BishopAccountability.org
	Canadian Court Hears That Bishop Lahey Poses No Danger to Minors U.S. Catholic December 22, 2011 http://www.uscatholic.org/news/2011/12/canadian-court-hears-bishop-lahey-poses-no-danger-minors OTTAWA, Ontario (CCN) -- Bishop Raymond Lahey is not a pedophile and poses virtually no risk of sexual abuse or violence against children, a forensic psychiatrist testified during a sentencing hearing for the prelate who has pleaded guilty to child pornography charges. John Bradford, the psychiatrist who examined Bishop Lahey, described him Dec. 19, the first day of the hearing, as a homosexual with an addiction to Internet pornography. The bishop also entertains sadomasochistic fantasies, but indicated during questioning that he has never acted on those fantasies, Bradford said at the hearing. Bradford said that in a sexual history inventory, Bishop Lahey revealed that he had engaged in "a number of one-night stands" before settling into a "long-standing relationship that has lasted 10 years" and which the bishop hopes to continue when he leaves prison. Michael Edelson, Bishop Lahey's attorney, later said he knew about the romantic relationship and that the other man was not a cleric but a "civilian." Bishop Lahey pleaded guilty May 5 to a charge of possession of child pornography for importation stemming from his arrest at the Ottawa airport in September 2009. Authorities discovered the images on the bishop's personal computer. The bishop opted to go directly to jail before sentencing and has served more than seven months behind bars. Because of that, his attorneys contended during the hearing, Bishop Lahey should be released immediately and placed on probation. They argued Bishop Lahey should get two-for-one credit for time already served and that the time should be applied to the one-year minimum sentence required in such cases. Until February 2010, Canadians could receive double credit for time served prior to sentencing. Charges were filed against the bishop in September 2009 under the old law. Sentencing was set for Jan. 4. Prosecutors argued Dec. 20 for a sentence of 18 to 22 months. Government attorney David Elhadad said Bishop Lahey's lawyers minimized the gravity of the charges. He explained that the images on the bishop's computers included adolescent boys as young as 12 engaged in graphic sex acts. He noted the images were downloaded on several different dates and said Lahey would not have stopped if he hadn't been arrested. Bradford also testified that Bishop Lahey, 71, has no personality disorder. While the bishop showed some signs of cognitive distortion, the psychiatrist said he did not think he needed psychiatric treatment. Bradford said that Bishop Lahey's age and his decreased sex drive as a result of the trauma of his incarceration has greatly reduced his likelihood of ever posing a danger to children or teens. Edelson pointed out that of the 588 images of child pornography on the computer, only 285 were possessed knowingly because many were in the computer's temporary cache. Edelson acknowledged that Bishop Lahey had more than 155,000 pornographic images on his computer. There is no evidence Lahey paid for child pornography or that he knew how to use sophisticated file sharing equipment, Edelson said. He also spoke of the bishop's good deeds in ministry, his academic accomplishments and the character references from people who had known him for decades.
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