Retired New Orleans priest sentenced to life in prison for rape dies in jail
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Lawrence Hecker, an elderly and enfeebled former Catholic priest who pleaded guilty this month to raping a boy in a church gym in New Orleans nearly 50 years ago, died Thursday morning in prison only days after he began serving a life sentence.
The 93-year-old Hecker died at 3 a.m. inside Elayn Hunt Correctional Center in St. Gabriel of “natural causes,” said Ken Pastorick, a spokesperson for the state Department of Public Safety and Corrections. Robert Hjortsberg, one of Hecker’s attorneys, also confirmed the death.
Hecker had arrived at the prison from Orleans Parish on Monday to determine his long-term placement, Pastorick said. Prior to that, he had undergone a routine medical screening at Orleans Justice Center, where he was found to be in stable condition with no signs of distress, according to Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Casey McGee.
Content retrieved from: https://www.nola.com/news/crime_police/lawrence-hecker-dies-in-jail/article_39a28d84-c47a-11ef-95d2-db0a31df4d8e.html.
