Catholic Church Won't Pay Legal Fees Of Bishop Facing Child Porn Charges

[lemonbeam]

AHN Staff

Halifax, Nova Scotia (AHN) - Halifax Catholic Church Archbishop Anthony Mancini said Monday the archdiocese will not shoulder the legal fees of Antigonish Diocese Bishop Raymond Lahey, who is facing child pornography charges.

Mancini stressed Lahey has not requested for such kind of financial assistance, but if he would, the archbishop said the request would be thumbed down.

While the diocese has policies that it must pay for legal assistance to church employees who are facing lawsuits, the 69-year old Lahey had already resigned his post as a result of the scandal. He was arrested at the Ottawa airport after authorities discovered disturbing images on his laptop. Lahey is out on bail.

A Portugal Cove priest claims a young boy had confessed to him of discovering similar lewd materials 20 years ago in Lahey’s rectory at Cornerbrook. However, no complaint came out against Lahey who had shown fondness for boys way back then, until the recent incident in Ottawa airport exposed the bishop’s deep, dark secrets.

Speculations that the Antigonish diocese may pay for Lahey’s legal fees caused parishioners to hold back giving cash offerings during Sunday mass, although it is unknown if the Catholic churches in the diocese had lesser collections because of the incident.

allheadlinenews.com/articles/7016619283?Catholic%20Church%20Won’t%20Pay%20Legal%20Fees%20Of%20Bishop%20Facing%20Child%20Porn%20Charges

 

[Godfollower]

allheadlinenews.com/articles/7016619283?Catholic%20Church%20Won’t%20Pay%20Legal%20Fees%20Of%20Bishop%20Facing%20Child%20Porn%20Charges

Two thoughts:

1. He has no other income. What if a paid lawyer could prove that he’s innocent (someone else put the images on the laptop; the images are not in fact child porn; a virus had taken over the computer and was using it as a 'bot to distribute child porn; etc.)? It’s the bishop’s duty to take care of his priests. He doesn’t have to go to prison in their place, but he is supposed to help them when they’re in trouble. The fact that everyone is assuming that he’s guilty – even if collections drop to zero because everyone is assuming that he’s guilty – is no reason to reject the presumption of innocence.
2. “A Portugal Cove priest claims a young boy had confessed to him of discovering similar lewd materials 20 years ago in Lahey’s rectory at Cornerbrook . . . .” Are you kidding me?!?! Please tell me that there’s more to this than a violation of the seal of the confessional!

 

[Phemie]

Two thoughts:

1. He has no other income. What if a paid lawyer could prove that he’s innocent (someone else put the images on the laptop; the images are not in fact child porn; a virus had taken over the computer and was using it as a 'bot to distribute child porn; etc.)? It’s the bishop’s duty to take care of his priests. He doesn’t have to go to prison in their place, but he is supposed to help them when they’re in trouble. The fact that everyone is assuming that he’s guilty – even if collections drop to zero because everyone is assuming that he’s guilty – is no reason to reject the presumption of innocence.

He was a university professor and he’s been a bishop for 20+ years – shouldn’t he have some money put aside?

1. “A Portugal Cove priest claims a young boy had confessed to him of discovering similar lewd materials 20 years ago in Lahey’s rectory at Cornerbrook . . . .” Are you kidding me?!?! Please tell me that there’s more to this than a violation of the seal of the confessional!

It’s got nothing to do with the sacrament of Penance, the teen went to him to tell him what he’d seen because he felt betrayed by someone whom he’d considered a friend. Said priest passed on the information to the Archbishop and also warned Lahey that a teen had found porn in his house - he states he wasn’t told it was child porn.

 

[Godfollower]

He was a university professor and he’s been a bishop for 20+ years – shouldn’t he have some money put aside?

What kind of salary does he draw as a bishop? Did he keep the salary as a professor, or did he give it to the diocese?

More importantly, even if he’s lucky enough to have some money set aside, so what? It’s the bishop’s duty to take care of his priests. Civil law and canon law both presume innocence until proof of guilt; we don’t jettison that just because the charges are icky. If he would pay the legal fees of a priest accused of DUI or assault, then he should pay the legal fees of a priest (or bishop) accused of child porn.

It’s got nothing to do with the sacrament of Penance, the teen went to him to tell him what he’d seen because he felt betrayed by someone whom he’d considered a friend. Said priest passed on the information to the Archbishop and also warned Lahey that a teen had found porn in his house - he states he wasn’t told it was child porn.

That’s a relief. The way the article put it, it sure sounded like the priest was violating the seal of Confession.