NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH-FAITH
Prosecutor, parents, activist sight faith in Trayvon Martin case
UNDATED (AP) — The special prosecutor in the case of an unarmed Florida teen shot to death by a community watch volunteer cites prayer as a part of her handling of the case.
Prosecutor Angela Corey said at a news conference yesterday that she opened her first meeting with the parents of Trayvon Martin with a prayer. And Corey said she's thankful for the continued prayers of people seeking justice in the case.
Speaking in Washington, Martin's mother, Sybrina Fulton, expressed her appreciation to God following Wednesday's arrest.
And a pastor and activist in nationwide protests, credits social media and the church community with the case going forward. The Rev. Jamal Bryant, pastor of Baltimore's Empowerment Temple, says church members and pastors who wore hoodies in the pulpit made a difference. Supporters of prosecution wore hoodies because Martin was wearing one when he was killed.
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400-a-11-(Angela Corey, special prosecutor, at news conference)-"our prosecution team"-Special prosecutor Angela Corey says she's thankful for prayers over her handling of the Trayvon Martin case. (11 Apr 2012)
<<CUT *400 (04/11/12)>> 00:11 "our prosecution team"
401-a-09-(Sybrina (sih-BREE'-nuh) Fulton, mother of Trayvon Martin, at news conference)-"thank you Jesus."-Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin, thanked God for an arrest in connection with the fatal shooting of her son by a community watch voluneer. (11 Apr 2012)
<<CUT *401 (04/11/12)>> 00:09 "thank you Jesus."
402-a-09-(Rev. Jamal Bryant, pastor, Baltimore's Empowerment Temple , at news conference)-"who wore hoods"-The Rev. Jamal Bryant, pastor of Baltimore's Empowerment Temple, says pressure from social media and the religious community made a difference in the case. (11 Apr 2012)
<<CUT *402 (04/11/12)>> 00:09 "who wore hoods"
CHURCH ABUSE-BOSTON
Boston Archdiocese settles 2 clergy abuse claims
BOSTON (AP) — A lawyer for clergy sex abuse victims has released the names of seven pedophile priests and is criticizing the Archdiocese of Boston for not coming forward with the names on its own.
Attorney Mitchell Garabedian said he reached five- or six-figure settlements within the last 15 months in all the cases. Two of the men are living out of state and five are dead, including four who worked at some time in the Boston area.
Garabedian says he has published the names of credibly accused priests on his website. He singled out local church officials for not disclosing the names before he did.
A specialist in representing abuse victims, he says the church continues to hide abuses. He says it "purports to be the most moral institution in the world, yet acts immorally."
399-w-58-(Norman Hall, AP correspondent, with abuse victims' attorney Mitchell Garabedian)--Closer Look: A lawyer who represents victims of church abuse says the Catholic church isn't living up to abuse reforms. The AP's Norman Hall reports. (11 Apr 2012)
<<CUT *399 (04/11/12)>> 00:58
403-a-12-(Mitchell Garabedian, attorney for priest abuse victiims, in AP interview)-"are made safe"-Abuse victims' attorney Mitchell Garabedian says releasing the names of credibly accused priests is the right thing for church leaders to do. (11 Apr 2012)
<<CUT *403 (04/11/12)>> 00:12 "are made safe"
404-a-12-(Mitchell Garabedian, attorney for priest abuse victiims, in AP interview)-"of the pedophiles"-Abuse victims' attorney Mitchell Garabedian says he doesn't buy the church audit of abuse cases released this week because it wasn't transparent. (11 Apr 2012)
<<CUT *404 (04/11/12)>> 00:12 "of the pedophiles"
405-a-05-(Mitchell Garabedian, attorney for priest abuse victiims, in AP interview)-"not protect children"-Abuse victims' attorney Mitchell Garabedian says the church is still not doing all it can. (11 Apr 2012)
<<CUT *405 (04/11/12)>> 00:05 "not protect children"
PRIEST ABUSE TRIAL
Decades of secret files presented to jurors in Philadelphia priest-abuse trial
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Prosecutors in Philadelphia say a priest facing complaints of abuse was transferred around the Archdiocese of Philadelphia at least eight times, each without a warning to the parish.
