CHRISTIAN
SEX CRIMES - REPORTED 1992
(by U.S. states, Canadian states, other countries)
File: XCrime92
*** ALABAMA ***
PASTOR BOOKED FOR MOLESTING SCHOOLGIRL. A girl, 15, was molested at a church-run school in Birmingham by Rev. James E.
Johnson, of Ensley, according to police. He was charged with 2nd degree sexual
assault, a misdemeanor. Source: _Birmingham News_ 11/21/92.
*** ARIZONA ***
PRIEST GETS 10 YEARS. In an April plea-bargain, Rev. Mark Lebman, 29, of St. Thomas the Apostle Church, will get a 10-year
prison sentence without parole, followed by lifetime probation, for fondling 3
young Phoenix girls. He was not prosecuted for 15 other charges of sexual
misconduct with 2 girls and a boy. He agreed to pay $15,000 for counseling for
all 6 victims, ages 8 to 13. Source: _Arizona Republic_ 4/11/92.
PHOENIX MAN SUES POPE. A Phoenix man represented by attorney Dick Treon has
added the Pope and Phoenix Bishop Thomas O'Brien to a suit filed in 1990 over George Bredemann, 49, a long-time abuser of altar boys.
Bredemann is serving 45 years in prison Source: _Arizona Republic_ 6/4/92.
BAPTIST VOLUNTEER PREYED ON GIRLS? Thomas Road
Baptist Church in Phoenix failed to
screen church volunteer John Herman Kuiper for a criminal record when it
permitted him to drive a church bus &
volunteer at youth events. Kuiper, who had been convicted in 1991 of a felony
charge of 3rd degree sexual assault, was arrested in Phoenix for molesting 5
girls. As a church bus driver in Fort Collins, Colorado, he had received a deferred
sentence for molesting a little girl, 5. Rev. Ken Adrian, church pastor,
complained to
media that the publicity was not good for his Phoenix church. Source: _Arizona
Republic_ 11/4/92.
LUTHERAN COUNSELOR NABBED. St. Paul Lutheran Church
youth counselor John Wayne Nase, 40,
Phoenix, was accused of multiple counts of child molesting, sexual conduct with
a minor & kidnapping. Police
say he ordered a boy, 12, into the choir loft & performed sex acts on him
after Nase's Sunday confirmation classes. Source: _Arizona Republic_ 7/21/92.
*** CALIFORNIA ***
REDEEMER CHURCH SETTLES SUIT. Redeemer Lutheran
Church, Redwood City, made a secret settlement to a victim of youth
counselor James A. Weller, who had sought $25,000. The victim said the pastor
and other church officials interrupted Weller when he was molesting the victim,
then 13, but failed to report it. Weller had been dishonorably discharged from
the Navy for sexual molestation and had a record when he was hired by the
church. He was convicted in 1990 of 27 counts of sex crimes against 4 boys and
a girl, including oral sex, rape and pornography. He is serving a 4-year prison
sentence. Source: _Redwood City Tribune_ 5/19/92.
DYING CANCER PATIENT RAPED IN MONASTERY. A terminally ill woman staying at a Benedictine monastery in Oceanside was raped and
beaten by a masked intruder while a female accomplice ransacked her room. After
beating her in the head with a flashlight, the intruder ripped her clothes,
raped her and forced her into other sex acts. Source: _New York Post_ 2/27/92.
PRIEST CHARGED WITH MOLESTING GIRLS. A Sacramento judge issued a warrant for
the arrest of priest Gerardo Beltran, 34, for sexually molesting 2 girls, ages
6 and 12, between 1989 and 1991. Beltran left for Mexico when an investigation
began. "More than anything, I feel angry. How dare this man come into my
home and do such a horrible thing?" said the mother of the girls.
"Nothing will ever be the same. Not only was it a horrible crime, it also
affected our religious beliefs. This is a man who
performed our Sunday Masses,
who listened to our confessions." The diocese
won't admit wrongdoing, but has offered counseling and an evaluation
of both girls. Source: _Sacramento Bee_ 3/20/92.
PLEA BARGAIN TO BAN PRIEST. Los Angeles
city attorneys offered to settle charges against Patrick Kelly, 72, for making
sexual advances to a girl, 9, if he agrees to stay in Ireland and not return to
California for 3 years. Source: _Los Angeles Times_ 4/7/92.
SAN DIEGO WOMAN SUES PRIEST. A San Diego woman, 29, filed suit
against a retired priest and caretaker for molesting her hundreds of times at St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church from 1974-1979.
Also named is the diocese of Escondido. Father
Victor Ubaldi, 79, now in Italy, denies the charges. The janitor has
not been located. She said the men separately committed rape, oral sex and
molestation, starting when she was 12. She seeks to recoup the cost of
psychological counseling as well as unspecified damages. Another woman has come
forward saying Ubaldi fondled her at the age of 12 or 13 when he came to her
house to give communion to her sick grandmother. Father Charles Fuld, Diocese
of San Diego, insists there is "no indication at all, that he served in
anything but aIl exemplary fashion". Source: _Los Angeles Times_ 1992.
PROMINENT EVANGELICAL RESIGNS; NO CHARGES? Prominent
Sunday-school teacher/leader James C. Truxton, 77, resigned his
positions at the 5,000-member First Evangelical Free
Church in Fullerton. The founding president of Mission Aviation
Fellowship admitted he was stepping down because of "molestation
perpetrated by me in the past upon young girls within & outside this
congregation". Truxton & his wife's memberships were revoked They were
told not to set foot on church property again. Both had been teaching
second-graders; the wife was called "culpable". At least 7 church
members in their 20s & 30s said they were molested by Truxton as children.
The statute of limitations has expired; no criminal charges were filed. When
parents 20 years ago complained to Mission Aviation Fellowship officials about
Truxton, they were told a psychologist at Fuller Seminary evaluated him,
concluding he was in no need of help. Source: _National & International
Religion Report_ 10/19/92.
PASTOR OUSTED FROM 4,500-MEMBER CHURCH. Pastor David Hocking of Calvary Church in Santa
Ana was forced to resign after confessing to an affair with a married woman.
Hocking, 51, is married with grown children. Source: _National &
International Religion Report_ 10/19/92.
CATHOLIC COACH ABUSED RUNNER. Former marathon runner Linda Van Housen, 28, was awarded $1.1 million in damages by a
San Mateo jury that ruled her coach had sexually molested her for than than 10
years from the time she was 13. Coach Michael Ipsen,
49, made a sexual slave of her, she testified. It was unsettled who
would pay the damages, pending outcome of a legal battle between the College of
Notre Dame in Belmont, where Ipsen had coached, & its insurance carrier.
Source: _San Francisco Chronicle_ 10/3/92
SAN JOSE CATHOLIC COVER-UP? A San Jose woman is charging that Rev. Peter Luc
The Phan, her priest, told her it was her religious obligation to help him get
over his "fixation with the female body". She said when she tried to
break off the relationship in 1990, Phan raped her.
Three priests told the woman to keep quiet to
protect the church, she said. One priest
suggested she forgive him & take up tennis. Another told her the church couldn't help her until she
agreed not to press charges. The woman, a nurse, said she has tried to
commit suicide twice because of the priest, who began exploiting her when she
started religious instruction with him. Source: _San Jose Mercury News_
6/25/92.
PASTOR GETS 13 YEARS FOR INCEST. Springfield Baptist
Church pastor Jon L. Walker, 43, was sentenced
to 18 years in prison for molesting a relative for 2-1/2 years,
beginning when she was 13. Twenty persons pleaded for leniency, including the
local NAACP president. Walter's defense was to accuse his wife of concocting
the charges to get even with him because he had an affair with a young church
member! Deputy DA Karen Gray said the letters of support were "a sad
testimony to the fact that Mr. Walter's life has been a fraud". Source:
_San Luis Obispo Telegram Tribune_ 8/5/92.
VICTIM SUES CONVICTED MINISTER. Rancho Cucamonga pastor John Marshall,
convicted of sexually battering an ill man, 25, is being sued for $1 million by
victim Kirk Judy, along with his church, the American
Baptist Churches of USA & of the Pacific Southwest. The 6'2", 200-lb pastor overpowered the 5'6",
140-lb victim at a bedside counseling visit. He got only 2 years of probation. The suit alleges
that Marshall had committed other crimes, & that the 2 Baptist groups should have known about them. Source:
_Ontario Daily Bulletin_ 7/29/92.
CHARGES AGAINST JUBILEE CHRISTIAN CENTER. Two assistant pastors at Jubilee Christian Center, San Jose, were charged
with 4 felony counts of lewd & lascivious conduct with children, stemming
from assaults on 4 boys, ages 10-15, at the church between September 1988 &
February 1992. Charged are Pablo Geraldo Boas, 28,
& David Ernest Brimmer, 39. Sources: _L.A. Times_ 12/19/92, _San
Francisco
Examiner_ 1/10/93.
MORMON TEACHER GETS 30 YEARS. Sobbing Mormon Sunday
School teacher John Allen Midgett asked
for God's forgiveness before being sentenced to 30 years in state prison for
molesting & terrorizing 8 girls, ages 5-10. A parent testified Midgett
turned her cheerful, trusting daughter into a frightened, scarred recluse. He was also ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution Source:
_San Diego Times Union_ 1992, _Los Angeles Times_ 9/12/92.
** COLORADO ***
PRIEST COMMITS SUICIDE. The day after the attorney of St. Mary's High School in
Colorado Springs hired an investigator to look into charges of sexual misconduct
by Rev. Richard Chung, the Benedictine priest
committed suicide. A glowing report of
his popularity with students was printed, but no details on the
allegation. Source: _Gazette Telegraph_ 3/24/92.
CANCER VICTIM ALLEGES MISCONDUCT. Carolyn Kruse, Aurora, filed suit against her
minister and church, saying he coerced her into a sexual relationship when she
went for counseling while ill with Hodgkin's
disease. Sued is John R. Leonard, pastor of Harvest
Christian Center, who told the congregation Kruse was possessed by a
demon. Source: _Rocky Mountain News_ 1/1/92.
EPISCOPAL PRIEST SETTLES. Episcopal Rev. Paul
Robinson agreed to pay $575,000 in damages to Mary Tenantry, mother
of 5, for luring her into an extramarital affair while counseling her. Source:
--Reuters/Boston Globe_ 8/92.
COUNSELING VICTIM GETS $300,000. The Bear Valley
Church of Christ & its former minister Homer Wolfe agreed to pay $300,000
to a man whom Wolfe sexually assaulted during family counseling sessions.
Earlier, a boy, now 17, was awarded $450,000 by a jury for similar charges.
Wolfe, 59, has not been criminally charged. He told parishioners to undress
& massage themselves, & masturbated during counseling sessions, also
touching parishioners. The fundamentalist Church of
Christ teaches that nonchurch members will go to hell. Wolfe now
lives in Texas. Source: _Rocky Mountain News_ 8/2,29/92.
FUGITIVE RELIGIOUS LEADER NABBED. Fugitive religious leader James Randazzo,
convicted in 1989 of sex crimes, had skipped the country in 1990 & was
nabbed in Hungary after a manhunt. He will now be
sentenced on 10 counts of sexual exploitation of children & drug use. Randazzo founded Spiral of Friends Church in Molina.
Source: _Pueblo Chieftain_ 10/29/92.
