High-Ranking Priest Guilty on One Count in Child Sex Abuse Case
Monsignor William Lynn, the highest-ranking cleric accused of imperiling children by helping cover up sexual abuse, was found guilty Friday of one count of child endangerment.
He was found not guilty on a second count of endangerment and a conspiracy charge to protect a priest accused of abuse.
The jury was unable to bring a verdict against his co-defendant, the Rev. James Brennan, who was charged with attempted rape of a 14-year-old altar boy and endangering the welfare of a child.
The trial marked the first time U.S. prosecutors charged not just priests who allegedly committed abuses but church leaders for failing to stop them.
“This is a historic day for survivors with Monsignor Lynn convicted of child endangerment,” said Marci Hamilton, a Cardozo Law School professor who has written on sexual abuse cases. “Thanks to the brave survivors who came forward.”