NEWS & VIEWS
from a CATHOLIC perspective

      GUATEMALA CITY (CWNews.com) - A priest accused of killing a Guatemalan bishop in 1998 was denied bail by the judge presiding over the investigation on Tuesday.

      Prosecutors in the case had requested the bail for Father Mario Orantes Najera, following calls by the Catholic Church and human rights campaigners for his release. Critics contend that Father Orantes was charged in the murder of Auxiliary Bishop Juan Gerardi Conedera on flimsy evidence, and that not enough attention has been paid to possibility that the murder was politically motivated.

      Bishop Gerardi was murdered at the home he shared with Father Orantes on April 26, 1988 -- two days after he released a report that blamed most of the deaths in the country's 36-year civil war on the military. Prosecutor Adolfo Rosales Rodas said the Church had promised that Father Orantes would show up for trial, but Judge Henry Monroy said bail was not available to homicide suspects. His trial is set to begin next week.