Defrocked Priest Ronald Paquin Convicted of Abusing Another Boy

Associated Press
November 29, 2018

http://origin.bishop-accountability.org/AbuseTrackerArchive/2018/11/Defrocked%20priest%20Ronald%20Paquin%20convicted%20of%20abusing%20another%20boy

A defrocked Roman Catholic priest who was a central figure in the clergy abuse scandal that rocked the Archdiocese of Boston was convicted Thursday of sexually abusing another boy.

Ronald Paquin, who was released from prison in 2015, was convicted of assaulting a boy in the 1980s in Kennebunkport, Maine.

The victim, now an adult, told reporters after the verdict that Paquin was "pure evil," thanking jurors for doing "the right thing."

Two men testified Paquin befriended them as boys at a parish in Haverhill, Massachusetts, and invited them on trips that included visits to Kennebunkport, Maine. They said he gave them alcohol, and let them drive his car without a license. One of them testified he was drugged.

Both said Paquin repeatedly assaulted them, but the jury reached a guilty verdict on counts involving only one of the victims. In the end, Paquin was convicted of 11 of the 24 counts against him.

David Clohessy, former national director of the Survivor's Network of those Abused by Priests, said the conviction was "long overdue."

"I feel sad that one of the victims was disbelieved, and that must hurt. But overall, kids will be safer, and hopefully, victims of other predators will feel inspired to come forward and report their abuse," he said.