*** CONNECTICUT ***
CULT LEADER'S SON GETS YEAR. The *son of Connecticut religious cult leader "Brother Julius" was sentenced to a year
in prison for sexually abusing 4 children, ages 7, 9, 10, & 17. His father
claims to be God & a "sinful messiah" & has also been accused
of molesting children. His civil suits have been settled out of court, but he
has never been criminally indicted. Source: _Boston Globe_ 9/20/92.
*(This son was not Mark
Shacknow)
PRIEST PREYED ON JUVENILE. A Bethel priest is accused of assaulting a boy, 16, in a motel room
after plying him with liquor. Rev. Kieran (Thomas)
Ahearn, 55, vicar at St. Mary's Church & member of the Capuchin Franciscan
order for more than 30 years, was charged with several counts. The
Bridgeport diocese relieved him of his duties. Sources: _Berkshire Eagle_,
Pittsfield, MA 1/21/93; _Waterbury Republican-American_ 1/22/93.
GIRL, ALTARBOY CHARGE PRIEST. The assistant pastor of Holy Name of Jesus Church in Strafford, also in the Diocese
of Bridgeport, repeatedly raped a teenage girl & an altar boy
from 1978-1982 in his room, & at a cabin, according to a civil lawsuit
filed against the diocese & Rev. Raymond Pcolka,
53. The girl alleges that one time after the priest raped her in the rectory, he forced her to confess her "sins" to him.
Victims Sharon See & Brian Freibott, both 28, claim severe emotional injury
& suicidal tendencies. Pcolka was temporarily removed from his post as
pastor at a Greenwich church. The congregation was told only that he was
"ill". Church officials & congregation members expressed
themselves "shocked"; many insisted publicly that it could not be
true. Following publicity, 2 more men came forward
saying Pcolka had abused them when they were 9 & 10, involving a second
parish. One man said Pcolka had tied him & his brother to a bed
& beat them before assaulting them. Attorney T. Paul Tremont of Bridgeport
said he has evidence the Diocese was aware of crimes by Pcolka as long as 10
years ago. Complaints were made at least 3 times, but officials took no action.
Source: _Connecticut Post_ 1/6/93.
CONGREGATIONAL MINISTER RENEGES CONFESSION. Facing 11 felony counts stemming
from molestations of 2 young brothers since 1987, Rev. Boardman Kathan
says a damaging statement he gave police in July was coerced. Former chair of the
Region 16 Board of Education, Kathan retired last summer as associate minister
of the First Congregational Church of Cheshire in
Waterbury. Police say their investigation shows he molested a boy,
17, numerous times over the past 5 years, & once molested his brother, now
12. Source: (Waterbury) _Republican American_ 1/23/93.
*** FLORIDA ***
CULT LEADER REPEAT OFFENDER? Holy Way leader
Clarence "Brother Will" Williams was
arrested after a 19-year-old woman said he brainwashed her into having sex
starting when she was 15. The member of the sect said he forced sex upon her
and other women more than 40 times between 1987-1990. Williams, who pleaded
guilty 5 years ago to "cleansing" underage members by ordering them
to bare their breasts,
was 2 months short of completing his 5-year probation. Terms of probation
prohibited practicing aspects of his religion such as nudity, fondling
children, and having non-related children spend the night. In 1986 prosecutors
interviewed about a dozen girls and their mothers who described a religious
ritual in which they would strip and fondle each other at Williams' command. Williams claimed this was _Bible_-based: "Our
belief is that biblically if you have a problem within yourself, it is because
of sin or weakness, and about the only thing that's going to cleanse you of
that is if you expose it before the Lord." Source: _Palm Beach Post_
2/26/92.
SOLICITOUS TOWARD MONSIGNOR SOLICITOR. Charges for
soliciting sex from an undercover police officer last fall were dropped against
prominent Tampa monsignor Norman Balthazar, 51.
The monsignor drove to a notorious prostitution area and approached the
undercover cop offering to "play with each other" and proposing a
specific sex act. Balthazar was a prominent foe of gay rights. Source: _St.
Petersburg Times_ 1/8/92.
ACCUSED PASTORAL COUNSELOR A PHONY. Port Charlotte church school principal Albert Joseph Clerico
Jr., 47, charged with sexual misconduct by a psychotherapist by
means of therapeutic deception, claims to be licensed by a nonexistent
"scripturally based" group, National Christian Counselors Association
& to have attended the nonexistent Carolina University of Theology. State
investigator Robert Ford charged that Clerico "did
cloak himself in the guise of Christianity &
did represent to the female defendant that sexual contact" was part of the
treatment. Clerico maintains his position as "pastoral counselor"
exempts him under state law from charges. Police miked the victim &
recorded Clerico making sexual advances, soliciting her comment on his graphic
fantasies & telling her to perform oral sex. He was arrested after the
75-minute "counseling session". He has been suspended as principal of Community Christian School of First Baptist
Church in Port Charlotte, & as minister of First Baptist Church,
which operates the school. Source: _Sarasota Herald-Tribune_ 8/4/92.
CATHOLIC CHOIR DIRECTOR CHARGED. Richard Trepinski, 55, music director at St. Charles Borromeo Church in Port
Charlotte & director of Charlotte Co. Boychoir, was charged with
99 counts of lewd & lascivious assault against minors. He was also charged
with sexual activity with a child while in a custodial capacity. He admitted
having sexual relations with several boys over the past 25 years in Port
Charlotte & Tampa, Florida, & in Colorado. The all-male Boychoir had
performed throughout the United States & Europe. Source: _Toledo
Blade_12/24/92.
*** GEORGIA ***
MINISTER GUILTY. Murrayville minister L.G. Gilsrap
pleaded guilty to 2 counts of child molestation Q after the state
high court in 1991 overturned a 1989 conviction for molesting young boys at
church. Source: _USA Today_ 3/6/92.
"WOUNDED SOLDIER" LEAVES CHURCH. Senior
pastor of Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, with 12,000 members Q one of Atlanta's
largest churches Q stepped down, admitting an "improper"
relationship with a female church employee. Charismatic Rev. Don Paulk, 53,
sermonized, "I am not here today as a martyr or hero, but as a fallen,
wounded soldier ... My family's forgiveness was second only to the forgiveness
of
God." His brother, Bishop Earl Paulk, berated
the media for exposing the "weaknesses" of others, and blamed
"Satan", promising Don would return. Source: _Atlanta
Constitution_ 5/11/92.
DEKALB CHURCH BLESSES COVER-UP. A sex scandal, now
encompassing 4 ministers from one family, has been uncovered at the Cathedral
of the Holy Spirit in DeKalb, Georgia, praised by former President Bush as one
of his "1,000 Points of Light". The
$12 million, racially diverse 7,700-seat church with a TV program, social
services, lost half of its 12,000 members following revelations that its
minister, Bishop Earl Paulk, had an adulterous affair. Other church employees
or members have stepped forward to say they had affairs with the bishop's
brother, Rev. Don Paulk, & his nephews Rev. Duane Swilley & Rev. Alan
Mushegan. Women charge the ministers coerced them
into having sex in order to "serve God." The church filed, then dropped a slander/libel suit
against several former members & staffers, resulting in a gag order by a
DeKalb judge forbidding them to discuss their allegations of sexual misconduct.
It promotes a doctrine of "covering",
blessing cover-ups of sexual misconduct & requiring submission to authority.
Don Paulk accuses former church schoolteacher Rebecca Moses of seducing him,
saying "I know now what it was like for Samson to place his head in the
lap of Delilah." Six victims have not filed suit, but are asking for
legislation making it a felony in Georgia for clergy to have sex with members
of their congregations. Sources: AP/_Atlanta Journal/Constitution_ 11/14/92;
_USA Today_ 12/18/92; _Boston Globe_ 1/9/93.
*** HAWAII ***
PRIEST GUILTY OF ASSAULTING BOY, 10. Maui priest
Arthur O'Brien pleaded no contest to 4 counts of sexual assault and
attempted assault of a boy, 10, in his Haiku parish. The prosecutor suggested
erasing the conviction of Arthur O'Brien, 55, but Maui Circuit Judge Richard
Komo rejected the deferred sentencing plea bargain because of the seriousness
of the case. Source: _Honolulu Advertiser_ 4/8/92.
*** ILLINOIS ***
CATHOLIC PRINCIPAL SUSPENDED. St. Francis High
School principal/priest J. Michael Foley, Wheaton, was suspended on
allegations he fondled a female student, 17, in a school hallway. Source:
_Wheaton Daily Journal_ 6/2/92.
PRIEST WON'T BE PROSECUTED IN ILLINOIS. Rev. Norbert Maday, 54, on leave from the Chicago
Archdiocese, won't be prosecuted for a charge that he sexually
abused a boy, 14, in 1986. Wisconsin charges may be pending. Attorney Stephen
M. Komie lashed out at accusers, claiming they made up stories for money.
Source: _Chicago Sun-Times_ 5/20/92.
DAVIS FACES MORE CHARGES. Rev. L.R. Davis, charged in Illinois with criminal
sexual misconduct, child pornography, and perjury, was also charged with
assaulting a teenage boy in San Diego. Davis, 57, is a
prominent Waukegan minister with Christian
Fellowship, Inc. Two fellow ministers, Michael Camer, 30, and David
Annstrong, 33, are indicted on lesser charges. Young boys may have been brought
from Tijuana, Mexico to Davis' San Diego church for molestation.
AIR FORCE CHAPLAIN COURT-MARTIALED. Capt.
Perry W. Bell, 37, pleaded guilty to adultery with 6 women, conduct unbecoming
an officer, and bringing discredit upon the armed forces. He was also convicted
of attempted seduction of a 19-year-old Air Force cadet who fought off advances
in his chapel office. The Scott Air Force Base chaplain was court-martialed and
given 3 months in jail. He could have been sentenced for up to 12 years. In
exchange for guilty pleas, the Air Force agreed to a brief sentence and dropped
other charges of indecent advances, possession of a pornographic videotape
while in the United Arab Emigrates during the war against Iran, ordering an
enlisted man to obtain a pornographic tape, and dereliction of duty. Three of
the victims were Air Force Officers, others were a sergeant, a sergeant's wife
seeking counseling, and an enlisted woman. The senior
Protestant chaplain sought out vulnerable women seeking help for emotional
upsets. Source: _Edwardsville Intelligencer_ 2/19/92.
DAVIS GETS 31 YEARS, CLEMENCY ASKED. The founder of
the notorious First Christian Fellowship Church of Waukegan, Rev. Lloyd Davis,
57, flanked by many supporters, was sentenced
to 31 years in prison for criminal sexual assault, child pornography &
sexual abuse. He imported teenaged boys
from Mexico for sex. Lake Co. Judge Christopher C. Starck said:
"The burning question in this case is whether this man is a minister or a
monster, a pastor or a pedophile." Starck said he is all of those things. Davis is believed to have molested children since the 1960s.
Former church members accuse him of running a cult, making sexual demands on
supporters & locating all churches near Naval bases, where he is known for
trying to lure young sailors into his churches for sexual purposes. About 374
persons wrote letters to the judge asking for mercy. "He is the greatest person there is," insisted Martha
Allsopp, a Kenosha church member. He faces more charges in
California. Two other ministers from his Waukegan church, David Lee Armstrong
& Michael Carner, go on trial in March. In January, 200 supporters led by
Rev. Peter Paine of the Christian Fellowship Church presented a request for
clemency for Davis to the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. "I believe L.R.
