Cleveland priest indicted on felony solicitation charges, failed to reveal he was HIV positive

[dimbear]

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2013/10/cleveland_priest_indicted_on_f.html


CLEVELAND, Ohio – A Cuyahoga County grand jury today returned a three-count criminal indictment charging the Rev. James McGonegal, the 68-year-old pastor of St. Ignatius of Antioch Church, with soliciting sex from an undercover ranger at Edgewater Park two weeks ago.

Because McGonegal is HIV-positive, and failed to tell the ranger that, the soliciting is a third degree felony.
**************
dimbear:
St. Ignatius of Antioch Church has a difficult moral duty on its hands. The church has to question every possible partner this priest may have had, and keep in mind the reluctance many may have to admit it. This is a matter of life and death. Every possible partner: man, woman, or child.














charge is a third-degree felony.

[DonViejo]

1. The Church only has to question those that voluntarily come

forward. You make it sound like they are going to run an investigation to find any one possible that might have had sex with this priest.

[cbayer]

2. The church has to make the information available, but I can't see why they would

have to question anyone at all.

What makes you think that?

[pinto]

3. Here in CA partner notification is handled by Public Health. And it's just that, notification.

The purpose is to inform someone they may have been exposed, offer testing and if positive refer for appropriate care & treatment. And answer HIV related questions. There's no questioning involved. It's seen solely as a health care matter.

Laws and systems vary state to state, though. That's the process here.

[rug]

4. Is there a particular religious angle here or are you providing a primer on criminal law?

[dimbear]

5. Over the years, time after time you see the same pattern emerge. Sexual partners of priests

are eaten up by shame. They say nothing, they deny to themselves, they cower before the weight and majesty of the church and stay silent. In this awful case, that can't be accepted because HIV kills if it's not stopped with antivirals. Nowadays it can be more or less controlled. Uncontrolled it means death.

Keep in mind that this priest has made it very clear he doesn't much care if his sexual partners are exposed. I don't imagine he's what would be called a reliable witness.

It's going to have to be a painful big deal in the church, if they do the right thing by their members.

[pinto]

6. I think you're missing a key point. Seems this was an anonymous encounter at a public park.

I doubt the undercover ranger or any previous encounters this guy had in the setting were aware he was a priest. It's a secondary issue in this case, imo. Anonymous encounters are just that. Anonymous. I doubt the priest knows few, if any, of his partners' names. And vica versa.

How the church deals with the guy is their call. How the local legal system approaches it is another.

The publicity of the case may well serve as notification to his past partners that they are at risk of exposure and infection. Hopefully they access testing services.

[dimbear]

7. How the church deals with the guy is their call.

Don't disagree. I make many good suggestions, few are taken.

I also know their track record on such matters, which is poor.

A horrendous case which calls for active efforts.