By Justin Pope, Associated Press, 02/26/03

| Complete coverage |  AG'S REPORT Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly released the results of a 16-month investigation into clergy sex abuse in the Boston archdiocese. Download report [PDF, 1.4 MB] (File requires Adobe Acrobat)  TODAY'S GLOBE A new leader reaches out 3 faces in crowd bound in hopeh At BC, students watch with awe O'Malley's homily reveals frank man Near cathedral, voices of protest 'Good priests' moved to tears Text of Archbishop O'Malley's homily Sandwiches, chips were bill of fare An angry protest, and prayers  GRAPHICS The moment of installation Viewer's guide Ceremony TV coverage  Processional O'Malley's vestments O'Malley's coat of arms Cathedral of the Holy Cross  REALVIDEO | NECN.com | Help with video | O'Malley to be installed today Great expectations of O'Malley Video clips require RealPlayer and Windows 98 or higher.  INTERACTIVE FEATURE An interactive timeline of the developing church crisis, featuring photos and audio.   View timeline  IN-DEPTH Boston's new archbishop Bishop Sean Patrick O'Malley has been chosen to succeed Cardinal Law as leader of the archdiocese. Reaction to O'Malley appointment Accused priests are vindicated Three priests have been exonerated after being suspended from their posts over abuse allegations.  CARDINAL BERNARD LAW Coverage of his resignation Career timeline: Priest to cardinal Changing statements on abuse Coverage of his tenure in Boston Photos: Law through the years Boston.com readers' comments  CONTACT SPOTLIGHT If you have information on child abuse by priests, call (617) 929-3208 Or leave a confidential message at this number (617) 929-7483 The Spotlight Team e-mail address is spotlight@globe.com.

BOSTON -- New Orleans Archbishop Alfred Hughes spent nine "long and challenging" hours on Wednesday before a grand jury investigating whether criminal charges should be brought against Boston Archdiocese officials for their handling of priests accused of sexual abuse.

Hughes followed Cardinal Bernard Law, Boston's former archbishop, who answered questions on Tuesday for the same grand jury, which is meeting in state Attorney General Thomas Reilly's office.

At least seven other current and former top officials in the Boston Archdiocese have been subpoenaed to answer questions about their handling of complaints against priests.

Hughes told reporters afterward that he testified "to fulfill a civic responsibility" and described the questioning as occasionally "intense." He refused to discuss specifics of his testimony but said he did not have the impression he was targeted by the investigation.

"I think it's part of a broader exploration that's going on," he said.

A former auxiliary bishop under Law, Hughes was defrocked priest John Geoghan's supervisor when Geoghan molested a 10-year boy in a Waltham pool in 1991. Geoghan was convicted of indecent assault and battery in the case in January 2002 and sentenced to at least 10 years in prison.

In 1982, Hughes also recommended that an admitted child molester, the Rev. Robert Burns, be allowed back into the ministry. In 1996, Burns was convicted of child molestation in New Hampshire and imprisoned.

After his testimony, Hughes reiterated that he believed he had made sound decisions at the time given the information he had from experts.

"Decisions can be made responsibly with data that was available to me at the time that ended up in retrospect not the most helpful," he said.

Hughes said he believed his testimony was finished.

"I think one thing that I've learned, to rely much more on my own convictions and intuitions and less on professionals who often made recommendations that were supportive of what they perceived to be their clients and not sufficiently attentive to the common good or the risk to others," he said.

Until recently, church officials were not required to report sexual abuse of children to civil authorities. A new state law now makes reckless endangerment of children a crime, and requires church officials to report suspected abuse.