Lawyer says Porter cases caused laws to be changed
BOSTON A lawyer who represented more than one-hundred victims of former priest James Porter says the convicted pedophile was a "human wrecking ball" who ruined lives. Porter died at the age of 70 tonight (Friday) at the New England Medical Center. He was undergoing treatment for cancer.
Attorney Eric MacLeish says Porter came to symbolize the start of an era when people could talk about priest abuse. He believes the Porter cases caused a lot of laws to be changed and a lot of people to come forward.
It was the first high-profile case involving allegations that a priest had molested children in his church -- and that the church moved him from parish to parish to try to avoid scandal.
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