Accuser of O.C. bishop speaks out

Scott Hicks, 54, said he decided to go public with his identity to lend credibility to his allegations.

Brown has adamantly denied the accusation, and church leaders dismissed Hicks' allegations as baseless.

"I have never abused any person sexually or any other way," Brown said in a recently released court deposition stemming from an unrelated molestation case in Orange County. Brown added that he was "shocked by the accusation" when church officials first brought it to his attention in July 1997.

Kern County Dist. Atty. Edward R. Jagels said Thursday that he vaguely remembered his office reviewing the case and determining that it amounted to a "completely uncorroborated allegation."

Hicks said he had no desire to take legal action against Brown or the church but believed the public should be aware of his story.

"I just want to cause him some trouble. Maybe they'll take him out and send him away," Hicks said during a phone interview.

"It would be nice if [this helps] someone else who was affected to be brave enough to come forward."

Brown could not be reached for comment.

Ryan Lilyengren, a spokesman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange, said the allegations had been thoroughly investigated and were found not credible by church officials and law enforcement, and that Brown had been thoroughly questioned about the allegation under oath.

According to a statement released by the diocese Friday, "Bishop Brown was cross-examined extensively regarding this issue by an adversarial lawyer in the presence of a judge with a certified court reporter and fully answered all appropriate questions. The transcript has been made available to the public."

The development is the latest fallout from an ongoing civil lawsuit filed against the diocese by a woman who alleges that she was molested by an assistant basketball coach while she was a student at Mater Dei High School.

Also Friday, an attorney representing a monsignor ordered to testify in the lawsuit said the client was unable to complete his deposition because he suffered from "acute anxiety disorder" caused by "the strain of his prior responsibility" of investigating allegations of child molestation against the diocese.