Court Drops Conviction of Priest Killed in Prison

A court vacated the child molestation conviction of former priest John Geoghan because he died in prison during his pending appeal, a ruling that angered accusers of the former cleric.

The decision by the Massachusetts Appeals Court is customary under state law when convicts die mid-appeal and attorneys seek to have their convictions voided.

Mitchell Garabedian, who represents many of Geoghan’s alleged victims, called for the law to be changed. “It’s as though the reporting of father John J. Geoghan’s sexual abuse, his trial, and the jury decision never existed,” Garabedian said.