Davis may be the most sexually dangerous man to have ever walked the streets of
Lake Co.," maintains Assistant State's Attorney Jeff Pavletic. Sources:
_Chicago Tribune_ 8/15/92, AP/ _Quad-City Times_ 8/15/92, _News-Sun_ (Lake Co.)
1/15/93.
LUTHERAN PASTOR CONFESSES TO 13 YEARS OF CRIMES. The 500 members of Christ
Lutheran church in Palatine were sent a letter informing them that Rev. Wayne Tellekson has confessed to sexual misconduct while
he was pastor from 1975 to 1988. He was removed from his current St.
Paul, Minn. church when a former victim confronted Tellekson. Source: _Chicago
Sun-Times_ 1/15/93.
MAYER FINALLY CONVICTED. Although he is believed to have blatantly molested
numerous minors, male & female, for many years, priest Rev. Robert E. Mayer, 53, had eluded criminal
prosecution with the help
of the Catholic Church's friendly policy of transferring molesters, until now.
A girl, 15, sobbed during her testimony describing how the priest wordlessly molested her on a rectory couch in 1991
when she was a 13-year-old 8th grader at St. Odilo's R.C. Church in Berwyn.
Two altar boys & classmates of the girl also testified that Mayer openly
talked about wanting to have sex with her, including
the suggestion that she be a "visual & demonstrative aid" during
the boys' sex-education classes taught by Mayer. Jeanne Miller filed
suit against Mayer in one of the first suits against Catholic molesting
priests. Her suit, also naming Bernardin & the Archdiocese of Chicago, did not
take Mayer off the streets, so she formed Victims of
Clergy Abuse Linkup. VOCAL has been assisting 3,000 victims of priests;
300 survivors of clergy abuse met at a well- publicized VOCAL conference in
Chicago in November. Contact VOCAL at PO Box 1268, Wheeling IL 60090
(708)202-0242. Source: _Chicago Sun- Times_ 12/10/92.
LAWSUIT ALLEGES CLERGY MALPRACTICE. David S. Guppy filed a civil suit for
clergy malpractice, misrepresentation, fraud & other counts against Rev. F. Scott Luthy, resigned pastor of St. Stephen
Evangelical Lutheran Church, Rockford. Guppy says the minister
seduced his wife, a parishioner, than misused his counseling relationship with
Guppy to conceal the affair, urging him to have an affair of his own. Source:
_Jackson Citizen Patriot_ 7/31/92.
WEST CHICAGO PRIEST ARRESTED. Indignant parishioners defended westside priest Thomas O'Gorman, charged with sexual misconduct
against a minor in the church rectory. O'Gorman is well-known for community
crusades. State's Attorney Jack O'Malley criticized
the archdiocese for impeding his investigation into this allegation & those
against 21 other priests in 1992. O'Gorman was placed on leave.
Source: _Chicago Tribune_ 9/3/92.
SUIT AGAINST PRIEST TIP OF ICEBERG? An attorney representing a victim in a
civil suit against Rev. Lawrence M. Gibbs, a Joliet
priest, says he's received calls from other victims, including 2 mothers linking their children's suicides to
Gibb's abuse. The suit accuses Gibbs of using liquor to force a long-term
sexual relationship on a boy, starting when he was 11. The victim,
now 22, attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. The suit says Bishop Joseph Imesch of the Joliet diocese knowingly
transferred Gibbs to a position at St. Joseph's in charge of altar boys after
he was accused of similar offenses at a church in Lombard. Source: _Chicago Sun-Times_ 1/6/93.
2,000 SUPPORT MINISTER MOLESTER. About 75 supporters from the Christ Universal Church picketed before the
Criminal Courts Building in Chicago in support of Rev.
Paul Hall, 47, convicted of sexually abusing a boy, 13, in 1989. He
had been free on appeal since then. His 4-year sentence began in January. The
Illinois Appellate Court, which denied him a rehearing, received more than
2,000 letters in his behalf. Source: _Chicago Sun-Times_ 9/3/92, 1/8/93.
CIVIL SUIT AGAINST PRIEST NOT SEALED. A Sangamon Co. judge refused to seal a
court file detailing charges by a Decatur woman that Rev. Kevin Sullivan, priest at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Decatur,
exploited their priest-parishioner relationship to take sexual advantage of her
for 8 years, arrange an abortion when she got pregnant, tell others she was
"crazy" & had a "fatal attraction" to him, & refuse
to administer sacraments to her. Source: _Decatur Times_ 1/16/93.
ZION CHURCH JANITOR GETS PROBATION. A janitor at Christian
Catholic Church in Zion, Thoeun Duong, was
sentenced to 24 months probation & 8 months work-release, plus fines &
costs, for fondling a girl, 11, in the church parking lot in June. He had
molested his daughter's friend, after driving them to church & Sunday
School. Source: _Zion- Beton News_ 1/21/93.
*** INDIANA ***
NEW LAWSUIT AGAINST INDIANA PRIEST. Former priest
James Blume is accused of bribing and
inducing an altar boy to perform nonconsensual sex acts, in a civil suit filed
in April. Also named is the Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese. Blume and the
diocese were named in a lawsuit in November by another man who said he was
sexually abused as a 14-year-old altar boy. Source: _Indianapolis Star_
4/13/92.
FORT WAYNE DIOCESE SUED. Darren M. Robertson, 25, filed suit against the Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend & priest Robert
Mahoney of Ancilla College, for sexually assaulting, battering,
raping & abusing him at Our Lady of Hungary School in South Bend. Robertson
says Mahoney & various agents of the diocese advised him never to mention
the sexual abuse & conspired to keep it a secret. Source: _Marshall Co.
Life_ 8/16/92.
PLEA BARGAIN FOR PRIEST. The Rev. Myles Patrick
White, 51, will serve 4 years in prison under a plea suggested by Indiana
prosecutors, who discovered the priest had molested minors when a
videotape purchased at a flea market revealed the priest molesting a boy. The
sentencing will occur March 5. White faces 5 additional sexual misconduct
charges in Illinois. He served in both Culver, Indiana & Kankakee,
Illinois. Source: _Indianapolis Star_ 1/9/93.
*** IOWA ***
LUTHERAN PASTOR NABBED. Dirk van der Linde, 43,
pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Waterloo, was charged with
intent to commit sexual abuse of a boy, 14. He is affiliated with the Missouri
Synod. Relatives complained about a 2 month delay in arresting him. An aunt
said she believed the delay stemmed from racism, because the victim is black
& the minister white. "It would not be this way if it had been a black
minister molesting a white child," she said. Source: _Waterloo Courier_
9/23/92, _Des Moines Register_ 9/24/92.
"SOUND DOCTRINE" PASTOR QUITS. After nearly 20 years as pastor, Rev. Wendell Beets, of Sound Doctrine Church, resigned
following a claim of sexual impropriety with a female church member, 19.
A married couple who were also ministers at the church expressed indignation
that "he would attack a 19-year-old girl", & concern that Beets
will start a new church & continue preying on the congregation. Louise
& Clarence Ellis of Cedar Rapids say others have criticized them for
speaking out against Beets. Source: _Cedar Rapids Gazette_ 8/29/92.
PRIEST CHARGED WITH ABUSING BOY, 14. Father
Toussaint J. Perron, 61, was charged with aggravated criminal sexual abuse for
abusing a boy, 14, last year. He presides at St. John's Catholic Church in Walnut & Immaculate Conception Catholic Church
in Ohio. Source: _Quad City Times_ (Davenport) 12/23/92.
*** KANSAS ***
BAPTIST YOUTH PASTOR NABBED. Youth minister-Sunday
School teacher William Speaker, 21, of First Baptist Church in Excelsior
Springs, was charged with a felony for sexually molesting a boy, 14,
while chauffeuring him to church activities. Source: _Kansas City Star_ 8/21/92.
JURY ACQUITS PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. A Louisville jury of 6 men & 6 women
found in favor of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in a $5 million
sexual-harassment suit brought by Janet Gellhaus. The employee claimed her
superior Nagy Tawfik sexually harassed her, pressuring her into a sexual
relationship by threatening to fire her. Church attorney Michael Valenti,
apparently conceded the relationship when he said after the acquittal (shades
of the U.S. Senate): "The lesson should be you
need to immediately tell people about it, you need to immediately investigate
your rights, you need to use some common sense & say 'no'."
Source: _Presbyterian Outlook_ 9/7/92.
BAPTIST PASTOR GOES TO TRIAL. Indicted for 6 counts of aggravated sexual
battery & 5 counts of sexual battery was Rev.
George Walker, 64, of New Tazewell, who has pastored a number of area Baptist
churches. He is accused of victimizing a female piano student
instructed by his wife for 4 years. Source: _The Daily News_Middlesboro,
12/24/92.
RETIRED PRIEST CHARGED WITH MOLESTATION. Several men
have accused a retired priest of abusing them while he was a teacher. Rev. Earl
Bierman pleaded not guilty in mid-December to charges of molesting a
student 18 years ago. Source: _Republican-American_ 1/23/93.
*** LOUISIANA ***
CINEL INVESTIGATOR LOSES JOB. Sgt. George Tolar, chief investigator of the Dino
Cinel case that was thrown out of court in January, lost his job in February
with the Orleans Parish DA's office. Tolar's testimony about the former priest, who kept a cache of child pornography at
the rectory, had conflicted with that of DA Harry Connick. Tolar
testified he recommended in 1989 that Cinel be prosecuted for child
pornography, but that Connick was only concerned whether young men recorded
having sex with Cinel in home videos were consenting adults. Connick admitted he did not prosecute Cinel earlier to avoid
embarrassing the Catholic Church. Judge
Frank Marullo dismissed the charge against Cinel on Jan. 10, saying Cinel had
been told by Tolar in 1989 that Connick would not prosecute him since the men
were of age. Source: _Times-Picayune_ 2/5/92.
*** MARYLAND ***
PRESBYTERIAN REFORM URGED. The Presbyterian General
Assembly, meeting in Baltimore in June, voted 446-78 to recommend abolishing
the statute of limitations for reporting sexual misconduct by clergy.
The church, citing critical proportions, has a 3-year time limit for reporting
sexual misconduct by church officials. The vote must be ratified by 2/3 of the
church's 171 regional presbyteries. It also voted 491-26 to establish a policy
on sexual misconduct, advising local churches to set up "sexual misconduct
response teams" & notify secular authorities "when
appropriate". The adopted policy said there is evidence that "10-23
percent of clergy nationwide have engaged in sexualized behavior or sexual
contact with parishioners, clients, employees, etc., within a professional
relationship". Source: AP 6/12/92.
ST. LUKE'S HELPS PRIESTS EVADE PROSECUTION?
An interview with officials at St. Luke Institute in Suitland, which has
treated 137 priests for sexual disorders since 1985, reveals the center is
openly used to help priests avoid prosecution for sexual abuse of children. It also revealed that the staff promotes keeping pedophiliac
priests in the ministry, albeit closely monitored. St. Luke's claims
follow-up shows none have been accused of new misconduct, including 60
remaining in the ministry. Dr. Stephen Montana claims its treatment is
"light years ahead" of that given James Porter 25 years ago in the
Servants of the Paraclete Catholic treatment center in New Mexico. St. Luke
staff agreed offending priests should not be put in settings placing future
children at risk, but reject the proposal that molesting priests be
automatically barred from the priesthood or church posts. One priest who had
been through therapy admits, "The way I was going I would have ended up in
prison." Sources: _New York Times_ 10/12/92, _Washington Post_ 1/2/93.
