COLORADO
Gazette
By Lance Benzel Published: July 2, 2013
Was he a “prime target” for a teenage boy’s false claim – or a savvy predator who saw his opportunity and seized it?
Attorneys on Tuesday laid out divergent views of the Rev. Charles Robert “Bob” Manning as the 78-year-old priest’s trial on suspicion of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old altar boy drew to a close in 4th Judicial District Court.
After six days of testimony, a six-man, six-woman jury is to begin deliberations Wednesday morning.
The jury was released at 5 p.m. Tuesday after more than two hours of fiery closing arguments. Attorneys in the case dueled over the strength of evidence against Manning and the credibility of those who testified while Manning’s oxygen tank purred in the background. He is charged with multiple counts of sexual assault on a child by one in position of trust, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and possessing lewd photographs of the boy, one allegedly taken in secret.
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