AN 87-year-old priest has appeared in court charged with 66 offences of indecency against young children.
The charges against John James Pearson arise out of the police inquiry surrounding St Mary's Hall preparatory school at Stonyhurst.
Pearson, of Winckley Square, Preston, is charged with 21 offences of indecent assault on boys, 19 of gross indecency with boys, 13 of indecent assault on girls, nine of gross indecency with girls, three of taking indecent photographs and one of possessing an indecent photograph.
He was committed on bail to Preston Crown Court for trial on 19 of the charges and 46 were adjourned until November 11 for the preparation of committal papers.
The charge of possessing an indecent photograph, which can only be heard at the magistrates court, was adjourned indefinitely.
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article