USA, priest sentenced to fifty years He
took photos of child pornography in the church

KANSAS CITY – Fifty years in prison. This is the sentence imposed by a Missouri court on the priest Shawn Ratigan for having produced or attempted to produce child pornography. The 47-year-old cleric pleaded guilty to shooting hundreds of pornographic photos of five children. “Society needs to be protected from you,” said Judge Gary Fenner before reading the sentence.

The assistant prosecutor, during the proceedings, described Ratigan as “an arrogant who thought he could get away with it and never be discovered”. The priest, he added, deserved the highest penalty for “having betrayed the trust of his victims by also exploiting the fact of being a priest”. Ratigan had been indicted in May two years ago, after police received a USB key from his computer, which contained hundreds of images of children. The prosecutor claimed that the photos were taken inside and near the Missouri churches to which the priest was assigned.

His case also led to accusations and condemnation of Bishop Robert Finn for not having reported the suspicion of child abuse. A technician who worked on Ratigan’s computer found hundreds of photos of children and reported him to the diocese of St. Joseph. Bishop Finn, instead of taking the photos to the police, sent Ratigan to make a psychiatric evaluation and ordered him to stay in the convent away from the children.

(September 13, 2013)