God's Spokesman on Earth
8th august 2011. See article
from thescotsman.scotsman.com
As
a prophet of his polygamist sect, Warren Jeffs documented everything he did,
keeping track of every marriage he performed, every young so-called bride. It
was those meticulous records - including an audiotape of what prosecutors said
was a sexual assault on a 12-year-old girl that he had married - that saw
the 55-year-old head of a cult-like offshoot of the Mormon religion convicted on
two sex assault charges. Prosecutors hope the same records will help bring a
life prison sentence to a man regarded by his followers in his
Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints as God's
spokesman on Earth.
A Texas jury took just 40 minutes to hand him the toughest sentence
open to them -- life in prison for aggravated sexual assault and 20
years in prison for sexual assault of a child. The sentences followed
Jeffs's conviction last week on two counts relating to polygamist
marriages with girls aged 12 and 15.
Update: Accomplice
16th November 2011. Based on
article from
gosanangelo.com
The former bishop of a polygamy-sanctioning sect received the maximum
sentence of 10 years and a $10,000 fine for conducting a marriage
ceremony between a 12-year-old girl and the then-50-year-old sect
leader, Warren Jeffs.
What do we do with a man who has put out in harm's way so many
people, who worked as some twisted Pez dispenser popping off daughters
for the prophet? lead Prosecutor Angela Goodwin said in her closing
arguments.
The jury heard testimony and saw documents that alleged Jessop had 22
wives, married off 11 daughters and two granddaughters to Jeffs, a man
now in prison for sexual assault, and participated in 16 underage
marriages.
Not Always Clear Cut
1st April 2011. See article
from nypost.com,
Thanks to Alan
A
defrocked priest filed a defamation suit yesterday against the former seminarian
whose abuse allegations led to his ouster from the clergy. Former Monsignor
Charles Kavanagh -- the highest-ranking New York cleric caught up in the
Catholic Church sex scandal -- says Daniel Donohue repeatedly lied to
reporters to extract a monetary settlement from the New York
Archdiocese.
Kavanagh's Manhattan federal-court suit demands unspecified damages
from Donohue.
Court papers cite more than a half-dozen damning newspaper headlines,
noting that Kavanagh was held up to ridicule and scorn . . . when he
was labeled a 'Pervert Priest' in The Post.
21 priests suspended in Philadelphia
10th March 2011. See article
from guardian.co.uk
The
Philadelphia archdiocese has suspended 21 Roman Catholic priests who were named
as suspected child abusers in a scathing grand jury report last month.
Cardinal Justin Rigali, the archbishop of Philadelphia, said the priests
had been removed from ministry while their cases were reviewed. The
names of the priests were not being released, a spokesman for the
archdiocese said.
These have been difficult weeks since the release of the grand
jury report, difficult most of all for victims of sexual abuse but also
for all Catholics and for everyone in our community, Rigali said.
The two-year grand jury investigation into abuse in the archdiocese
of Philadelphia resulted in charges against two priests, a former priest
and a Catholic schoolteacher who are accused of raping boys. A former
high-ranking church official was accused of transferring problem priests
to new parishes without revealing they had been the subject of sex abuse
complaints.
Strip Poker, Preacher Rules
10th March 2011. Based on
article from
blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com &
article from
kswt.com ,
Thanks to Alan
Strip
poker can be a fun party game when played by visually -- and age -- appropriate
gamblers. It's a problem, however, when one of those playing is a preacher --
it's an even bigger problem when the only other player is a 14-year-old boy.
The former preacher at a Jehovah's Witness church in Phoenix was
arrested last night for allegedly playing strip poker -- and doing a lot
of other sick stuff -- with a 14-year-old boy more than 30 years ago.
David Nelson, the former leader of the Madison Park Congregation
Church near 16th Street and Earll Drive in Phoenix, was arrested for molesting a boy he met through the church in 1980.
Nelson was charged with two counts of sexual conduct with a minor,
two counts of molestation of a child, and two counts of public sexual
indecency.
He pleaded guilty at his court case in March 2011 and will be
sentenced on 7th April 2011.
God's Nasty Will
27th February 2011. Based on
article from
rawstory.com. Thanks to Alan
A
lawsuit targeting the Pentagon contains an astonishing anecdote about a retired
Sergeant's experience after being sexually assaulted by a colleague during a
deployment to Afghanistan. The lawsuit was filed by 17 military women against
Secretaries of Defense Robert Gates and Donald Rumsfeld in Virginia. It
assails the military's repeated failures to take action in rape cases
created a culture where violence against women was tolerated, violating
the plaintiffs' Constitutional rights.
Sergeant Rebekah Havrilla alleges in the complaint that in 2006,
after her military supervisor repeatedly sexually harassed her, she was
raped by a colleague she was working with at the time.
She immediately sought the assistance of the military chaplain,
the lawsuit reads. When SGT Havrilla met with the military chaplain,
he told her that 'it must have been God's will for her to be raped' and
recommended that she attend church more frequently.
A Minor
17th February 2011. Thanks to Alan
A
Renton minister and music teacher accused of having sex with a teenage student
has been charged with rape and child molestation.
Previously convicted of rape after having sex with a 12-year-old
girl, Royce C. Shorter stands accused of forcing himself on a
15-year-old piano student.
According to charging documents, Shorter operates his own music
studio -- N Time Music Productions -- and his own Christian ministry,
Royce Clinton Shorter Ministries.
Speaking with detectives, the girl Shorter is alleged to have raped
said Shorter started hitting on her during their lessons, then began
kissing and groping her. The girl said Shorter coerced her into having
sex at least five times, beginning when she was 15, Seattle Police
Detective Leslie Smith told the court.
Imam convicted
27th June 2010. Based on
article from
yidwithlid.blogspot.com ,
Thanks to Alan
Yasser
Mohamed Shahade was sentenced to ten years probation and designation as a sex
offender after pleading guilty to molesting a boy in his mosque. He entered
the United States on a visitor's visa to serve as a full-time imam, or
Muslim prayer leader, at a local mosque, Masjid Omar Al Mokhtar, just
north of Kennedy Boulevard near downtown Tampa. About two months later,
police arrested him after a teen boy who stayed overnight at the mosque
with his younger brother said the imam had sexually assaulted him.
Church hit the high notes
19th May 2010. Based on
article from
news.topwirenews.com,
Thanks to Alan
A
nearly $18 million settlement was reached after 26 former altar boys of
Vermont's Catholic church sued the church, claiming sexual abuse by priests over
30 years ago, as reported by MSNBC. Both parties in the settlement stated they
were pleased with the outcome. The lawsuits accused the Diocese of Burlington
of negligent hiring, using the defrocked Rev. Edward Paquette as the
prime example. Paquette was the target of abuse allegations before he
transferred to Vermont in the 1970s. He worked in parishes in Montpelier
and Rutland and in Christ the King Church in Burlington. He was accused
of molesting dozens of altar boys.
Once the second-highest ranking Catholic
priest
19th April 2010. See
article from
myfoxphoenix.com,
Thanks to Alan
He
was once the second-highest ranking Catholic priest within the Phoenix Diocese.
Former Monsignor Dale Fushek has pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor
assault. The 57-year-old admitted to inappropriately touching a boy while
running a youth program during the mid 1980's. Fushek admitted to touching the
genitals of his victim through the victim's clothing.
When the allegations were brought forth in 2005, Fushek was arrested on several
child sex abuse charges. He was accused of fondling 7 young boys while working
at St. Timothy's in Mesa. As a result of his plea agreement, Fushek would admit
guilt to one of the charges, misdemeanor assault, and the others would be
dismissed.
Village
of Lost Hope
11th April 2010. Based on
article from
commercialappeal.com,
Thanks to Alan
When
Father Juan Carlos Duran arrived in Memphis in the summer of 1999, the
Spanish-speaking Dominican priest provided a much-needed addition to the
Catholic Diocese of Memphis. His duties under the one-year contract were to
minister to the growing number of Hispanic parishioners at the Church of
the Ascension in Raleigh.
It appeared to be a match made in heaven.
We desperately needed someone to work with our Hispanic community,
Bishop J. Terry Steib said in a later deposition recounting talks with
the Dominican Order. And the candidate they had was Juan Carlos
Duran.
The Memphis Diocese did little to examine the background of its
prized candidate, however, and learned too late that Duran was a priest
with a past.
I just remember him asking me in the car or asking when we are
alone, 'Please, please, let me give you (oral sex),' stuff like that,
said a 14-year-old boy identified as John Doe in a sex abuse
lawsuit filed against the diocese and the Dominicans. I can't
remember the exact number of occasions, but it was multiple.
Village
of Lost Hope
30th March 2010. See
article from
getreligion.org,
Thanks to Alan
A
Utah man known for co-founding the Village of Hope to aid Ethiopian orphans and
adopting Ethiopian children has been charged with multiple counts of child sex
abuse and child pornography. Charges filed allege Lon Harvey Kennard Sr.
sexually abused two of his adoptive daughters who are now adults.
Kennard faces 24 first-degree felony counts of aggravated sex abuse
of a child, 21 second-degree felony counts of sexual exploitation of a
child and one count of witness tampering.
The sexual abuse outlined in court records allegedly began in 1995,
around the time Kennard was serving as bishop of his LDS Church ward and
one year after he and his wife founded Village of Hope.
Cleveland
priest sentenced for corruption of a minor
8th January 2010. See
article
from
blog.cleveland.com,
Thanks to Alan
A
former priest of the Cleveland Catholic Diocese has reported to Lorain County
Jail where he began a 90-day sentence for having sexual contact with a
15-year-old boy in 1997. The Rev. Patrick O'Connor, 52, who had ministered at
Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine in Euclid, St. Jude in Elyria and St. Joseph
in Cuyahoga Falls, pleaded guilty in September to corruption of a minor.
He was originally charged with sexual battery, which carries a
five-year prison sentence, but a plea bargain reduced the crime.
Besides jail time, O'Connor was sentenced to three years' probation
and declared a sex offender, which, under Ohio law, requires him to
register all his contact information -- address, telephone, e-mail etc.
-- with his local sheriff's office every six months for 25 years.
He also is forbidden to live within 1,000 feet of a school.
On the
US Marshal's 15 Most Wanted List
2nd January 2010. See
article
from
blogs.laweekly.com,
Thanks to Alan
Speaking
in the voice of America's Most Wanted's John Walsh): We've seen a lot of
scumbags in our day, but this guy takes the cake. Frederick McLean is an alleged
sexual predator of the lowest kind. Authorities allege McLean met many of the
child victims through his work as a local Jehovah's Witnesses leader in
San Diego. At one point Riverside County authorities were also called to
take care of this alleged monster. The 58-year-old is facing multiple
counts of sexual assault on a child, with one victim claiming that
McLean assaulted her more than 100 times starting when she was
5-years-old.
Federal authorities want McLean so bad they've put him the U.S.
Marshals' national, 15 Most Wanted list.
Trenton
Diocese compensates child abuse victim
28th November 2009. See
article
from
nj.com,
Thanks to Alan
The
Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton has paid $325,000 to a 32-year-old woman who
says she was sexually assaulted by a former diocesan priest, the late Rev. Ron
Becker, who died in January. Jenni Franz, who was Becker's niece, says Becker
molested her more than 100 times from when she was 5 until she was 11.
She said she first came forward to the diocese in 2004.
Becker had been the subject of other, similar allegations, and the
diocese has settled with at least two other accusers, according to one
of Franz's attorneys, Greg Gianforcaro.
Trenton Bishop John Smith barred Becker from ministry in 2002, after
receiving what the diocese termed credible complaints. A previous
bishop had removed him from parish assignments in 1989, and in the
interim he worked in the diocese headquarters, away from minors,
evaluating requests for annulments, diocese officials said.
The
priest and the altar boy
27th November 2009. See
article
from
fredericknewspost.com,
Thanks to Alan
A
Roman Catholic priest has been sentenced to 10 years probation for sexually
abusing an altar boy at a Germantown church more than seven years ago.
In July, the Rev. Aaron A.J. Cote pleaded not guilty and was convicted of
third-degree sex offense after Judge Louise G. Scrivener heard an agreed upon
statement of facts.
Employed at the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer in New York City, Cote must
register as a sex offender and undergo court-ordered evaluation and treatment.
The 10-year suspended sentence and probation was part of a plea deal reached by
prosecutors.
Amish
bishops arrested for not reporting child abuser
7th November 2009. See
article
from
google.com,
Thanks to Alan
Four
Amish leaders in southwest Missouri who chose to shun an accused child
molester in their community rather than report him to authorities were charged
Tuesday with failing to report the sexual abuse.
Webster County prosecutor Danette Padgett said all four are bishops and face one
misdemeanor count each of failure to report child abuse as a mandatory reporter.
Under Missouri law, people with responsibility for the care of children
are required to report suspected child abuse. Examples of mandatory reporters
under the statute are doctors, nurses, social workers and teachers and ministers
who are not engaged in a privileged communication.
A Spoke
in the Works
6th November 2009. See
article
from
spokesman.com,
Thanks to Alan
Twenty-one
new claims of clergy sex abuse have been filed against the Catholic Diocese of
Spokane, a number that has surprised the diocese and could reopen its
contentious bankruptcy case. None of the new allegations – called future
claims – was made by children alleging recent abuse, said diocese
attorney Greg Arpin. Instead, they are accusations by adults who contend
they were sexually abused by priests and other diocese clergy years ago
and are just now able to link that abuse to financial damage and other
problems in their lives.
