FILE – In this Jan. 6, 2014, file photo, Monsignor William Lynn leaves a bail hearing at the Center for Criminal Justice in Philadelphia. Lynn, long imprisoned over his handling of abuse complaints, may learn Friday, March 24, 2017, if his legal odyssey will come to an end. Lynn served nearly three years of a three- to six-year sentence when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court tossed his conviction over trial errors. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
(The Associated Press)
PHILADELPHIA – A former Philadelphia church official long imprisoned over his handling of abuse complaints may soon learn if his legal odyssey will come to an end.
Monsignor William Lynn served nearly three years of a three- to six-year sentence when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court tossed his conviction over trial errors.
That was the second time Lynn’s 2012 conviction for child endangerment had been thrown out.
The high court said the trial judge had let too many other priest-abuse victims testify.
Prosecutors will ask a judge Friday to retry the 66-year-old Lynn. They say he helped the archdiocese transfer problem priests without warning.
Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams charged Lynn even though his predecessor thought the law did not allow it.
Williams remains in office despite his arrest this week on federal bribery charges.
