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CNN Live Today

Boston Cardinal Continues Testimony in Sex Abuse Case

Aired May 09, 2002 - 14:06   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Cardinal Bernard Law has one grueling day of sworn civil testimony behind him, and more, possibly two more or more, ahead of him.

The issue now, of course, Law's alleged indifference to molestation charges made to priests under command. Jason Carroll tracking story, again, from Boston, back with us live. Jason, good afternoon, again.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you, Bill.

What I'm going to do first is start out with what happened today, and that was a bail hearing for Father Paul Shanley.

As you know Father Shanley is charged with three counts of child rape. And earlier this week he was arraigned on those charges, and his attorney had asked that bail, which was set at $750,000, be reduced.

Well, today there was a bail hearing and the judge in that case, Middlesex County Superior Court Judge Charles Healy (ph) said he would take the matter under consideration and he would notify both parties in writing at a later time.

The arguments that we heard this morning were basically the same points that were taken up during Shanley's arraignment. The deputy D.A., Lynn Rooney (ph), argued that Shanley was a flight risk, saying that church documents showed that he had interest in going to Costa Rica.

She had also indicated that those documents showed that Shanley had admitted to having sexual misconduct with minors.

Shanley's attorney, Frank Mondano (ph), argued that the bail excessive and that the allegations were uncorroborated and that his client is not a flight risk.

Again, Shanley is charged with three counts of child rape. Bail, at least for now, set at $750,000.

Now, in addition to this criminal case involving Shanley, there's also a civil case that's still pending, involving Father Paul Shanley and Boston's Cardinal Bernard Law is scheduled to be deposed in that matter on June 5th. But yesterday, Boston's embattled Cardinal Bernard Law was deposed in another civil case involving a different priest. And that would be defrocked priest John Geoghan.

Yesterday the archdiocese said that Cardinal Law fully cooperated and answered all the questions that were asked of him. The attorney for the plaintiffs in that civil case said Cardinal Law suffered from a case of selective amnesia during his deposition.

Cardinal Law said that, for example, he could not remember receiving a letter back in 1984 from a woman who says that several of her nephews were molested by Geoghan.

Law actually initialed that letter and wrote a note on that letter to one of his bishops saying "urgent, please handle."

Cardinal Law was deposed in civil suit involving 86 of Geoghan's alleged victims. He will be deposed again tomorrow -- Bill.

HEMMER: Jason, tomorrow the deposition continues. I've also heard Monday it's likely as well. Do you have a better read as to how many more days of deposition this will take?

CARROLL: Well, what we're hearing is he will deposed for a few hours on Friday. Then they'll take a break. A few hours again on Monday, and then on Monday they'll make the determination if Cardinal Law needs to be brought back again for further deposition.

But we'll have a better sense of that, I think, on Monday.

HEMMER: Yes, your probably right there. Jason, thanks. Jason Carroll in Boston.

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