$4
million Settlement
31st October 2009. See
article
from
savannahnow.com,
Thanks to Alan
The
Catholic Diocese of Savannah has agreed to pay more than $4 million to the
alleged victim of an abusive former priest in order to avoid going to trial.
The Diocese released a statement announcing the $4.24 million agreement
reached with former St. James Catholic School student Allan Ranta Jr.
Ranta had filed a complaint in a Jasper County, S.C., civil court
stating he was molested from 1978 to 1983, starting when he was 10 years
old, by former priest Wayland Y. Brown.
Ranta claimed former Savannah Bishop Raymond Lessard and other
diocesan officials knew Brown posed a danger to children but failed to
take action.
Brown, 66, was convicted in 2003 of sexually abusing two Maryland
boys, ages 12 and 13, in 1974. He was released from prison in April 2008
after serving half of his sentence.
15 Year
Saga
31st October 2009. Based on
article
from
chicagotribune.com,
Thanks to Alan
The
15-year saga of a Chicago priest expelled from public ministry, reinstated, then
removed again ended this week with his permanent ouster from the priesthood.
John Calicott, the former pastor of Holy Angels Roman Catholic Church in
Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood, received word earlier this month
that he is no longer a member of the clergy, the Archdiocese of Chicago
said, citing a decree from the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith.
The Vatican decree caps an arduous and circuitous journey since
allegations first surfaced in 1994 that Calicott abused two teenagers
during his first assignment at St. Ailbe Catholic Church on the city's
South Side.
A year later, after parishioners pleaded for Calicott's return,
Cardinal Joseph Bernardin made an exception to his policy barring
priests removed for sexual misconduct with minors from returning to
parish ministry. He cited two psychological evaluations that said
Calicott posed no significant risk to children if he continued
therapy.
Church
Morally and Financially Bankrupt
22nd October 2009. Based on
article
from
news.bbc.co.uk,
Thanks to Alan
The
Catholic diocese based in the state of Delaware has filed for US bankruptcy
protection on the eve of a civil trial involving high-profile sex abuse.
The move automatically delays the case, the seventh of its kind in the US since
a scandal in Boston seven years ago.
The bishop of the diocese claimed the move offered the best chance for victims
of sexual abuse to be treated fairly. But an attorney for the victims said the
action was a desperate attempt to hide the truth from the public.
The case, due to be heard on Monday, would have been the first to go to trial
under a state law creating a two-year window allowing claims to be brought even
if the statute of limitations had expired. 'Cover-up' About 230,000 Catholics
live in the Wilmington diocese, which covers Delaware and eastern Maryland.
This is a painful decision, one that I had hoped and prayed I would never
have to make, Bishop W Francis Malooly said in a statement on the diocese's
website. He said that talks with the eight victims bringing the case had broken
down, and there were fears that too large a settlement would leave the diocese
without sufficient resources to compensate another 133 people with outstanding
claims.
Abuse
survivors unimpressed by Kentucky appointment
28th September 2009. See
article
from
kfvs12.com,
Thanks to Alan
A
group of clergy abuse survivors are asking the Louisville Archdiocese to speak
out against a local church that recently ordained a convicted child molester as
a minister.
Several members of the Louisville chapter of Survivors Network of those Abused
by Priests hand-delivered a letter to the Archdiocese office on Thursday. The
letter urges Archbishop Joseph Kurtz to publicly condemn the City of Refuge
Worship Center for ordaining Mark Hourigan as a minister.
3%
religious women target of sexual advances from clerics
13th September 2009. Based on
article
from
washingtonpost.com,
Thanks to Alan
One
in every 33 women who attend worship services regularly has been the target of
sexual advances by a religious leader, a survey released Wednesday says.
The study, by Baylor University researchers, found that the problem is so
pervasive that it almost certainly involves a wide range of denominations,
religious traditions and leaders.
"It certainly is prevalent, and clearly the problem is more than simply a few
charismatic leaders preying on vulnerable followers," said Diana Garland, dean
of Baylor's School of Social Work, who co-authored the study.
It found that more than two-thirds of the offenders were married to someone else
at the time of the advance.
Arizona
Baptist Minister Convicted of molesting 13 year old
24th August 2009. See
article
from
abpnews.com,
Thanks to Alan
A
jury in Tucson, Arizona, convicted a former youth minister at a Southern Baptist
church of molesting a 13-year-old girl over the course of a year.
