ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 3, 1996 TAG: 9603050013
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
MEMO: NOTE: Shorter version ran in Metro edition.
Church sued in AIDS death of man, 44
WASHINGTON - An Ohio family suing the Catholic Church says their retarded son who died of AIDS got the disease from members of a religious order who raped him while he lived at a church-funded home, a magazine reports.
The church denies that it is responsible for the man's death. But in a story being published in Monday's editions of U.S. News & World-Report, Columbus Bishop James Griffin said if the church loses the case it might have to withdraw support from social agencies and hospitals because it could be held liable for any problems at the facilities.
The family of Joey Busam, who died in January at age 44, said brothers who operated the Good Shepherd Manor in rural Wakefield, Ohio, raped and sodomized Busam over a number of years. The home for adult retarded men was run by the Little Brothers of the Good Shepherd, a Catholic-sanctioned religious order that received money from the Columbus diocese to operate the facility.
Busam had the mind of a 6-year-old. He had lived in the home since he was 16, his mother, Claire, said.
``It was a very trusting relationship we had with the brothers, all of them,'' Claire Busam told the magazine. ``I trusted them fully.''
According to court records and testimony of former residents, brothers at Good Shepherd Manor held drunken parties in a special ``playroom'' and roamed the facility at night, molesting some of the men.
In interviews with a psychiatrist and relatives before he died, Busam said he had sexual contact with two brothers, Paul Hayden and Guy Dale Shaffer.
The Columbus diocese said that under church law it did not have control over daily operations of Good Shepherd Manor and only gave ``charitable'' and ``spiritual'' support to the brothers.
The telephone at the diocese office was not answered Saturday.
- Associated Press
`Star Twek' producer weally weally mad
SALT LAKE CITY - A theater owner is charging up his phasers to fight Paramount Pictures' attempts to halt production of his successful ``Star Twek'' plays.
Paramount sued Bob Bedore on Feb. 16, accusing him of copyright and trademark violations with the series of three ``Star Trek'' spoofs at his Off Broadway Theatre.
``I've read up on everything on parody, and there's nothing I'm doing that's wrong or against the law,'' Bedore said. ``I'll fight them.''
Paramount says it warned Bedore twice against opening ``Star Twek: The Voyager Home,'' scheduled to run until March 9.
- Associated Press
LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines KEYWORDS: FATALITYby CNB