Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Fr. Gordon MacRae: Federal Court to Hear Oral Arguments in Habeas Corpus Appeal



By Ryan A. MacDonald

His 1994 trial has been called a perversion of justice.

I have the honor of assisting to maintain a page for wrongly imprisoned priest, Father Gordon MacRae, at the professional social network LinkedIn. I hope you will visit it. The page has well over 1,000 followers which is somewhat unusual for LinkedIn. Many are Catholic priests throughout the world. About once a month or so, however, I receive in my inbox a message from a Catholic reader with an inquiry. The question is often the same: “I’m hearing of this story for the first time. Why is this injustice not shouted from the rooftops?”

I’m not sure I have an answer to that question. On March 17, Saint Patrick’s Day, at 10 A.M., Chief Judge Joseph LaPlante is slated to hear oral arguments in the Habeas Corpus appeal filed on behalf of Father MacRae in U.S. District Court in Concord, NH. I do not know what to expect, and it may be some time before a decision is published as a result of this hearing.

I cannot help but recall a pointed quote from Dorothy Rabinowitz, who has published three major articles about the trial of Father MacRae in The Wall Street Journal:
“Those aware of the facts of this case find it hard to imagine that any court today would ignore the perversion of justice it represents.” (Dorothy Rabinowitz: “The Trials of Father MacRae,” wsj.com, May 10, 2013)
As with other such milestones in this case, the hearing itself may generate some notice from those who are not yet familiar with this travesty of justice. So I thought, at this juncture, that the best service I could perform in the interest of truth and justice would be to present something with the most basic information about this story.

You could effortlessly take part in this. I have composed below a few paragraphs about why Father Gordon MacRae is right now mid-way through his 21st year of unjust imprisonment. This is followed by a number of links that we feel best capture the truth of this case.

I therefore ask that readers of These Stone Walls will share a link to this post with everyone you can. If you share it with your contacts, and post it on Facebook and other social media, ask your connections to re-share it. If you do this, I am sure I will hear from many other Catholics, and others with an interest in justice, asking how this story ever eluded them.. (continued)


Link:

No comments: