1/30/13 - Jury selection is underway in Miami federal court for the trial of a Livingston County man accused of abusing poor boys at a residential center he ran in Haiti. 66-year-old Matthew Andrew Carter of Brighton has been in custody since his May 2011 arrest. He faces several charges, including one count of traveling from the United States to Haiti for the purpose of engaging in sexual conduct with minors. Authorities say he forced poor boys sheltered at the Morning Star Center in Port-au-Prince to engage in sexual conduct in exchange for gifts, money or continued care from the mid-1990âs through April of 2011. The Haitian government took the rare step of closing the home after Carter's arrest. Carter had sought to dismiss the charges and claimed they were filed outside the statute of limitations but a federal judge ruled against that interpretation and denied they had expired. Once a jury is seated, Carterâs trial is scheduled to begin February 5th. (JK)
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