Priest Who Claimed Attack Resigns
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (AP) - A Roman Catholic priest who first claimed he was
stabbed 88 times by two intruders, then acknowledged he wounded himself in
a suicide attempt, has resigned from his parishes.
The Rev. Thomas Spisak, 55, was in stable condition Wednesday.
Bishop Thomas J. Tobin said Spisak resigned as pastor of two parishes in
Warren, about 65 miles southeast of Cleveland.
Spisak called 911 on June 14 and told authorities that two men broke into the
rectory and knifed him. On Monday, he said he stabbed himself, apparently
because he was depressed over his medical bills, police said.
In the hours before the stabbing, Spisak also swallowed a handful of Advil
pain relievers and drank peroxide, but vomited the mixture back up.
AP-NY-06-24-98 1345EDT
.c The Associated Press