The Rev. Anthony Moschonas

Pokrov Note: This article was found under “Blogs.” The blog is by Stephanie Innes and is called “Desert Beliefs.”
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The Rev. Anthony Moschonas, the retired priest who headed up St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church here for three decades, wants a jury to decide the civil action pending against him.

A former parishioner has accused Moschonas of sexually assaulting her on a trip to Greece in 2007, when she had just turned 18.

Moschonas, 70, adamantly denies the accusation and wants a jury of his peers to hear the evidence.

At the Star, we regularly get calls from Moschonas’ parishioners, wanting to know the latest on the case. Many were upset that the Star ran a story about the lawsuit.

On the other side, the accuser and her lawyers from Goldberg and Osborne maintain they have a highly credible case against the priest, who is a father and grandfather.

The wheels of justice move slowly, and other than his request for a trial, there’s no news to report on this case, though it was filed in March.

Here are two letters to the editor we received about this case:

Star should name accuser

In the April 24 Star there was an article, “Ex-parishioner’s suit accuses priest of attack,” about charges brought in a civil lawsuit filed in Superior Court by a woman identified only as “Jane Doe.”

As a parishioner of St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church for more than 10 years, I take extreme offense at the fact that the Star would even consider publishing such an article without being able to name Father Anthony Moschonas’ accuser. I consider Father Anthony to be a friend as well as my former priest, and to smear a person who has done so much for this community for more than 30 years without even naming his accuser is unconscionable.

The attorney says the accuser has a “desire for anonymity.” This is laughable. How about the damage done to this man’s reputation?

The article itself was well-balanced. However, I do not feel, in all fairness, that it should have been printed without disclosing the accuser’s name.

Glenn Cook
Retired, Tucson

Outraged at accusations

We are outraged at the accusation of a 19-year-old, anonymous woman who has accused Father Anthony Moschonas of sexual assault (“Ex-parishioner’s suit accuses priest of attack,” April 24).

We have known Father Moschonas for more than 20 years. He is kind, compassionate and hard-working; a devoted husband and father; and was a wonderful priest at St. Demetrios. Over the years, he has often comforted us in troubled times but never has he acted inappropriately. Perhaps this young woman was charmed by his act of kindness and his soft-spoken ways, as young girls often are with older men.

Regarding the trip to Greece that Father supposedly gave her for her birthday, he invites everyone to visit him or join him on a his trips to Greece. He has invited us on numerous occasions to join him. We hope he is absolved of all these accusations.

Pamela and Ruben Pesqueira
Rio Rico