Philadelphia priest released on bail after conviction reversed

August 03, 2016

Msgr. William Lynn, a former official of the Philadelphia archdiocese, has been released on $250,000 bail after an appeals court overturned his conviction. Prosecutors announced that they would seek to retry him on child endangerment charges.

In 2012, Msgr. Lynn became the highest-ranking American cleric to be sentenced to jail—not for abuse that he committed, but for negligence in responding to abuse by others under his supervision. But in December 2015 a court ordered a new trial, saying that evidence against him was tainted. Philadelphia prosecutors appealed that decision, but the appeals court ruled in the priest’s favor.

Msgr. Lynn has served nearly three years in prison.

 

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Further information:

• Msgr. William Lynn freed on bail until retrial in church sex abuse case (Philadelphia Inquirer)
• Philadelphia priest seeks bail after conviction reversed (CWN, 8/2)