04/20/2004: "It's ok if I feel it's ok"

An Episcopal priest is on trial in a church court in Lexington, Kentucky for stealing from the diocese and a campus ministry. According to the Lexington Herald-Leader:

On the trial's first day, the church made its case against [Rev. Chris] Platt. Diocesan administrator Maggie Hall testified that Platt misused three separate church accounts: the bishop's discretionary fund and two accounts belonging to St. Augustine's Chapel, the Episcopal Church's student ministry at the University of Kentucky.

Platt allegedly wrote himself 19 checks worth $13,020. He wrote an additional 53 "for cash," checks totalling $13,930, Hall said. Another church check, for $250, was mailed to American Express, apparently to pay for Platt's private account, Hall said. In addition, Platt apparently used church money to make payments on a personal loan from BankOne, she said.

It's unclear what many of the checks were used for since Platt kept poor records and little documentation, Hall said. Some of the expenses that are documented are unusual for an Episcopal priest. Platt paid his National Rifle Association dues and purchased a book called Erotique with church money.

Yesterday afternoon, Platt told the Herald-Leader that the purchases were appropriate. Platt said the NRA membership helped him be a better spiritual adviser for UK police officers. The book, Platt said, was for a class at the chapel on art development and stained glass.

So far, so ordinary. One hates to ever hear of this kind of thing happening, but it does. According to the story, Platt was bankrupt, divorced, and "struggling to get by on an annual compensation package of $79,000." Kind of sad, really. But what caught my attention in this story was the unusual rationalization Platt's attorney offered to try to spring him:

Platt's attorney, Lee Van Horn, said his client committed no crimes and did nothing immoral. "If Father Platt had the good-faith belief that it was OK for him to write the checks that he did, that's not theft," Van Horn said. "It's our belief that, if this proceeding is fair and everyone does their job, he will be acquitted of the charges against him."

So if someone is enough of a sociopath to convince himself that his crime is OK, then there's no crime? "I feel for Mr. Dahmer's victims, Your Honor, but he was hungry, and had a good-faith belief that it was OK for him to eat those young men. So that's not murder." This is the ultimate expression of the psychobabble generation, not to mention a formula for anarchy. That said, I'd say he was a cinch for ecclesiastical acquittal, except that his crime was stealing money from an Episcopal bishop. That is a crime that can't be forgiven, at least not in this world.