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For sex offer, house arrest
By CHRIS TISCH
Published January 12, 2007
The former facilities manager of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church was sentenced to house arrest Thursday for offering a boy at the Dunedin church $100 for a sex act. William Forte, 61, pleaded no contest to a charge of lewd and lascivious conduct. Pinellas Circuit Judge Joseph Bulone sentenced Forte to two years' house arrest, which will be followed by three years' probation. Bulone also designated Forte a sexual offender and ordered him to have no contact with children. Prosecutors and the boy's mother had asked for prison time. The maximum Forte could have received was 15 years in prison. Forte also had been accused of sexually abusing children in 1992, though those charges were reduced to misdemeanors. Forte's lawyer, Roger Futerman, said Forte disputed the latest accusation, but wanted to put the case behind him. "He just wants to be left alone," Futerman said. Forte now works as a chef and lives in a condo for people 55 and older, he said. The pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church hired Forte in 2003 despite a 1992 arrest in Polk County in which Forte was accused of showing six children pornography, giving them alcohol and paying them for sex. Forte ultimately pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and received six months' probation. The pastor of the church knew of Forte's previous arrest when he hired him in 2003, but believed Forte's contentions that the sexual connotations of the allegations were blown out of proportion. Forte worked as facilities manager at the church and oversaw the community service program. In 2004, he was supervising a boy cleaning a bathroom when he offered the teen $100 to perform a sex act. The boy said no and months later told his mother, who called authorities. Forte was arrested in September 2005. The church's pastor, Father Tom Madden, admitted to making a mistake in hiring Forte and apologized to parishioners. At the time, he said parents and parish members would have a hand in reviewing the backgrounds of people hired at the church.
[Last modified January 11, 2007, 22:22:55]
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by Lou
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01/12/07 06:30 PM
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Something is terribly wrong when knowing offenders are hired by the Catholic Church, with young people there. This infuriates me!!!!!! I strongly support the mother of the boy that the offender get jail time, for a very long time.
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by Marty
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01/12/07 04:48 PM
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This boy and his parents should be ashamed of what they have done to Mr. Forte. The case in 92 was dismissed. Why shouldnt the pastor be allowed to hire him? The pastor wanted the Church to always be open to everyone.
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by Marty
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01/12/07 04:41 PM
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Im 16. Forte has been a great family friend for the past three years. Maybe people should not be so quick to judge and hear both sides of the story. Bill Forte is a very professional and hardworking man.
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by Laura
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01/12/07 02:55 PM
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Good points, Jack. Something doesn't ring true in TOO MANY of these cases of child porn on the computer. Something's very wrong. Thanks for pointing that out.
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by HEATHER
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01/12/07 02:52 PM
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I CANT BELIEVE THAT HE ONLY GOT HOUSE ARREST AND NOT SENT TO PRISON...HE WILL DO IT AGAIN AND NEXT TIME IT WILL BE WORSE......
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by Don
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01/12/07 01:41 PM
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How come we are just now hearing about this?
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by jack s
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01/12/07 01:21 PM
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cont) Something is drastically wrong with the justice system here. Viewing Internet pornography is an addiction and not the crime those who have engaged in the sexual acts, filming, and selling of these despicable acts against children.
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by jack s
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01/12/07 01:10 PM
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cont) on a computer internet that provides child pornogaphy photos for a price. Then the man must get special permission to attend the funeral of his ex-wife and adult son only after enduring a humiliating dressing down by the judge. (cont)
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by jack s
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01/12/07 01:03 PM
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cont) while offender #2, a traumatized and physically disabled war vet with no record of any personal sexual offense against a child is thrown in jail bail set at over a million $ looses everything because he looked at child ponography (cont)
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by Missy
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01/12/07 12:57 PM
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Like saying " Oh dear I'm sorry I didn't know the gun was loaded" after the damage was done. When you knew about in the beginning and did it anyway.
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by jack s
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01/12/07 12:44 PM
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tale of two chil sex offenders...one a healthy multi offender with a long history of sexual child offenses and convictions working as a cook and living in a condo gets house arrest and probation for his most recent offense against a child. (cont)
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by Jo
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01/12/07 11:11 AM
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The church pastor seems to be lacking in commom sense. Prior convictions of that man for improper behavior with children should have been a red flag, yet he was placed in a position where he would have contact with kids again. They are incurable.
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