honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted at 1:25 p.m., Monday, August 1, 2005

Bail reduced for deacon in sexual assault case

By TIM HURLEY
Advertiser Staff Writer

spacer
WAILUKU, Maui — A Maui judge today reduced the bail of a Catholic deacon accused of sexually assaulting a boy over a three-year period.

Judge Shackley Raffetto cut the bail of James "Ron" Gonsalves from $790,000 to $100,000.

Raffetto also ordered the 68-year-old Gonsalves to be confined within his home, except when visiting his attorney's office, and to refrain from contacting any minors.

A Maui grand jury indicted Gonsalves on 30 counts of first-degree sexual assault, a felony punishable by a 20-year prison term; and 32 counts of third-degree sexual assault, which carries a maximum five-year term.

Maui police said the incidents allegedly occurred between June 2002 and June 2005, when the youth was ages 12 to 15. Some of the assaults were reported to have occurred at St. Ann Church in Waihe'e, in the Wailuku district.

Deputy Prosecutor Robert Rivera argued for maintaining the higher bail amount, saying Gonsalves represents both a flight risk and a danger to the community. He noted that the latest incident for which the man was charged occurred at the church on June 14.

But defense attorney Philip Lowenthal said that Gonsalves cooperated with authorities in the investigation, going as far as to take part in a court-approved bail study even before the charges were brought.

Members of St. Ann expressing support for Gonsalves packed the courtroom for the hearing.