PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philly.com
by Justine McDaniel, STAFF WRITER
Lawyers for Msgr. William J. Lynn have asked the state Supreme Court to reject prosecutors’ appeal of a court decision granting Lynn a new trial, calling the request “breathtakingly dishonest.”
In court documents filed Tuesday, lawyers for Lynn, who was granted a new trial in December after being convicted for his role in supervising pedophile Catholic priests, contend that there are no grounds for appeal under state rules.
A Superior Court panel overturned Lynn’s conviction and granted a new trial after finding that evidence about priests not involved in Lynn’s case swayed the jury.
In its petition, filed less than two weeks ago, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office argued that the jury needed to hear historical evidence of child-abuse in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
But Lynn’s attorney, Thomas A. Bergstrom, argued that the case does not meet the general standards for appeals because the Superior Court’s decision was an unpublished opinion.
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