any punishment would be decided by the court, if he's convicted at trial," Gemetti responded when asked if Lynch should receive leniency because of his allegations that the defrocked Jesuit priest raped and sodomized him and his brother when they were small boys in the '70s while on camping trips.
"This case is about the fact that the defendant has committed a crime," Gemetti said.
Asked whether Lindner, will testify as well as other witnesses of the alleged assault, Gemetti said she would not comment about the evidence planned to be presented at trial.
"I'm going to try this case in court and not in the media," Gemetti said when asked if abuse allegations against Lindner will be precluded from the jury.
Several calls and emails to Lynch's attorneys weren't returned by the time of this posting.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.