New York Monsignor Catholic priest defrocked for child sex abuse

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A high-ranking New York priest has been found guilty by a church tribunal of sexually abusing a minor in the 1970s.

Monsignor Charles M. Kavanagh was dismissed from the priesthood following the decision Wednesday by the tribunal, which was acting on authority from the Vatican.

The accuser, a former seminary student of Kavanagh's, brought the case to the Manhattan district attorney in 2002 - eight years ago..

The accuser said, "This was an eight-year process with not a lot of transparency," he said. "The judicial system under the Vatican is not an open system, unlike our judicial system. Nobody has access to the testimony. "

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