*** MASSACHUSETTS ***
"PRAY FOR PRIEST CHARGED WITH RAPE." Rev.
Gary A. LaMontagne, 37, was charged in April with raping a church employee in
the rectory of St. Mary's Church, Westfield
in February. He is the second R.C. priest this year from the Springfield
diocese to be charged. Springfield Bishop John A. Marshall told people not to
judge them yet, but pray for them. LaMontagne's reported victim said he had
touched her sexually on other occasions. She has
been harassed by phone calls since reporting the rape. Westfield
police Detective Sgt. Brian Boldini of Westfield revealed that as soon as the
investigation began in March, the diocese decided to "whisk him out of the
parish. As soon as they were aware, they packed his
bags", transferring him to Holy Family Church in Holyoke.
Source: _Westfield Union-News_ 4/25/92.
UNITARIAN GUILTY ON 6 CHARGES. Northboro minister Mack
W. Mitchell, 56, was convicted on 6 of 23 charges of sexual assault involving a Tibetan woman who testified he sexually
abused her as a teenager
after offering to sponsor her education in this country. "I came here with
a lot of wonderful dreams, and my dreams were shattered," said the victim,
now 23. With the conviction, "I can dream again and become a whole person
again." Rape and assault-battery charges are still pending against him by
another Tibetan woman. Source: _Worcester Telegram & Gazette_ 5/15/92.
LAVIGNE INDICTED BY JURY. Shelburne Falls priest
Richard R. Lavigne was indicted in February by a grand jury for molesting 5
victims, which supersedes fall molestation charges at the district
court level. He faces greater penalties if convicted in superior court. Nearly
500 supporters signed onto a legal brief in support of Lavigne's bid to
separate the 5 indictments. Source: _SpringfieldUnion News_ 2/19/92.
POLISH PRIEST GETS WRIST SLAP. Charges of raping a 16-year-old from Poland were
dropped against Rev. Julian Pagacz, 50, pastor of St. Valentine's Polish
National Catholic Church in Northampton, after
she refused to testify. Charges of indecently assaulting a Hampshire Co. girl,
age 17, were plea-bargained down to one charge of indecent touch. Pagacz was
accused of threatening to deport the Polish girl if she reported the rape. A
judge ordered him to turn over the girl's passport, as well as his own. He also
denies a charge by a neighbor that she and her husband caught him looking in
her window late one night and that she had stopped sunbathing in the backyard
because he ogled her. She wrote out a trespass notice against him
and informed the church, but was told "he wouldn't do that". Angry parishioners decried the women's complaints as a "witch hunt". Follower Ellen Mierzewski called one of the alleged
victims "a Communist who thought she'd get money out of it". Source:
_Springfield Union-News_ 2/17,18/92, 5/8/92; _Sun-Republican_2/16/92; _Boston Globe_
5/5,8/92.
RAPIST-MINISTER GETS 12 YEARS FOR INCEST. Suspended associate
rector of a Tucson Episcopal church, Stephen P. Apthorp, 56, pleaded guilty in
Massachusetts to repeatedly raping his stepdaughter between her 10th and 16th
birthday, an estimated 830 incidents of abuse. He was sentenced to
12 years in prison. Charges included indecent assault and battery, rape and
distribution of pornographic materials to a minor. The assaults began in 1980
when a Lincoln, Mass. Congregation asked him to leave because he was abusing
alcohol, ignoring their problems, and "using the women of the parish like
they were some kind of fringe benefit", Apthorp said. He was suspended
from the Tucson church. His contract as a counselor for Tucson General Hospital's
Westcenter was not renewed. He gave nationwide worships and lectures based on a
book of advice for clergy with alcohol and drug addictions. The 21-year-old
victim, who publicly identified herself as Mimi Coleman, noted the betrayal
made her suicidal, gave her eating disorders and nightmares, shameful feelings
over sex, continuing gynecological problems, feelings of someone always
watching her, feelings of panic whenever she sees a man in a clerical collar,
and feelings that she is a freak. "Never have I seen him practice what he
preached, and I heard him preach a lot." Source: _Arizona Daily Star_
3/13/92; _Boston Herald_ 5/7/92; _Lincoln Journal_ 5/14/92.
NO END TO WORCESTER DIOCESE SCANDALS? A man saying
he was raped 14 years ago by Rev. Victor Frobas, Worcester Diocese, has
contacted the DA's office. Frobas was assigned to the parish while receiving
psychological treatment at the House of Affirmation in Whitinsville. "I
want him prosecuted," says victim Robert A. Malo, who was an 11
year old altar boy at the time of the described assaults. He said the priest talked about God while he raped him, saying
"This is OK because I'm a priest." Malo accused then-Bishop Bernard J. Flanagan of refusing to act on parental
complaints, which Flanagan denied. Three
other victims came forward also accusing the priest of abusing them, as well as
3 parents of others believed to have been victimized. One mother said her son
was assaulted while taking a shower with Frobas. Another said when he was 9, he
was forced to watch the priest masturbate. Frobas was convicted in St. Louis of
sexual abuse & deviant sexual assault, & served 2 of his 4 year
sentence. Source: _Boston Globe_ 1/9/93.
BARRE PRIEST CHARGED: PHOTOGRAPHED NUDE BOY. Father Ronald
D. Provost, 53, pastor of St. Joseph's Church in Barre, was charged with taking
photographs of a nude boy. Provost left the parish earlier for
counseling at St. Luke Institute. A man at the Greenwood Memorial Pool in
Gardner told police he saw Provost taking photos of
7-10-year old boys in the locker room as they changed clothing.
Police confiscated the film. He admitted having pedophiliac tendencies, of
taking numerous pictures of boys at athletic functions he organized, keeping
the photos in his church rectory bedroom. Police found photos dating from 1977.
Provost, very popular, had been dubbed a modern "Pied Piper" in a
1988 news story. Sources: _Boston Globe_ 9/22/92, _Worcester Telegram &
Gazette 9/18/92.
FUGITIVE PRIEST LOCATED. Rev. Joseph Fredette, who disappeared in 1974 after
being charged with molesting 2 teenagers in Worcester, fled to Canada. Fredette
founded a halfway house for the state Department of Youth Services in 1970.
Prior to that, he had worked 12 years as a teacher & Boy Scout leader at
Assumption Preparatory School. He faces 6 counts of moral offenses, & 2
counts of assault & battery. Officials initially
scoffed at allegations he abused boys, saying they could not believe delinquent
boys over an established priest. Then they apparently failed to
search for the fleeing priest. Fredette, now 59, first fled to the Pope John
XXIII Retreat in New York, then went to Canada. Relatives of some of his
alleged victims traced him. After a year as parish priest in New Brunswick, he
had alienated the parish, & established what critics call a cult hermitage.
In January a provincial supervisor finally said Fredette would be suspended
while they investigated charges. That announcement came in the midst of a
Massachusetts murder trial in which the defendant, accused of slaughtering his
family, in part defended himself by saying Fredette, his uncle, had molested
him as a child. Sources: _Worcester Telegram_, _Boston Globe_ 8/26/92; _Boston
Globe_ 1/9/93.
"MASSACHUSETTS-TO-NEW MEXICO PERVERT PIPELINE." Priest Rev. David A. Holley, 65, believed to have molested
young boys in his 25-year career as a parish priest in at least 4 dioceses in
Massachusetts, New Mexico & Texas, was sued by 2 men in December. Joe Hafermann, 28, of Minneapolis & Mark Sanchez,
35, of Albuquerque, allege that Holley was free to
assault countless children because the church failed to stop him.
Both men say he repeatedly molested them in the 1970s in the sacristy & his
parish in Alamogordo, N.M., after he was sent there in 1971 for treatment by
the Worcester diocese for molesting boys. A 40-year-old Boston professional
says he & 2 boyhood friends at the age of 10 were forced to engage in
repeated acts of oral sex by Holley at his parish in East Douglas. He said the
priest would show them _Playboy_ or
pornographic cards in the rectory, expose himself & molest them. The Catholic Servants of the Paraclete periodically released
him to work with children throughout the Southwest. At least 27
other victims came forward attesting to similar abuse in El Paso, 8 of them
also filing suit. The El Paso victims charge he photographed them, forced them
to visit sex shops & engage in sex while they were altar boys & yard
workers. Holley wound up working in Denver, with the Archdiocese there claiming
it had no idea of his record of abuse. Attorney Bruce Pasternack alleged,
"New Mexico is a dumping ground for pedophile
priests. The church had them say prayers & rosaries, then they released
them for sexual sabbaticals with young boys." Holley's case is
another example of the "Massachusetts-To-New Mexico pervert
pipeline." "How could he have gone from church to church across the
country doing things like this for 25 years? Were
there no adults willing to stand up?" asked the Boston victim.
Roderick MacLeish, Jr., the Boston attorney who recently sealed a lawsuit
against the diocese for more than 60 victims of James Porter, is urging the
Worcester DA to investigate & prosecute Holley. Sources: _Rocky Mountain
News_ 1/16/92, _Boston Globe_ 12/21/92; _Boston Globe_ 1/8/93.
PRIEST-THERAPIST ADMITS SEX WITH NUN. Monsignor Leo Battista, who surrendered
his state social workers license in 1991, admits
initiating a sexual relationship with a suicidal nun he was counseling,
from 1972-1977. He is pastor of St. Anna's parish in
Leominster, under the diocese of Worcester. The former nun, who left
her order during the "therapy", filed a complaint with the state
Board of Registration of Social Workers in Boston in 1990. She said Battista
once had sex with her hours after she had attempted suicide by swallowing a
bottle of painkillers followed by liquor. The next morning she slashed her
wrists with a razor blade & was hospitalized as a psychiatric patient for
19 days. Counsel for that board advised the priest that in voluntarily giving
up his license he was admitting "you engaged in an inappropriate, intimate
relationship with her while you were providing therapeutic services to her in
what she understood to be your capacity as a social worker". Source: _Boston
Globe_ 1/21/93.
WORCESTER DIOCESE REWARDS DIRTY-TALKING PRIEST. The Worcester Diocese, stung by
the expose of molesting priests, publicly claims it will be more responsive to
complaints about priestly misconduct. However, the
father of a 14-year-old altar boy told media it has stonewalled their family's
March 1992 complaint that their parish priest had subjected their son to
constant sexually suggestive & abusive language & gestures.
As of August, no action had been taken. The priest had repeatedly referred to
"jerking off", "dick", accused their son of being gay &
of having anal intercourse, & even accused him of masturbating in the back
seat of a car "because the windows were foggy". The diocese claims
"there is nothing to this", & the
unnamed priest has been promoted to supervising altar boys as well as religious
classes. Source: _Boston Globe_ 8/4/92.
PORTER UPDATE. Former priest James Porter,
convicted of molesting a babysitter in Minnesota in December, faces multiple
criminal charges in Massachusetts, where many victims recently settled
out-of-court, as well as civil claims in Minnesota and New Mexico. Porter
admitted he molested "a number of children", leaving a trail of
hundreds of victims wherever the church transferred him in Massachusetts, New
Mexico, and Minnesota to cover up the crimes. 97 people in 3 states brought
combined civil suits. More than 200 people have alleged molestation by him. In
late January Porter was sentences in Minnesota to 6 months in jail &
probation on a 12/12 conviction for 6 counts of 4th-degree criminal sexual
conduct in 1987 against a babysitter, 15. Porter's sister-in-law came forward
in October to say Porter had molested her on an almost-daily basis during the
mid- 1980s when she lived in his basement. Sources: _Boston Globe_ 9/25/92,
10/25,28/92, 12/1/92, 1/20/93; _New York Times_ 9/24/92, 10/22,25/92, 12/12/92;
_Providence Journal_ 9/22,23/92; _Boston Herald_ 9/22/92; AP 12/8/92,
1/20,28/93.
FALL RIVER PRIEST ON LEAVE. Taunton priest Paul
Connolly was put on leave following accusations that he molested children at a
Fall River church in the early 1960s, about the same time James Porter is
accused of racking up victims. A man, now 41, says the priest abused
him & at least 10 other Fall River boys. A parent informed the bishop, who
transferred Connolly to Hyannis. Source: AP/8/30/92, _Boston Globe_ 9/10/92.
FALL RIVER DIOCESE ANNOUNCES POLICY. The Fall River diocese, implicated in the
James Porter scandal, announced a detailed policy on priestly misconduct. A
representative of the bishop would investigate allegations quickly with a
review team following up & indicating they will report accusations to civil
authorities. "No diagnosed pedophile will receive an assignment in the
Diocese of Fall River." Source: _Standard Times_ 10/3/92.
CATHOLIC CHURCH A "CESSPOOL"? A man alleges he was sexually abused by a priest at Cathedral Camp in Freetown
between 1956 & 1960. Calling the camp a "complete
cesspool", he said other children were also molested. His attorney
Roderick MacLeish, Jr. said he has given the Fall River diocese the name of the
priest. Former priest James Porter was also accused of molesting at least one
minor at the camp during those years. That victim was among the 68 men &
women who accepted an out-of-court settlement in December from the Fall River
diocese. Since then 2 other men have alleged being sexually abused at the camp
by a priest other than Porter. Source: _Boston Herald_ 12/31/92.
BOSTON PRIEST TAKES PRAYERFUL LEAVE. Tyngsborough
priest Rev. T.Raymond Sullivan is on leave after a woman alleged sexual
misconduct. Cardinal Bernard Law asked for prayer that "all
those affected by the developments may experience God's consolation &
strength & that both justice & truth will prevail". Source:
_Boston Globe_ 11/18/92.
BOSTON ARCHDIOCESE REOPENS SEX CASES. Cardinal Bernard Law announced a new
review board will reopen every case of child sexual abuse by still-living
priests in the archdiocese of Boston. The new procedure was prompted by the
James Porter scandal racking Boston & other dioceses. The archdiocese just
adopted a policy for dealing with abuse by priests, & telling victims of
their right to file charges. It will also set up a committee to study whether
priests are "adequately educated" about sexual abuse. On the board
will be 3 priests, a deacon, an attorney, a psychiatrist, & a retired
Supreme Court justice, Edward Hennessey. A priest & a nun will hear &
investigate complaints. An accused priest will be suspended pending
investigation. If the church finds evidence, the archbishop "could"
assign him to a treatment program, reassign him to a supervised position, limit
activities, remove him or "invite him to resign". Despite the
appearance of doing the right thing, saying his policy will require reporting
abuse cases when compelled by law, in actuality, Law claims: "The ordinary
work of a priest is not covered by that kind of demand for reporting & this
policy does not call for reporting to legal authorities." Law claims the
matter should be kept in the "family" & handled
"pastorally". Only when a priest worked as a school counselor, for
example, would the archdiocese consider it legally necessary to report
allegations. Sources: _Boston Globe_ 11/12,22/92; AP/_Toledo Blade_ 1/16/93.
ARROGANT BISHOP COMPLAINS ABOUT MEDIA. In
announcing a 9-member all- Catholic commission will now investigate misconduct
complaints against priests, Bishop John A. Marshall complained that 2 1992
convictions of molesting priests in his diocese, Richard R. Lavigne and Gary A.
LaMontagne, were "magnified beyond all perception ... The Roman Catholic
Church seems to be the only institution in this whole country that has been
singled out in this fashion." The diocese has a hotline number, & said
if its members deem the complaints "legitimate & serious", they
will recommend "corrective action" to the bishop, then inform civil
authorities. "You get the impression sometimes that people think we are
coddling these priests because we don't ... chop their heads off. They are
human beings & they need help," Marshall said. Source: _Springfield
Union-News_12/15/92.
LUTHERAN MINISTER REMOVED. The Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America removed Rev. Wendell Henkenmeier of Marblehead
from the ministry after a panel found him guilty of sexual misconduct &
destructive practices during counseling of 5 victims. Source: _Union-News_
5/30/92.
SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER IMPRISONED. Groton Sunday
School teacher Leslie Richard Danielson, 63, was sentenced to 5-10 years after
pleading guilty to sexually abusing 6 children under 14 years. He is
already serving up to 10 years for a 1991 conviction involving 4 other
children, but will be eligible for parole in 4 years. Source: _Boston Herald_
5/22/92.
*** MICHIGAN ***
BAPTIST CONVICTED OF RAPING BOY. A jury convicted
Baptist minister Edward Quakenbush, of New Testament Baptist Church, town of
Wyoming, of raping & molesting a teenage boy in his church over a 4-year period, starting when he was 12.
Members of his church & family sobbed & shouted at jurors & a police
detective who testified that the pastor had confessed to the molestations.
Quakenbush later denied confessing. Source: AP/_Daily Telegram_, Adrian, Ml
9/12/92.
BRONSON MINISTER ARRAIGNED. First Congregational
Church minister David Covert Moore was charged with 5 counts of criminal sexual
conduct of 4 children under the age of 15. In
July he checked himself into Pine Rest Christian Counseling Services in Grand
Rapids. Source: _Jackson Citizen Patriot_ 8/29/92.
CHURCH EVANGELIZERS PREYED ON LOW-INCOME KIDS. Men
from a rural Baptist church known for its aggressive evangelizing of children
are suspected of molesting as many as 22 boys & girls. The
associate pastor, volunteer bus driver & a third church member are believed
to have fondled some & raped others, ranging in age from 3 to 10, on church
buses & property. Charges involving 10 victims were brought against Associate Pastor Timothy Lee Leonard, 32, of North Sharon
Baptist Church near Grass Lake, & volunteer Sunday school bus driver,
church deacon Mark Foeller. Three other church members are being
investigated. The suspects went to low-income housing projects or trailer parks
in 4 counties, telling parents they would "take the children to church
& teach them about God", according to Det. Robert Fitzpatrick, Jackson
Co. Men would walk up to children in their yards, coaxing them with treats to
come to weekend services or summer _Bible_ school. Leonard was relieved of
church duties involving children in August, after police started investigating
him when a doctor reported suspected abuse in a child with a sexual disease. He
also worked as instructor & gym teacher in the North Sharon Christian
School, enrolling about 65 students. Church members
were not informed, even after the arrests. In November, Gail Ganger,
who lives 5 houses from the church, organized a Sunday morning picket after
learning that the church secretary knew about the
allegations, yet still recommended Leonard as a babysitter for her children.
He & his wife Nadine had babysat for her 3 children 7 times since Oct. 1.
About 2 dozen protesters carried signs saying "Close It Down."
"The church knew about the allegations of child molesting, but nobody told
me about it. This church should not be able to carry
on business as usual," she said. "What a wonderful thing
it is to be part of a church where adversity happens," said Rev. Bill
Wininger, senior pastor. In January, Leonard was released after 72 days in jail
after 10 charges were dropped over the objections of the DA by Washtenaw Co.
Dist. Judge Thomas Shea, saying victims were either too young to testify or
could not pinpoint the time of their assaults. Leonard still faces 2 2nd
degree criminal sexual conduct charges. Although he resigned from the church,
church funds are being used to help support his family & pay his legal
expenses. The pastor said if he is acquitted, "I'm sure he would be
welcomed back with open arms." Sources: _Ypsilanti Press_ 11/12/92,
_Detroit Free Press_ 11/12/92, _Toledo Blade_ 11/18/92, _Jackson Citizen Patriot_
11/16/92, 2/1/93.
*** MINNESOTA ***
LUTHERAN LEADER ADMITS CHARGES. Lutheran pastor
David L. Anderson admitted having sexual relations with a number of boys and
young men while pastor of a leading Lutheran congregation in Moorehead, Minn. He resigned from the clergy of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America and as vice president for college relations in St.
Olaf College in April, admitting sexual misconduct with minors, college
students, and male parishioners from 1973-1985. He confessed only after a parishioner
approached a staff member at the 4,000 member church with allegations in March.
Source: _Star Tribune_ 4/20/92.
PUNITIVE DAMAGES UPHELD. The Minnesota Court of Appeals on March 24 upheld a
court order requiring 2 Catholic dioceses to pay
punitive damages to a victim of sexual abuse. The $187,000 award
would not be covered by insurance, and thus was appealed by the Archdiocese of
St. Paul, Minneapolis and Diocese of Winona as a violation of "religious
freedom". The damages resulted from a civil suit involving Thomas Adamson, who
was moved from parish to parish with no restrictions despite repeated evidence
and allegations of his abuse to
children. Compensatory damages of $855,000 were not
challenged. Source: _Christian
Century_ 4/15/92.
RETIRED PRIEST PLEADS GUILTY. The Rev. Henry
Caniere, 71, of Roseau, pleaded guilty to 3 counts of child sexual abuse.
Source: _Grand Forks Herald_ 12/19/91.
STANDING OVATION FOR BISHOP. Bishop Gerald O'Keefe
of the Davenport diocese received a standing ovation at Our Lady of Victory
Church the day after news hit that 2 Minnesota women filed lawsuits accusing
him of sexually abusing them 30 years ago. They say O'Keefe molested
them on the grounds of St. Paul Cathedral in the 1960s when he was auxiliary
bishop of St. Paul-Minneapolis and rector there. One was 9 to 12 years old, the
other 7 to 9. They are represented by Jeffrey Anderson, who has represented
victims of clergy in more than 100 cases in 23 states. Source: _Des Moines
Register_ 4/20/92.
WOMAN SUES NUN FOR ABUSE. A Minnesota woman filed
suit against a nun for sexually abusing her for 3 years while she was a
teenager. Sister Georgene Stuppy "regularly and repeatedly
engaged in unpermitted, harmful and offensive sexual contact" from
1978-1981 at a parochial school, and in the nun's convent room. The case is
being handled by Jeffrey Anderson of St. Paul. Also named as defendants are the
Sisters of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis of the Congregation of Our
Lady of Lourdes in Rochester, and Queen Of Angels Church in Austin. An attorney
for Queen of Angels said: "We deny any responsibility in the matter."
Anderson said Stuppy acknowledges engaging in sexual
conduct with the girl, but claims a spiritual purpose, not sexual gratification.
Source: _Star Tribune_ 1/29/92.
[See Porter Update under "Massachusetts".]
73-YEAR-OLD PRIEST GUILTY. The parish priest at Holy
Family Catholic Church in Bull Dog Lake pleaded guilty to charges of molesting
2 teenagers, ages 14 & 19, over a 3-year period. Rev. Victor
Chateauvert, 73, accepted a tentative plea agreement to be placed on probation
& complete a sex offender's treatment program at the church's unlicensed
treatment center in New Mexico. Source: _Minneapolis Star-Tribune_ 1/9/93.
