christopher layden
Christopher Layden, 34, now of Peoria, was a priest at the Newman Center last summer when UI police learned from an informant that Layden was using and selling cocaine from his residence. On Thursday, Layden pleaded guilty to a single Class 1 felony count of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, admitting that on Sept. 10, he had 1.9 grams of cocaine in his residence intended for sale. Layden, who hails from Hoopeston, was ordained a priest in 2001 and studied in Rome for five years. Bishop Daniel Jenky suspended Layden from his duties as a diocesan priest immediately after his arrest. Jenky maintains that neither he nor anyone at Newman knew about Layden's cocaine problem. The suspension is still in effect.