California Priest to be Tried on Child Sexual Assault Image and Sodomy Charges
October 26, 2009Rev. Antonio Cortes, priest at St. Mary of the Nativity Church in Salinas, California has been accused of providing alcohol to a young boy for years, starting at the Holy Trinity Church, then sodomizing him. Cortes is charged with sodomy involving a minor and possession of child pornography, both felonies, and 12 misdemeanor counts that include child molestation, furnishing alcohol to a minor, cruelty to a child and performing an immoral act before a child.
Images of crimes scenes of children being sexually abused were found on computers seized from St. Mary’s, with some of the least graphic titles including “Boy lovers 6 to 14 years old,” according to the Monterey County Herald.
Judge Larry Hayes ruled there is enough evidence on all the charges to proceed to trial on November 13. The courtroom was packed with the priest’s supporters. Cortes is free on $100,000 bail and living with a family in his parish.
