Los Gatos Priest Beating Trial Delayed

Today's trial start date for a San Francisco man accused of beating a priest at the last year has been delayed until probably next year, the prosecutor trying the case said Friday.

"We've had some settling snags and we're not going to be starting," said Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Vicki Gemetti. 

The reason for the delay is that defendant William Lynch's attorney, Pat Harris, with the Los Angeles-based law firm of Geragos & Geragos, is involved in another trial, according to Gemetti. "We don't have all the players so we need to reset it for a date that is actually going to work."

The parties will now convene on Oct. 28 in Santa Clara County Superior Court in San Jose to set a new trial date, Gemetti added.

Realistically, the trial could begin early next year, Gemetti said, adding that she was just guessing and foreseeing scheduling conflicts related to the holidays and vacations. "I'm just guessing ... but it's not an ideal [time]. I would expect, based on what I know from the courts, that it's probably going to be sometime next year."

Lynch, 44, has been

Authorities say he walked into the center's reception area the afternoon of May 10, 2010, asked to speak to . He said he had a death notification about a member of the priest's family and then allegedly assaulted him. He has pleaded not guilty to both charges.

"I'm not going to try this case in the press," Gemetti noted, when asked to comment about the high interest in the trial from critics of the Roman Catholic Church who allege Lindner raped and sodomized Lynch and his brother when they were small boys in the '70s while on camping trips.

"I'm not going to comment on specific evidence that is or is not presented," she said. "This case is about the fact that Father Lindner was beaten up and that's what the jury will be deciding. Is the defendant responsible for this assault?"

If a jury convicts Lynch, he's looking at serving a maximum of four years in state prison. The court, however, could grant him probation and give him up to one year in county jail, she said.

Several calls and emails to Harris were not immediately returned by the time of this posting.