Experts Can Evaluate Bevilacqua: Judge

A judge will allow prosecutors to have their own medical expert evaluate the retired Roman Catholic archbishop of Philadelphia before a scheduled competency hearing.
      
It was one of several pretrial motions that a Common Pleas judge ruled on Friday morning in a criminal priest-abuse case.
      
Monsignor William Lynn is the first Catholic church official in the U.S. charged with endangering children through priest transfers. Three other priests and a teacher are charged with rape.

Prosecutors want to call retired Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua to testify, but church lawyers say the former archbishop suffers from cancer and dementia. His competency hearing is Nov. 28.

Also Friday, the judge deferred a request from Lynn's lawyers tomove the trial because of pretrial publicity. She also denied their request to lift a gag order.