Writing from Staxville, on the eve of delivering a lecture about ¡Ask a Mexican! at the University of Memphis...
Yesterday, the law firm of Manly, McGuire & Stewart filed a contempt of court order against Orange Bishop Tod D. Brown, the latest salvo in the Jeff Andrade case. Manly and amigos are arguing that the Orange diocese purposefully whisked Monsignor John Urell to Canada to avoid finishing a deposition that he couldn't continue back in July after breaking down in tears. The diocese denies the charges, and Urell's personal lawyer, Patrick Hennessey, issued a statement that Urell suffers from an "extremely serious anxiety disorder" and can't give a deposition for "a minimum of least three months...Attorneys for the Diocese of Orange were never consulted about where he should receive hospitalization and treatment."
Both Hennessey and Orange diocesan spokesperson Ryan Lilygren are furiously spinning for Urell. Hennessey got an entire column with Orange County Register columnist Frank Mickadeit yesterday where he said that he noticed Urell "was in distress" in late August and tried to get an appointment with a psychiatrist over Labor Day weekend. On Sept. 4, the psychiatrist concluded after "20 minutes" that Urell needed immediate hospitalization; Urell left for Canada's Southdown Institute on Sept. 6. Lilygren chirped in with his already infamous Sept. 14 "Spin/Facts" memo on the diocesan website:
"The recommendation to place Msgr. Urell in a residential treatment facility was made by Msgr. Urell himself, his doctors, his family and close friends and the diocesan Vicar for Priests, Father Christopher Smith. At no time was the diocesan legal team involved in making this decision."
Following the jump is what Hennessey and Lilygren didn't disclose:
On August 30, Orange County Superior Court Judge Gail Andler ordered Urell to finish his deposition and to prepare to appear in court on Sept. 17. That same day, according to a Sept. 3 letter Hennessey sent to Manly, McGuire & Stewart, Hennessey contacted Diocese of Orange lawyer Peter Callahan "to inform him of Msgr. Urell's apparent unavailability for further deposition." The two later met and went over Urell's deposition. The letter stands in stark contrast to Hennessey and Lilygren's public proclamations, and the timing makes the entire episode stink like a toilet after a man relieved himself of cheese grits (don't ask). Perhaps Urell really is messed up in the brain and soul right now, but he sure picked an interesting time to get some therapy, ¿qué no? And, more importantly, why didn't Hennessey tell Mickadeit about his meeting with Callahan (or maybe he did and Mickadeit didn't report it) ? And how does Lilygren sleep at night? Paging Rainier Wolfcastle...
Download Hennessey's letter to Manly, McGuire & Stewart here.
September 22, 2007 07:05
What Urell's defenders don't ever answer is...why Canada? What, are there no psychiatric facilities in the US?
How much money is the diocese paying to lawyers every year? Gustavo, if you could uncover that number, it would be relevatory.
September 23, 2007 01:28
I found the reference to Fr. Urell 25 years ago mentioned in the Dana Parsons column very interesting in light of the current events. Saturday 9/22 LATimes California section. Too bad there was no internet and blogging back then.
September 23, 2007 21:25
Of course there is something extremely disgraceful about this whole thing. If I had to testify about something I was innocent of, and had no troubled conscience about, I'd have no trouble testifying about something. However, if I had shown poor judgement, colluded, or done something questionable, I would be anxious.
Plain and simple: there is more going on than what is seen.
September 27, 2007 16:45
One Billion Dollars! And it CONTINUES and CONTINUES! What is the Church is doing to its own flock? Where are the lawyers for the people of St. Norbert's parish? We got shoved down our throats a sick and mentally defective priest. When do we get to ask the questions? It was really funny, the Yellow insert in the parish paper from the lawyer for Urell. Yellow, the color of a coward! So, Norbert's parish is now being run by a outside lawyer! I thought the Catholic Church was of the people, by the people and for the people. I guess it's for the Cult of the Priest's only. The hell with their priestly sacrament! Urell, you can run but you can not hide from the truth! Anxiety, that's his sub-conscience eating away at his soul!
September 27, 2007 20:45
Let us be reminded (yet again) that the Vicar For Priests, Fr. Chris Smith was promoted to that position after his handling (and squashing) of the kiddie porn totting priest at his Santa Ana parish.
By the way, what ever happened with that?