The disclosure came yesterday at the trial of the first Roman Catholic official in the U.S. charged with endangering children by allegedly keeping pedophile priests in parish work in order to avoid scandal.
According to a document, the priest, the Rev. Francis Trauger, had denied allegations of abuse for decades before admitting what he did. He was defrocked in 2005.
Trauger is not a defendant in the case. But he and others are being used by prosecutors in the trial of Monsignor William Lynn, a high-ranking archdiocesan official who was entrusted with investigating abuse complaints against priests. Lynn's attorneys say their client tried to oust predator priests but was blocked by his superiors.
FORMER PRIEST SENTENCED
Ex-priest sentenced for ripping off paralyzed man
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A former Roman Catholic priest won't have to spend more time in jail for stealing thousands of dollars from a paralyzed man while he was caring for him.
A judge in Bismark, N.D., sentenced 68-year-old Cyprian Meier to 18 months in prison for exploiting a vulnerable adult. The sentence was suspended for five years. Meier will get credit for 148 days he's already spent in jail.
The former priest has also been ordered to pay almost $30,000 to his victim's estate and perform community service. Meier spent the money on Internet scams.
CHURCH-CROSS BEATING
Jury sees video in Arkansas cross-beating trial
WYNNE, Ark. (AP) — Jurors in a northeast Arkansas murder trial have viewed a videotape of the suspect re-enacting how he brutally beat an 80-year-old woman with a brass cross inside a church.
The Jonesboro Sun reports that the jury saw the video Tuesday in the capital murder trial of Rene Bourassa Jr., who's charged in the June 2010 death of Lillian Wilson. Prosecutors say Bourassa willingly returned to the church to show investigators how he killed Wilson.
Bourassa's attorneys admit that their client killed Wilson, but they're asking the jury to consider a lesser charge than capital murder. They say Bourassa killed the woman in a rage after she spoke to him about God and forgiveness. But prosecutors say the killing was premeditated.
RUSSIA-CLERIC KILLED
Cleric from banned Islamic group stabbed to death in Moscow
MOSCOW — Russian police say a cleric from a banned Islamic group has been stabbed to death in Moscow in what his colleagues called an apparent hate crime.
Moscow city police said Wednesday that the body of the cleric (Metin Mekhtiyev) was found late Tuesday with severe knife wounds near his apartment building in central Moscow.
He had worked at the Islamic Culture Center, one of the oldest Islamic groups in Russia, which was banned by Russia's Supreme Court last year. The group claimed the ban was instigated by the Federal Security Service, Russia's main KGB successor agency.
CHURCH ARSON
Arson fire heavily damages Md. church
DUNDALK, Md. (AP) — Fire officials in suburban Baltimore, Md., say dry conditions and wind help spread a fire deliberately set at a church.
The three-alarm blaze caused about $400,000 in damage at Pleasant Zion Baptist Church in Dundalk. Investigators say the fire was set in two sheds behind the church. The fire was set late Tuesday and spread quickly, engulfing the entire structure.
There were no injuries.
CHURCH ATTENDANCE-DONATIONS
Ohio church gives charity '$1 for 1' in attendance
PERRYSBURG, Ohio (AP) — A Christian megachurch in Toledo, Ohio is donating nearly $18,500 to charities to represent the attendance at services over the Easter weekend.
The Rev. Lee Powell, senior pastor at CedarCreek Church, tells The Blade newspaper that the donations will be made monthly in 2012 as part of the new "$1 for 1" effort to donate $1 to charity for each person who attends service on select days.
Powell says he hopes to hold the program weekly in 2013. He says leaders of the nondenominational church started the program after seeing it done elsewhere. Benefiting charities include Big Sisters.
The church has four locations, two in Toledo and one each in Perrysburg and Whitehouse.
