Priest in Boston clergy scandal denied new trial

<p>WOBURN, Mass. (AP) - A Superior Court judge has rejected a new trial for a defrocked priest who was one of the central figures in Boston's clergy sex abuse scandal. Paul Shanley is currently serving a 12 to 15 year prison sentence after being convicted in 2005 of repeatedly raping and fondling a boy at a Newton parish in the 1980s. </p><p>In his appeal, Shanley argued that his trial lawyer did not properly challenge the theory of repressed memory. The victim testified he did not remember the sexual abuse until 2002, when memories came rushing back amid media coverage of the scandal. </p><p>Shanley's lawyer, Robert Shaw, says he'll appeal the ruling by Superior Court Judge Stephen Neel to the state Supreme Judicial Court. Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone says Neel &quot;rightly denied&quot; Shanley's request for a new trial. (Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) </p>