ANOTHER BENEDICTINE SUED. Another priest at St.
John's Abbey in Collegeville was accused of molesting a male student at the
prep school in the 1980s. A suit accuses Rev. Allen Tarlton of
molesting him at least 3 times in his capacity as counselor, teacher &
confidant. It is the 5th suit filed in 2 years against a member of the Order of
St. Benedict who run the school. Three other suits, filed by attorney Jeff
Anderson, accuse priests of abuse at the same school. The other suit charges a
Benedictine brother at a rural parish near St. Cloud. One suit has been
settled. Source: _Star Tribune_ 10/22/92.
LUTHERAN PASTOR RESIGNS. For the third time Rev. Rod
Broding has left a job after being accused of sexual improprieties.
The Lutheran pastor resigned from First Lutheran Church in Pine River following
accusations he admitted to sexual misconduct there, but denies earlier
accusations. Bishop Roger Munson, who oversees the Northeastern Minnesota synod
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, said, "The church will
assist in providing counseling to work through this turmoil & pain so that
healing & wholeness can be experienced in their lives." Source: _Star
Tribune_ 10/22/92.
*** MISSOURI ***
AIR FORCE CHAPLAIN RAIDED. Deputies raided the home of Veterans Administration
chaplain Rev. Donald G. Phillips, of Butler County,
seizing 500 video tapes, movie equipment and restraints following a tip that he
produced pornographic movies with young girls. The Baptist minister recently received the highest recognition awarded a
VA chaplain, "the Award for Excellence in Chaplain Service". Source:
_St. Louis Post-Dispatch_ 2/19/92.
VICTIM SUES JEFFERSON CITY DIOCESE. David Clohessy,
35, filed suit last year against the Diocese of Jefferson City and his
childhood parish priest, a family
friend for whom he performed rectory chores. The priest began taking him on
trips to the Ozarks and out of state, and first abused him on a camping trip
when he was feeling ill. His suit, argued by attorney Jeff Anderson, alleges
abuse from 1967 to 1971, and is being fought by the diocese. Source: _Kansas
City Star_ 3/92.
PRIEST GOES TO PRISON. Hillsboro priest Donald Heck,
57, was sentenced to 4 years in prison for fondling an altar boy, 11, 2
years ago, following a no-contest plea. Source: _Boston Globe_ 8/2/92.
*** MONTANA ***
CIVIL SUITS NAME PRIEST. A Missoula man filed suit against priest Wilson F. Smart and the bishop of Helena, for
suffering sexual abuse during the 1960s. "J.R." was a
13-year-old altar boy in Missoula in 1962 and was molested for 9 months,
following the death of his father. He says the
bishop and many priests to whom he confessed knew of the abuse, yet did not
remove Smart from contact with children and teenagers. He is
represented by Bozeman attorney Monte Beck. This joins a suit filed a year ago
against Smart by a former Butte man, who is also suing the Helena diocese and
Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen of Seattle, who formerly served in Helena. The
other plaintiff alleges 8 years of sexual abuse starting in 1967, which
included molestation, rape, and pornography. Source: _Missoulian_ 1/31/92.
RELIGIOUS BROADCASTER MOLESTED GIRLS. Well-known former broadcaster Tom Speed, 35, for Billings Christian radio pleaded guilty to
sexually molesting 6 girls ranging in age from 4 to 14, who were at
his home for day-care or piano lessons. Source: _Missoulian_ 1/18/92.
*** NEW HAMPSHIRE ***
BAPTIST VOLUNTEER CONVICTED. Granite State Baptist
Church volunteer David Kirsch, 39, of Salem, was convicted of
sexually assaulting 6 young girls through the church from the late 1970s to the
mid-1980s. Source: _USA Today_ 9/25/92.
*** NEW JERSEY ***
CLERIC FACES INCEST, RAPE CHARGES. Rev. Eugenio
Matos of Spanish Mennonite Church, Trenton, father of 12, was charged in March
with raping his daughter from the time she was 5 to 15 years. In
April he was charged with endangering welfare of a child and 2 counts of
aggravated sexual assault when a 23-year-old woman told investigators he
repeatedly raped her while she was between the ages of 8 and 10. Source:
Trenton Times_ 4/28/92.
FUGITIVE PRIEST INDICTED FOR MOLESTING GIRL, 13. Medford
priest Florencio Tumang, 69, was indicted for fondling a girl, 13, at a youth
activity in April at St. Mary of the Lakes R.C. Church, where he has
served 8 years. He went fugitive after confronted by the girl's mother and
could face 5 years in prison. Source: Philadelphia Inquirer_ 4/25/92.
PRIEST BUSTED ON MOLESTATIONS. Pastor of Sacred
Heart Jesus Church in Rockaway, Rev. John G. Pisarcik, 47, was
suspended from duties at the church and a church college, after he was charged
with molesting 2 boys, one in 1989 who is now 13, and another last summer who
is now 12. Source: _Star Ledger_ 10/5/92.
MINISTER & GIRLFRIEND INDICTED. Trenton pastor
Franklin Tucker, 37, Final Call Ministry, was indicted for molesting his
girlfriend's daughters, 9 & 15. His girlfriend was indicted for
forcing her daughters to recant the allegations to police. The abuse came to
light when the 9-year-old told a school official, who contacted police. Source:
_Trenton Times_ 9/15/92.
VICTORY FOR MOLESTED. Gov. Jim Florio signed a bill
permitting childhood victims of sexual abuse to sue molesters years, sometimes
even decades, after the abuse occurred. Under former law, victims
only had until their 20th birthdays to file a lawsuit. The new law gives
victims 2 years after they discover their abuse to sue. The old law had stymied
attempts to charge molesting priests. Source: _Newark Star Ledger_ 9/25/92.
PRIEST STARTS SENTENCE. A Camden priest convicted of
sexually molesting a boy, 13, in 1989, started his 5-year sentence,
after an appeals panel ruled that his confession following instruction of his
rights did not constitute self-incrimination. Rev. John J. McElroy admitted fondling
a boy in the church rectory, but had been free on $25,000 bail. Source:
_Courier-Post_ 11/31/92.
*** NEW MEXICO ***
ATTORNEY: CLOSE CATHOLIC CENTER. "Although New Mexico has only one- half
of 1 percent of America's population, it has 20% of
America's priest pedophiles," says attorney Bruce Pasternack,
representing 39 clients in sexual abuse lawsuits against former priests.
Authorities are investigating 7 current & former
New Mexico priests for molesting children in the state, while sent there by the
church for treatment for pedophilia. New Mexico authorities
confirmed that the Paraclete center has never been licensed or even inspected
as a medical facility. Nor have state authorities ever been contacted by
employees there, although state law requires that all professionals, including
psychotherapists, report incidents of sexual abuse of children. Pasternack is
calling on authorities to shut down the 45-year-old retreat, located near Jemez
Springs. He called the unlicensed center "a recipe for disaster".
Source: _Arizona Daily Star_ 1/3/93.
ACCUSED PRIEST DISAPPEARS. Rev. Art Perrault of
Santa Fe disappeared in October after being sued for sexual abuse.
Source: _USA Today_ 12/31/92.
PORTER GIVEN MANY DUTIES WHILE IN TREATMENT. Lawyers
for "survivors" of James Porter's reign of terror against children
allege that the Servants of the Paraclete (SOP) treatment center routinely
permitted him & other pedophiliac priests to work at nearby parishes.
Victims have come forward saying Porter molested them in 1969 after being judged "cured" by the rehabilitation
center. Although the Santa Fe archdiocese denied knowledge of this,
a former priest at St. Edwin~s Parish in Albuquerque, near the Catholic
treatment center he was posted to, told a reporter he often called on priests
being treated at the facility to perform "nonofficial functions" such
as counseling, at the church. A top official in the St. Louis Diocese also
acknowledged that when he was a parish priest in Kirkwood, Missouri, he would
often use priests being treated at another halfway house operated by SOP.
Porter was believed to have been assigned to the New Mexico home between
1967-69, & also resided at a SOP center in Nevis, Minnesota in 1969 &
another halfway house in St. Louis in 1971. In January, attorney Bruce
Pasternack obtained church documents showing that the Archdiocese of Santa Fe
knew about Porter's predilections & still assigned him to parishes. The
documents show, says Pasternack, that a church official endorsed Porter's 1968
application for an assignment, while acknowledging, "His trouble was
boys." Concludes Pasternack, "What they demonstrate is proof positive
that the Archdiocese of Santa Fe & the Paraclete
Center knew their children were going to be raped by Porter before they were raped." Sources: AP 1/8/93; _Boston Globe_ 7/16/92.
*** NEW YORK ***
NUDE MINISTER CONVICTED. Rev. Bruce Rentz, found guilty of indecent exposure
after a state trooper saw him jogging naked and chased him to his home, has
resigned as minister from Greenbush Presbyterian
Church. He was ordered to perform community service, pay a $50 fine, and get
counseling. Source: _Union News_ 5/14/92.
TOP EPISCOPAL PRIEST RESIGNS AMID SEX SCANDAL. The highest-ranking
U.S. Episcopal priest, who ironically headed a national committee examining the
church's position on sexuality, resigned in October following charges he
sexually abused young men in his congregation. Rev. Wallace A. Frey,
rector of St. David's Church in DeWitt, is married with 2 grown children. A
church official said he had been involved in "sexual misconduct over a
lengthy period with some male, young adults & a teenager under his pastoral
care". The official said the number of victims appears to be "less
than 10". Source: NYT News Service/_Chicago Tribune_ 10/7/92.
BOOK INDICTS RITTER. _New York Post_ reporter Charles Sennott, who first broke
the Father Ritter scandal, has written a new book, _Broken Covenant_, calling
the priest "the Donald Trump of the Catholic Church", who set up the Covenant House shelters so he could do
"exactly to the kids what he is publicly professing to be saving them
from". The book details a pattern of sexual abuse by Ritter
with teenagers who came to the shelter for help. At least a dozen social
workers & members of religious organizations had heard allegations about
Ritter, but did not report them. The New York State Attorney General's office
investigated Ritter's financial misconduct, but no charges were filed about
that or sexual exploitation. Ritter, eulogized in Bush's "Thousand Points of Light",
resigned from Covenant House. Source: _Boston Globe_11/1/92.
PRIEST: 90 DAYS FOR SODOMY. After pleading guilty to sodomizing a boy, 16, in
the parish rectory after getting him drunk, Rev.
Daniel Calabrese, 31, was sentenced to only 90 days in jail. At the
sentencing, the DA quoted from taped phone conversations in which the priest
told the boy what they had done happens all the time. He was priest at St.
Mary's Parish, Poughkeepsie. Source: _New York Times_ 10/10/92.
$14 MILLION SUIT FILED AGAINST PRIEST. A lawsuit
against Rev. Daniel Casey was filed seeking $14 million by a teenager alleging
he was sexually molested 4 years ago by Casey when he was 11. The
priest stripped & had the boys remove their clothing at a swimming pool,
fondled & kissed the boy & other youths. The boy was a student at St.
