A New Orleans attorney is appealing a $400,000 court penalty for warning a school principal and a reporter about an accused sexual predator working as a high school chaplain. Richard Trahant represents victims of clergy abuse. He acknowledges having told a reporter to keep the accused predator “on your radar,” and that he asked the principal whether the person was still a chaplain at the school. But he said he gave no specific information about accusations against the man, and did not violate a federal bankruptcy court’s protective order requiring confidentiality. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments Wednesday.
