PENNSYLVANIA
WJAC
By: Maria Miller
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Defense attorneys for a Central City priest accused of inappropriately touching young boys on mission trips overseas argued Thursday against an expert witness testifying at his trial.
The Rev. Joseph Maurizio goes on trial next week. Prosecutors added an expert witness to their list of those who will testify, and a federal judge considered request on Thursday. Maurizio walked into the courtroom Thursday afternoon looking gaunt, his hands in a prayerful pose, and no family or friends to support him.
Only his defense team was at his side. The prosecution’s expert witness, Dr. Veronique Valliere, is a licensed psychologist from the Allentown area who specializes in interpersonal violence, including physical and sexual abuse of children.
Prosecutors said they plan to use her toward the end of the trial to help the jury better understand children of sexual abuse victims and the myths surrounding the ways they should or shouldn’t behave.
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