Paul's Elementary School where Casey directed religious education. He was also associate pastor at St. Paul's Church. The
suit charges that the Syracuse diocese "failed to investigate signs,
symptoms & behavior ordinarily associated with pedophilia", permitting
him unchaperoned contact with boys. Source: _Syracuse Herald-Journal_ 10/27/92.
*** NORTH CAROLINA ***
CIVIL SUIT: 11-YEAR-OLD MOLESTED. A family in Dare County, North Carouna is suing
Methodist minister Carl M. Eller for abusing their
daughter, 11, as well as the North Carolina Conference of the United
Methodist Church, a bishop and a reverend for
knowing of his history of sexual misconduct but doing nothing about it. The family says she was molested when her father, a
carpenter, was installing cabinets in the parsonage. Eller pleaded no contest
to a charge of criminal assault on a female. However, the family said that in
1987 Eller had molested or made lewd comments to 4 women at his church, and
forcibly kissed and touched 2 girls age 13. Three women had lodged formal
complaints with the church, but the only action was to transfer him from Aurora
to Hamlet. Source: _News & Observer_ 1/15/92.
GREEK ORTHODOX GETS 21 DAYS. Father Angelo N.
Kasemeotes, 65, pleaded guilty Dec. 2 to 2 counts of indecent sexual liberties
with a boy, 15. He is serving 21 days
in jail for a suspended 4-year sentence. He also gets 5 years probation, must
perform 150 volunteer hours & pay $1,000. The glib molester told a
reporter, "St. Paul teaches us that from everything bad, some good can
come. I see the good here as being my alcoholism & behavioral problems
surfacing & being treated." The victim said the priest gave him
cocaine & marijuana, showed him a pornographic video & initiated sex.
Police recorded a telephone conversation in which the priest tried to
guilt-trip his victim, threatening that if anyone knew, "I'd probably
commit suicide ... It would just destroy me." He
dismissed the victim's pain by saying, "Chalk it up to your growing
experience." The widowed
Kasemeotes, father of 2, served 15 years as pastor of the Greek Orthodox Church
in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, & had a New Mexico position. Source: _Milwaukee
Sentinel_ 12/18/92.
BAPTIST PASTOR RESIGNS AMID SCANDAL. Asheville
Baptist pastor Michael R. Stewart, 34, of Oakley, resigned following his arrest
in a prostitution sting. Stewart's name was among 400 on a full-page
ad that month promoting family & traditional biblical values. Source:
_Citizen-Times_ 6/30/92.
*** NORTH DAKOTA ***
PRIEST RESIGNS FOLLOWING CHARGES. A Minnesota man has filed a $50,000 suit
alleging sexual abuse by Rev. David Wild, now priest
at Holy Cross Church in West Fargo, dating from 1966. The man said
the priest fondled him at his living quarters at a Oriska church. The Fargo
Diocese, St. Bernard's & St. Thomas are also named. Source: _Minot Daily
News_ 9/25/92.
*** OHIO ***
SUPPORTERS GATHER FOR CONVICTED "FRIEND". Pastor
Roy McKinley, 45, who stepped down from Milan Friends Church after being
charged with molesting a teenage girl, pleaded guilty to gross
sexual imposition and related charges. Supporters, including a minister,
crowded the courtroom where McKinley pleaded for mercy. Source: _Toledo Blade_
5/25/92.
SEXUAL HARASSMENT SUIT HITS CHURCH. A female employee at World Harvest Church in Columbus has filed a
lawsuit saying the father of the pastor sexually harassed her, also naming the
church & its pastor as defendants. Naomi Endicott, 48, said Rev. Rodney L. Parsley knew
about the harassment but did nothing to stop it. James G. Parsley, his father,
was her supervisor & made unwanted sexual advances, even offering money for
sex, she said. Source: _Columbus
Dispatch_ 10/17/92.
TOLEDO DIOCESE CONTINUES COVER-UP? An unnamed priest
in the Toledo diocese initiated a sexually abusive relationship with
parishioner Barbara Blaine when she was 13. Blaine is now founder of
SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests). Although the statute of
limitations for a lawsuit expired, Blaine is seeking removal of the priest (who
works as a hospital chaplain), resumption of payments for her counseling (the
Diocese has paid about $15,000 of her expenses), an apology from the priest,
& acknowledgment from the church of stonewalling & blaming her The priest's religious superior, Rev. Paul Grehl, insists she
misconstrued the priest's hugs. Blaine's allegations were
corroborated by a woman who ignored her pleas for help 18 years ago. Sources:
_U.S. News & World Report_ 11/16/92, _Toledo Blade_ 1/3/93.
WOMAN SUES EPISCOPAL PRIEST. A Fostoria woman is suing Rev. Douglas Hodges, of Trinity Episcopal Church,
Bishop James Moodey & the owner of a counseling center, alleging the priest
forced her to have sex as "treatment". The abuse occurred at a counseling
center & the church. Shelley & Daniel Lebay seek more than $700,000 in
damages. Source: _Columbus Dispatch_ 10/9/92.
CONVICTED PRIEST TRANSFERRED TO OHIO. Bishop Joseph
L. Howze, Biloxi diocese, reassigned convicted priest Joseph Romansky to Cleveland,
Ohio, where, in 1985, he pleaded guilty to charges of sexual misconduct with 2
boys. The bishop announced the
transfer after "The church had them say prayers and rosaries, then
released them for sexual sabbaticals with young boys." The priest went to
Cleveland on a visit. He had pleaded guilty, was placed on probation, & was
sent to St. Luke Institute in Suitland, Maryland. An official with the
Cleveland diocese said the priest will remain on administrative leave,
promising "full disclosure of his background & appropriate
supervision" should he be reassigned. The official said the priest has
done "satisfactory work" & had a "very successful
ministry". Bishop Howze knew of the priest's criminal past but had not
disclosed it to parishioners when he came to Biloxi 4 years before. Source:
_Mississippi Press_ 7/30/92.
*** OKLAHOMA ***
CHURCH SUED FOR NEGLIGENCE. One of several girls who said Alva minister Rev. Robert Bruce Brigden molested her is suing the First
Presbyterian Church for failing to check his background before hiring him.
Allegations of sexual crimes were made at his former position in Kansas.
Charges allege that he molested Alva church girls, ages
4 to 14. The church posted his bond. Source: _Tulsa Tribune
PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER GETS 40 YEARS. Rev. Robert
Bruce Brigden was sentenced to 40 years in prison for molesting young girls in
his congregation, convicted on 8 counts of lewd molestation & 1 count of
rape by instrumentation involving a girl, 7. Bridgen, 57, was
accused of molesting 11 girls, aged 4 to 14, during the 4 years he was at the
Alva church. His congregation put the church up as bond, insisting he was
innocent. He was placed in protected custody. Brigden blamed his arrest on a
girl, 4, whose parents were the first to take the children's allegations
seriously. "Hell hath no fury like a woman
scorned," Brigden wrote his wife about the 4-year-old, whom he described
as "4 going on 400 years old", saying she invited him to spend the
night in her bed, & was mad that he declined. Source: _Tulsa
Tribune_ 8/92, _Tulsa World_ 9/3/92, _Daily Oklahoman_ 6/14/92.
*** OREGON ***
MINISTER MOLESTER OF 400 SENTENCED. Eugene Church
for the Deaf minister Joseph Bernard Ponder, 47, was sentenced to 2 years for
violating probation in 2 felony convictions of 1st degree sexual abuse of boys.
He had received a year in jail for 2nd degree sexual abuse of a boy, 14, in
1988. Officials believe an estimate that he molested 400 boys may be low.
"This may be the most prolific abuser of young boys who has ever stood in
this court," said prosecutor Kent Mortimore. "His whole life has
revolved around this Q his ministry, his choice of careers Q to put himself in
contact with potential victims." Ponder denies abusing the boy during a
swimming incident, and failed to complete court-ordered sex offender treatment.
Source: _Register-Guard_ 3/5/92.
CHURCH VOLUNTEER CHARGED WITH CHILD PORNOGRAPHY. Church
volunteer Seven Jon Long, 41, was arrested for sodomy and taking pornographic
pictures of young girls under 12 from Assembly of God Church in Rogue River,
where he was a youth volunteer. He told detectives his pictures were
art. Source: Daily Courier_, Grants Pass, 4/17/92.
CONVICTED PASTOR "RIGHT WITH LORD". Rev.
Virgil Carpenter, 48, pastor of Bible Missionary Church in Ontario, was
convicted of sodomy & sexual abuse of a girl, 9, over a 1-1/2 year period.
A jury convicted Carpenter of 2 felony counts of sodomy & 4 felony counts
of sexual abuse. He faces 5 additional felony charges in 2 upcoming trials.
"I'm really not worried," he told supporters who had gathered in the
courtroom before the verdict. "I'm right with the Lord." Source:
_Corvallis Gazette-Times_ 10/11/92.
LAY PREACHER WITH AIDS TRIED TO INFECT KIDS? Lay
preacher Adam Brown, of Roseburg, Oregon, infected with HIV, was indicted Nov.
13 for sexually abusing children to infect them with AIDS, including 5 counts
of attempted murder, 9 counts of sodomy, 4 counts of rape, 5 counts of reckless
endangerment, & 3 counts of sexual penetration with a foreign object. Boys & girls told police he molested them
repeatedly, threatening them with knives, scissors & matches. One boy said
Brown rubbed semen into a scratch on his arm. Another said Brown burned a
_Bible_, warning that Satan would come unless the child stopped resisting.
Alleged victims include a 3-year-old girl, 7-year-old girl & 8-year-old
boy. AIDS tests so far for the children have been negative. Source: AP/_Boston
Globe_ 11/29/92.
YOUTH PASTOR JAILED FOR ABUSING GIRL. Sentenced to 60 days in jail for molesting
a young girl was Michael Wayne Cross, 32, youth
pastor of Oregon City Evangelical Church. He must undergo a sex
offender treatment & register with the state for life as a convicted sex
offender. The girl, now 17, said he sodomized her numerous times over a year.
An officer said the crimes occurred at the church or at church functions.
Source: Oregonian_ 10/29/92.
PROMINENT METHODIST PASTOR WITH AIDS EXPLOITED PARISH?
Following the death on July 4 of Rev. William O. Walker, a prominent Eugene pastor at First United Methodist Church, it was
discovered he not only died of AIDS but had used his ministerial position to
make sexual advances to at least 12 men, including 6 ministers.
Walker infected his wife Carol with AIDS; she died in 1990. In November a
church superintendent told parishioners that Walker had been accused of making
sexual advances to 2 male teenagers at a Methodist church camp 17 years
earlier. Source: _Register-Guard_ 12/6/92.
*** PENNSYLVANIA ***
PRIEST PLEADS GUILTY. Rev. Robert N. Caparelli
pleaded guilty from a Maryland rehab sentence to sexually abusing a boy, 13,
in Milford. Source: _Scranton Times_ 5/16/92.
CHURCH COUNSELING TURNED ABUSIVE. A Fairless Hills couple filed suit against a
church counselor and Calvary Full Gospel Church,
alleging the pastor referred them to abusive Aldo Maselli. The
depressed woman said he told her he "had prayed about it and that God told
him that it was OK for him to express his feelings of love", initiating a
2-year sexual relationship. The suit by Rebecca and Steven Hicks charges
negligent, reckless practices contrary to accepted counseling standards, and
battery and sexual abuse. Source: _Bucks County Courier Times_ 5/20/92.
