Date published: 7/19/2007
BY ELLEN BILTZ
An attorney for a Catholic priest indicted on 13 counts of embezzlement asked today that the charges be dismissed, saying the case is a church issue.
Rodney Lee Rodis, 51, is accused of taking up to $1 million from St. Jude and Immaculate Conception Catholic churches in Louisa County, where he was a priest for 13 years.
Rodis’ attorney, John Maus, filed a motion last week, saying the state exceeded its authority by involving itself in a church matter. He cited Virginia law, saying the state is “prohibited from entangling itself in internal church matters. Specifically with regard to church finances.”
Louisa Commonwealth’s Attorney Don Short said he was waiting for a follow-up memo from Maus about the legal authority he cited. But Short said he didn’t “expect the First Amendment to provide any immunity for a criminal investigation.”
More:
http://www.fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2007/072007/07192007/0719rodis