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William LynnPastor of St. Joseph's Church in Downingtown
Country:
 USA |
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Biography of William Lynn
William Lynn is a former pastor of St. Joseph Church in Downingtown, Philadelphia. He gained attention in February 2012 when he was arrested as part of a high-profile case involving sexual abuse within the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. Lynn, who was 61 years old at the time, was accused of covering up the crimes of accused priests and placing them in positions where they could harm more children. He was also the first American church official to be charged with endangering child safety by not removing the accused perpetrators from the clergy and failing to report their actions to the police.
Arrest and Trial
In March 2012, Lynn was formally charged, and a week later, Cardinal Justin Francis Rigali placed him on administrative leave. Despite his arrest, Lynn maintained his innocence, claiming to be a victim of excessive zeal from the district attorney's office. He became the highest-ranking Catholic church official in the United States to face charges related to child sexual abuse.
Lynn's trial began in late March 2012, alongside another priest, James J. Brennan, who was accused of raping a 14-year-old boy in 1996. Edward Avery, another accused priest, had initially been part of the trial, but he pleaded guilty in March and was sentenced to prison immediately. It is worth noting that Avery had faced multiple complaints about sexual assaults as early as 1992, including one involving a 10-year-old boy. However, Lynn, as the secretary of the archdiocese, did not take adequate action against Avery at that time.
During the trial, two of Edward Avery's victims testified against Lynn on April 25, 2012. Lynn and his lawyer, Thomas Bergstrom, initially claimed that he had tried to draw attention to the long-standing issue of sexual abuse during his time as secretary of the archdiocese from 1992 to 2004. However, his efforts were allegedly undermined by the late Cardinal Anthony Joseph Bevilacqua and other church leaders. The jury was presented with a 1994-dated list compiled by Lynn, which revealed that 35 accused priests were still active in five archdiocese parishes. Avery's name appeared on this list as a perpetrator of violence. Cardinal Bevilacqua had ordered the destruction of the list, but a copy was saved.
On April 19, 2012, the court heard Lynn's testimony regarding the case of Stanley Gana. In 1992, a seminarian informed Lynn and his immediate supervisor, the late Monsignor James Malloy, that he had been raped by Gana during his senior year at school. The seminarian provided Lynn and Malloy with the names and parishes of two other potential victims, but they did not reach out to them. Malloy advised Gana to avoid contact with the seminarian, as the accusations, if true, could lead to criminal prosecution. Lynn agreed with these testimonies and claimed that he did not inform the police because they did not require him to do so. Gana served as a pastor in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania until 1995 and then moved to Florida. He is currently 69 years old, and his whereabouts are unknown.
Verdict
On June 22, 2012, Monsignor William Lynn was convicted of one count of endangering the welfare of a child and acquitted of one count of conspiracy. If he had been convicted on all three charges, he could have faced a prison sentence of 10 to 20 years. However, he is now facing up to seven years in prison, although the actual sentence he receives may be less severe.
