Convicted child pornographer
Posted on 05/09/2008 12:24:01 AM PDT by woofie
(05-08) 18:49 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Bernie Ward, the most prominent liberal voice on Bay Area talk radio for more than two decades, admitted Thursday to distribution of child pornography by e-mail in a plea deal that will send him to federal prison for at least five years.
Ward, 57, a former Roman Catholic priest, was a fixture on KGO-AM 810 for three hours every weeknight, known in recent years for his fervent denunciations of President Bush and the war in Iraq during his news talk show. He also hosted "God Talk," a Sunday morning program on religion, and was a prolific fundraiser for the station's charity drives.
But his career disintegrated Dec. 6 with the unsealing of a federal grand jury indictment, issued three months earlier, that charged him with two counts of distributing and one count of receiving Internet images of child pornography. KGO fired him Dec. 31.
At a 30-minute hearing in federal court in San Francisco, Ward admitted he was guilty of a single charge of distributing child pornography, saying it involved "exchanging an image of a minor engaged in sexually explicit activity" in December 2004. The plea agreement he signed, quoted in court, contained an admission that he had sent between 15 and 150 pornographic images via e-mail.
Delay in accepting plea Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker said he was satisfied that Ward was voluntarily admitting guilt, but he granted defense lawyer Doron Weinberg's request to delay accepting the plea until a sentencing hearing Aug. 28. If the plea had been formally entered Thursday, Ward could have been sent to prison immediately.
Ward exchanged hugs with family members and friends before and after the hearing. Wearing a suit and tie and looking grim, he described his conduct succinctly to Walker, .....
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Up De River for Bernie
Convicted child pornographer
MM, this must be a prime example of the kind of Democrat values you were meaning to contrast with “Republican values”....... Former legislative assistant to Barbara Boxer and leading liberal voice for depravity in northern California..... turns out he’s heavily into child porn. What a worthless POS. Let him burn in hell.
Looks like Michael Moore with better personal hygiene.
Why is the POS not in jail? The judge allowed them to delay the formal submission of the plea deal until AUGUST???? What’s that all about? He should have been hauled straight out of the courtroom to the prison.
Is this coddling of an ideological soulmate by a leftard judge, or why the delay in putting the bastard behind bars??
He’ll be making his own adult gay porn in the joint. It will be an “equal opportunity” venture, directed by and starring him in the series as “Holy Bernie the Grunting Ankle-Grabber”.
He won’t like the food, either.
BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/iteam&id=6131414
The ABC7 I-Team has been following this case and exploring Ward’s time as a Catholic priest.
It’s the same old story — Catholic priest gets in trouble for complaints of sexual activity with minors. Only this time, it’s Bernie Ward.
Ward often discussed his time as a Catholic priest during his weeknight KGO Radio show and his Sunday morning program, “God Talk.” However, he never told the complete story of what happened when he was Father Bernie.
The I-Team’s been able to piece it together by interviewing people who lived with him, his superiors in the church and his former students.
“Drinking was, that was the thing you did, you got ripped,” said Tom Finn who lived at Cardinal Newman High School.
“He appeared to be a good priest at the time and all of a sudden, it kind of went downhill,” said Father Tony Latorre, former vice principal at Cardinal Newman High School.
Dan Noyes: “You told me that you believe he’s a predator. you believe that?”
Rosanne Schwab (former student): “Yes, definitely.”
Rosanne Schwab was the junior class president at Santa Rosa’s Ursuline High, the sister school to Cardinal Newman, right next door.
She remembers when a young, hip priest arrived — Father Bernie Ward.
“He was very funny and fun-loving and probably the most popular priest on campus,” says Schwab.
Ward taught religion at both schools, coached the JV football team, and gained a reputation for flirting with teenage girls, even though he was 27 and a priest. In the spring of 1978, it apparently went beyond flirtation.
Father Tony Latorre was Cardinal Newman’s vice principal at the time.
“There was some concern Bernie possibly being involved with some female students from Ursuline High School next door,” says Latorre.
The I-Team has been able to confirm two sexual misconduct complaints against Ward when he was a priest. First, Rosanne Schwab. Father Bernie got her parents’ approval to take her to the beach for a day when she was 17.
“This was a different time and place where priests really were trusted, and so Bernie and I headed out to Bodega,” says Schwab.
On the way, Schwab says Ward stopped at a liquor store, bought a bottle of 151 rum. When they got to the beach, he parked on a cliff.
“He produced a joint out of his pocket,” says Schwab.
Schwab says they smoked marijuana and drank. Then, Father Bernie began pressing her for intimate details of the sex life with her boyfriend.
“Every time I tried to bring the conversation around to something that made me feel safer, Bernie would bring it back to the sex,” says Schwab.
Schwab says she grew very uncomfortable and when Ward put his hand on her shoulder, she froze with fear.
“And he took that same hand and grabbed the back of my head and pulled me to him and stuck his tongue in my mouth and held me very tightly with the one hand behind my head and the other hand up against my breasts,” says Schwab.
Schwab says it went on for several minutes before she could push Father Bernie away, and that he scolded her.
“He said, ‘I am really disappointed in you. I thought that you were mature, I thought that you were special,’” says Schwab.
The second complaint comes from another former student who tells us that when she was 16, Ward drove her to San Francisco for a prayer meeting. On the way back, they stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge and he pulled out a six-pack of Heineken. She says when Father Bernie tried to kiss her, she punched him in the stomach.
MORE
So many of these headlines read, “GodTalk host indicted on child pornography charges.” What they won’t tell you is that Bernie Williams regularly distorted the Gospel, spoke out against those who cited it directly, calling them Bible thumpers, and didn’t believe in hell.
Anyone who disagree with them was castigated.
They also won’t mention he was a hardcore leftist. Instead, they attempt to take another potshot at believers.
Typical.
i would come across him on kgo as i was going to bed in san diego. kgo’s a strong station.
he would say some of the most vile things about republicans.
my ears burned, i’d channel surf away.
i think i remember him saying that he had bariatric surgery.
Yep.
Payback is hell, huh? Bernie? ---GOD
The "Standard Defense" of every child pornographer when they are caught.
Uhhhhhhhhhhh...........I was only conducting Field Research for a book I am working on........
WOW, this is gonna be ALL OVER the news because here we have a very well known talk radio host NAILED for CHILD PORN and the nets will make a huge...what’s that? He’s a liberal?
Never mind.
He’s a former Catholic priest. Well, I’m stunned....oh, wait..
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.