Feb 2, 2006 7:00 pm US/Eastern
Sex Abuse Victims Want Maximum Sentence For Priest
by Derek Valcourt
Towson, Md. (WJZ) ―
Just a few days before the sentencing of a former priest who plead guilty to child sex abuse last year, sex-abuse survivors and their supporters gathered at the Baltimore County Court building Thursday to conduct a leaflet campaign, urging prosecuters to impose the harshest penalty possible.
Last November, Jerome "Father Jeff" Toohey confessed to sexually abusing a Calvert Hall College High School student and plead guilty to one count of child abuse. Toohey will face three to seven years in prison during his sentencing, which is scheduled for next Tuesday.
Many campaigners came from all over the country to convince the judge to hand down the maximum sentence for Toohey.
"He's destroyed the lives of his victims and he's destroyed their families to an extent. It's a horrendous thing and it deserves more than a slap on the wrist," supporter Tom Debeck tells
WJZ's Derek Valcourt.
Because Toohey plead guilty to one case of sex abuse, prosecutors agreed not to pursue sex abuse charges from a second victim. However, prosecuters will reveal the accusations from the second during the sentencing.
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