Jurors found Christopher Decaire guilty of six charges of molestation and sexual
misconduct.
The girl, now 15, testified that Decaire molested her between
January 2007 and January 2008 while he served as youth minister of East Tucson
Baptist Church. She told jurors that something happened pretty much every
Wednesday, the night the youth group met.
Decaire will be sentenced Sept. 18. He faces more than 50 years
in prison.
Credible case against Wisconsin
Priest
24th August 2009. See
article
from
wkowtv.com,
Thanks to Alan
The
Madison Catholic Diocese admitted allegations of sexual abuse of a child made
against a Madison-area priest are credible.
The bishop referred the case against Joseph Gibbs Clauder to the Vatican for
judgment, but one group says that's not enough.
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) wants open information
and prosecution.
Clauder was ordained in 1973. He's currently on administrative leave, after
allegations of sexual miscount with a woman in 1999. Now, he's accused of
sexually abusing a child. The diocese confirmed this information, calling both
allegations "credible," and referred the case to the Vatican in Rome for
judgment.
25 abusive priests not reported in Chicago
27th July 2009. See
article
from
suntimes.com,
Thanks to Alan
The
former No. 2 official of the Catholic church in Chicago admitted that he knew 25
priests broke the law by sexually abusing children but did not report them,
according to depositions made public.
Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus Raymond E. Goedert's statements show the lengths
they went to to protect their reputation and the priest at the peril of the
child, said attorney Jeff Anderson, who represents men who have sued the
archdiocese over alleged childhood molestation.
I knew the civil law considered it a crime, Goedert said in the
deposition: But I'm not a civil lawyer. I think we just relied on -- a lot on
our -- we knew it was wrong, what was done. And we used our common sense and
prudence with the help of people -- expert in the field to assist us in
resolving these cases.
I simply would not talk about it to anyone except those who
had a right to know because of their position in the diocese, Goedert said.
The archdiocese issued a statement confirming that settlements
had been reached with six survivors of abuse by priests totaling $3.9 million
and that all of the abuse happened between 1970 and 1986. The priests involved
were all removed from ministry by 1991 or earlier, the church noted.
Biblical Age of Consent at Odds with
US Law
15th July 2009. See
article
from
kspr.com.
Thanks to Alan
Famed
leader of Tony Alamo Christian Ministries Tony Alamo himself will make an
appearance in federal court for the start of his trial on charges he took young
girls across state lines for sex.
The Joplin native's religious sect headquartered in Arkansas has been under
scrutiny for years because of such accusations.
Alamo pleaded not guilty while at the same time saying the bible describes the
age of consent as when girls reach puberty.
A guilty verdict on one charge from the ten-count indictment could place the
preacher behind bars for the rest of his life.
He served six years in prison the 90s, making him a candidate for the harshest
sentence this time around.
Update:
Guilty on all 10 charges
29th July 2009. See
article
from
kansascity.com
Alamo stood silently Friday as he was convicted of all 10 charges against him, a
contrast to his occasional mutterings during testimony. He is set to be
sentenced in six to eight weeks.
He could face a total of 175 years in prison for violating the Mann Act, a law
originally aimed at stopping women from being sold into prostitution. Each count
also carries possible fines of $250,000.
“I’m just another one of the prophets that went to jail for the Gospel,” Alamo
called to reporters as U.S. marshals escorted him back to jail.
Update:
Guilty on all 10 charges
17th November 2009. See
article
from
freethinker.co.uk
Evangelist Tony Alamo was sentenced yesterday to 175 years in prison for
taking underage girls across state lines for sex, effectively punishing
him for the rest of his life for molesting children he took as brides
in his ministry.
Alamo, 75, had been convicted in July on a 10-count federal
indictment. US District Judge Harry F Barnes said Alamo used his status
as father figure and pastor and threatened the girls with the loss of
their salvation.
The judge then rather foolishly declared: Mr Alamo, one day you
will face a higher a greater judge than me, may he have mercy on your
soul.
Just before Barnes sentenced Alamo, the evangelist offered a brief
statement to the court praising God then later adding: I'm glad I'm
me and not the deceived people in the world.
30 Years in Prison
12th May 2009. See
article
from
ynetnews.com,
Thanks to Alan
A
New York rabbi convicted of molesting his daughter has been sentenced to 30
years in prison.
Monsey rabbi Israel Weingarten was found guilty in March of abusing his daughter
through much of her childhood. The trial was traumatic for his victim, who is
now 27.
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