Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Rev. Francis Markey Jailed

81-year-old Catholic priest Francis Markey remains in jail pending extradition proceedings in the United States. Ireland wants the priest so that he can stand trial for the rape of a boy in 1968.

The Irish charges against Markey allege he raped a 15-year-old boy during a religious pilgrimage in County Donegal and again after his father's funeral in County Galway.

The magistrate set a Nov. 16 hearing to give Markey time to hire a lawyer.

Markey has had a stoke and is in poor health. It looks like justice might be too late in this case. It’s too bad really. Markey fled to the United States to escape supervision. He has molested children before.

Comments (5)

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There are numerous victims who never came forward.
He is guilty - the result of a weakness
But, the church is guilty of a carefully calculated cover up - a much
more serious guilt. it is the church that should be held accountable
and made to make reparations, public apologies and admissions of guilt.
This paedophile priest Francis Markey has got bail against the wishes of the Irish authorities who requested he be held without bail until his extradition to Ireland hearing. It looks like his friends in high places are still supporting the paedophile priest. He will probably be helped again to disappear into the woodwork. What has changed? What is this crowd Servants of the Paraclete who seem to be a catholic organisation set up to treat paedophiles - they seem to be an abysmal failure. I say hit them where it hurts - in the pocket.
Michael G.'s avatar

Michael G. · 793 weeks ago

My late father was a boyhood schoolmate of the said Father Markey, in or around Carrickmacross, Co. Monaghan. Two or three years after my father was killed in a quarry accident in Scotland, my mother took myself and my siblings to visit a mutual friend in Threemilehouse. Fr. Markey came to see my mother as an old friend, but soon had me sitting upon his knee caressing my back under my T-shirt. Even as a rather naive 13 year old I felt uncomfortable. I managed to get away and, later when I let my feelings be known to my very religious mother , she told me to 'never underestimate the power of priests' as though it was some kind of spiritual healing. This happened around 1967. At least recently it seems the Catholic church in Ireland is being unmasked for the cover ups it has engineered in cases like the one he is being charged with.
1 reply · active 793 weeks ago
You are lucky to get away unscathed.
The Church is not the problem; the problem is with individuals within the Church. The scandal of the pedophile priests and the cover up by the certain bishops are the failings of men entrusted with the care of the Church’s faithful but they are not the Church. We, the faithful people of God both lay, religious and clergy are the Church. There are thousands of good and decent priests and bishops in the Church. I hope and pray those that are injured by the evil of individuals find peace and love in Christ’s Church. I urge those who were victimized not to abandon Peter for the acts of Judas.

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