Lyon court convicts top French Catholic cardinal of covering up sex abuse

In a surprise verdict Thursday morning, a court in Lyon, France, convicted Cardinal Philippe Barbarin of not reporting child sexual abuse by a priest in his diocese, Rev. Bernard Preynat, to civil authorities.

Barbarin, the archbishop of Lyon and one of France's top Catholic prelates, was given a six month suspended prison sentence his lawyer said will be appealed; Barbarin himself was not in court. Five other defendants were acquitted, and Preynat, who has admitted to abusing Boy Scouts in the 1970s and 1980s, will be tried separately later this year.

The statute of limitations on some charges had expired, and even the prosecutor argued against convicting Barbarin, citing a lack of grounds to prove legal wrongdoing. Still, the court convicted him for not reporting the abuse in 2014 and 2015. Barbarin says he became aware of Preynat's alledged crimes only in 2007, but Preynat's victims argue that church officials knew as early as 1990 and covered up the abuse.

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"We see that no one is above the law," said Francois Devaux, president of a group of Preynat's victims. "This is a victory that sends a strong signal to lots of victims and a signal to the church as well."