Sex abuse vicar appeal bid
A former Sedlescombe vicar, who abused two youngsters when he was at a Northamptonshire church, is to appeal against some of his convictions and his sentence.
Colin Ivor Pritchard, of St Augustine's Close, Bexhill, pleaded guilty to seven sex offences at Northampton Crown Court in July last year.
The 64-year-old was jailed for five years.
Last Friday, Pritchard was given permission to challenge his convictions for two of the offences, despite his guilty pleas.
His lawyers say that, under the law at the time, his victim had to be under the age of 14 for him to be guilty, and was in fact older than that.
Although Pritchard will be unable to clear his name because he has no challenge to the other five convictions, if he is successful, it may have an impact upon his sentence.
His legal team says that five years was "manifestly excessive".
Pritchard abused the two boys in the late 1970s and early 1980s after befriending them whilst he was vicar at St Andrew's Church, in Wellingborough.
Both his victims were left deeply distressed by what happened.
No date was set for the hearing of Pritchard's full appeal, but Sir Peter Cresswell, sitting with Lord Justice Richards and Mr Justice Christopher Clarke, ordered that Crown lawyers attend court.
They are expected to oppose the conviction appeals.
Pritchard served the Peterborough Diocese at Wellingborough until 1989 after which he came to the Chichester Diocese as vicar of Sedlescombe.
He held the post until 2001 when he became vicar of St Barnabas' Church at Bexhill.
He retired from St Barnabas' in January 2007 on the grounds of ill health.
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Sunday 05 February 2012
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