DEACON ACCUSED OF ASSAULTING 8 GIRLS. Victory
Baptist Church deacon Daniel Eaves, 34, was arrested for sexually assaulting 8
girls, ages 3 to 14, at his Springfield home and during youth groups
last year. Source: _Philadelphia Inquirer_ 4/25/ 92.
DIOCESE BLOCKS INFORMATION. The Altoona-Johnstown
Catholic Diocese is refusing to open secret archives sought by an attorney for
an Ohio man whose civil suit accuses former Altoona priest Rev. Francis Luddy
of sexually abusing him for 6 years. The state Superior Court ruled
2-1 in late February that the records should be given to the attorney. The
_Catholic Register_ editorialized that the decision "violates the rights of the church in a democratic and free
nation", and only the bishop should have access to the records.
The suit was filed 5 years ago by the man; a subsequent suit was filed in
Somerset County by his brother. They testified that Luddy, their godfather,
repeatedly molested them as they were growing up. Luddy, 49, is on a leave of
absence living at a Catholic center for pedophiles in Albuquerque, N.M. Source:
_Daily American_ 2/26/92, Altoona Mirror_ 3/10/92; _Scranton Times_ 3/10/92.
PRESBYTERY REMOVES PASTOR. The Pittsburgh Presbytery removed the associate
pastor of the prominent East Liberty Presbyterian
Church on charges of sexual misconduct. Rev. Howard Eybers, 43, is accused by 3 women of making sexual overtures.
Source: _Pittsburgh Post- Gazette_ 3/7/92.
MOLESTING PRIEST GETS 2-5 YEARS. Roman Catholic
priest Robert N. Caparelli was sentenced in July to 2-5 years in prison &
ordered to pay $5,000 in fines for sexually abusing a boy, 13, for 9 months.
He pleaded guilty to only 6 of 26 counts against him. He will also serve 5
years of probation, must undergo counseling & may not work with children.
Source: _Scranton Tribune_ 7/3/92.
ROGUE CHURCH ORDERED TO ANSWER. Following 5 years of
legal maneuvers to quash investigation into the church's culpability over Rev.
Francis Luddy, accused of molesting his godson for 6 years, a judge ruled that
the Altoona-Johnstown Catholic Diocese must answer questions.
Source: _Scranton Times_ 7/25/92.
SEXTON GETS 35 YEARS. A sexton at St. Stephen's
Episcopal Church in Whitehall Township was sentenced to 35-70 years in jail for
molesting boys. Adam Tannous, 61, of Allentown, agreed to plead
guilty to 7 merged charges of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, after
originally being charged with more than 4,000 crimes. One victim said Tannous
bragged of having sex with 400 boys over the past 40 years. He was removed as
pastor of St. George's Episcopal Church in Hellertown in 1970 because of
similar allegations. In 1972, he was arrested on a morals charge in Emmaus. He
was "treated", not jailed, then expelled from the ministry. Despite
this record, St. Stephen's hired him in 1976 to be custodian, saying he was
rehabilitated. Many victims say Tannous caused them alcohol problems by plying
them with liquor. Source: _Express-Times_ 12/17/92.
PRIEST ARRESTED FOR HIGHWAY STOP ASSAULT. Police arrested Rev. Patsy Joseph Wash, 51, of St. Anthony's Roman Catholic
Church in Fairmont, W. Va., for fondling an undercover officer at an Interstate
79 rest stop in Lone Pine where
travelers have reported lewd behavior. Source: _Lebanon Daily News_ 10/8/92.
CULT PASTOR NOT PROSECUTED. Officials in
Clearfield & Delaware counties won't prosecute doomsday pastor Anthony
Marcolongo of Johnstown, despite allegations by 6 women followers of sexual
assault. "We thought this wasn't the type of case that tax dollars should
be spent on," said Assistant DA Sheldon Kovach. The women said the
minister broke them physically, making them work 18-hour days, & filled
them with fear of doom in Hell if they did not have sex with him. Source:
_Clearfield Progress_ 9/1/92.
*** SOUTH DAKOTA ***
METHODIST MINISTER PLEA BARGAINS. Rev. Wally Walton,
Grace United Methodist, Pierre, pleaded no contest to felony charges of incest
& sexual contact with a minor, & was immediately jailed.
Walton has agreed to provide details of "sex crimes & illicit sexual
activities" against latchkey kids, Girl Scouts & other children. Additionally, Walton's wife Betty was charged with sexual
contact with a child, incest, & failure to report a felony. Also indicted
are Walton's adopted twin daughters & son-in-law, facing similar charges.
Walton drove a bus for a local latchkey program. Mrs. Walton worked with the
Girl Scouts. Fellow minister Rev. J. Edwin Coates of the First
United Methodist Church in Mitchell, accuses social workers of being
overzealous, & said the arrests were indicative
of a "police state" & a witchhunt. Prosecutor Mark Moreno excused the delay in charging
Walton by saying: "If you charge a minister as I've done, you'd better be
sure that you have some concrete evidence, because it's going to totally
annihilate his future." Walton voluntarily surrendered his ministerial
credentials. Methodists dropped a 2-year statute of
limitations on disciplinary problems in May 1992, with no time limit on sex
offenses. Source: _Rapid City Journal_ 7/28,29,31/92, 8/1/92.
METHODIST COVER-UP ALLEGED. No charges were brought when youngsters in Piedmont
told police & social services they were molested in 1983 by Rev. Wally
Walton (see above) at Piedmont Grace United Methodist Church. After a 2-year sabbatical, Walton became pastor at Grace
United Methodist in Pierre, where he has been charged with sex offenses against
children. The Methodist hierarchy decided he was "not a danger to
anyone", permitted him to give sermons during his 2-year break, &
"felt he should be given another chance", said Rev. Dick Fisher,
formerly Westem Dist. superintendent of the Methodist Church in Rapid City.
"We had two concerns at the time: to protect the people & save a
person for the ministry." Source: _Rapid City Journal_ 7/29/92.
RAPID CITY SUIT ALLEGES PRIEST CONSPIRACY. Bob Koenig, 46, has filed a civil
complaint in the 7th Circuit Court in Rapid City, charging
Rev. William Lambert with sexually abusing him from 1958-1975,
starting when he was 12. He says he was forced to
confess the abuse to at least 17 other priests, but none helped him. He seeks
compensation from Lambert & the Catholic Diocese for battery, clergy
malpractice, & negligent hiring & supervision. Lambert is
accused of giving the altar boy wine, talking about "sins of the
flesh", & handcuffing & tying him up when he resisted. Lambert
instructed him to confess to priests that he was doing "impure acts with a
priest". Koenig contacted the diocese before suing, but "Their main concern seems to be to keep it all quiet.
So that's why I'm doing this, to get Father Lambert out of the priesthood, to
stop him from having further access to vulnerable children, to get the church
to accept responsibility for clergy who abuse children & to do something
about it." Lambert, 69, has been dismissed from duties. In September the
priest admitted he had sexually abused Koenig 30 years ago. A letter about
Lambert's confession from Bishop Charles J. Chaput was either read aloud by
priests or put in their weekly bulletin to "prepare you for this public
disclosure". _Rapid City Journal_ 8/9/92, _Rapid City Journal_ 9/10/92.
*** TENNESSEE ***
MOLESTING MINISTER-BROTHERS CONVICTED. Youth
minister Don McCary, 48, was sentenced to 72 years of prison for molesting 4
boys at his Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tenn. His twin brother Ron McCary, a
Christian comedian and pastor, is in prison after committing aggravated rape on
a boy, 6. Their older brother Richard McCary spent 2 years in the
California prisons in the 1980s after conviction on 6 charges of child
molestation. Explains sex offender therapist Deloris Roys, Don McCary "had
a perfect camouflage ... For the person who uses religion as a camouflage, it
gives them the mantle of being an OK or holy person. We all imbue religious
people with the idea they wouldn't hurt us. They have instant authority, a
power we don't have, a mantle of respect." Don McCary had been youth/choir
director for 15 years at Central Baptist Church of Hixson, Tenn. He recorded
lewd conversations with young boys and gave copies to his brother Ron in jail.
Source: _Birmingham News_ 5/9/92.
$10 MILLION SOUGHT FROM BAPTISTS. Five civil
lawsuits asking for $10 million in damages were filed against the Southern
Baptist Convention for sexual assaults by convicted minister Donald McCary,
of Chattanooga, sentenced in April to 72 years in prison for assaulting 5 boys.
James Guenther, general counselor for
the SBC in Nashville, shrugged off the suits: "We've probably had a dozen
of these cases where a plaintiff has undertaken to show that SBC controls a
minister." He says no SBC agency beyond the level of the congregation has legal
or disciplinary authority over pastors. McCary's twin brother is also in prison
for abusing children; their older brother is on parole for similar charges.
Source: _Birmingham News_ 8/21/92.
*** TEXAS ***
EL PASO MOLESTER "BRILLIANT". Court documents show that Father Jaime Madred said he told El Paso Bishop Raymondo Pena
he had sexually abused an altar boy more than 20 years ago. That
victim, Charles Romero, is suing the priest and diocese for sexual abuse.
Diocese spokespriest Ed Roden-Lucero
commented: "But I know Father Madred, and he's a brilliant, holy
man who has helped a lot of people over his 20 years as a priest. All of that
will be ignored, and I think that's sad." Source: _San Antonio Light_
3/6/92.
HOUSTON PRIEST GETS 10 YEARS. For assaulting a girl
when she was 14 in 1984, Fernando Noe Guzman, 41, was sentenced to
10 years in prison. The former Houston priest pleaded guilty. Source: _San
Antonio Express-News_ 4/4/92.
SAN ANTONIO DIOCESE HIDES MOLESTER? The Archdiocese
of San Antonio sent accused priest Xavier Ortiz-Dietz to the unlicensed New
Mexico treatment center run by the church after hearing that he molested 5
young parishioners. Church officials claim they "intended"
to turn information over to the DA's office. He resigned in August from 2 Bexar
Co. parishes after a 3-priest panel heard the allegations. A former altar boy
told police he was molested for more than 3 years. The archdiocese has offered
counseling to the youths, & publicized the reason for the resignation to both
parishes in September. Although Rev. Federico Fernandez was indicted for
molesting 2 brothers in 1987, prosecutors dismissed the charges under the claim
a trial would be too traumatic for them. The diocese secretly settled the
family's $6 million civil lawsuit, reportedly for more than $1 million.
Archbishop Patrick Flores denied a new cover-up. Source: _San Antonio Light_
10/28/92.
BAPTIST CHARGED WITH INDECENCY. Charged with indecency for fondling a preteen
girl in 1991 was Norman "Buddy" Wilcoxen,
60, former pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Bastrop. Source:
_Austin American-Statesman_ 10/17/92.
CATHOLIC TEACHER'S AIDE, FEMALE, GUILTY. Catholic
youth director Elizabeth Sanchez, 28, pleaded guilty to sexual assault of a 14-
year-old under her tutelage at St. Anthony Claret Catholic Church. A
parishioner told a reporter, "We're there for her." She coerced the
boy into a month-long sexual relationship while working as a teacher's aide in
his middle school. Source: _San Antonio Light_ 8/23/92.
CATHOLIC CHAPLAIN ACCUSED OF DISCRIMINATION. Three women say Air Force Roman
Catholic Chaplain Capt. Stephen Jeselnick of Randolph AFB practices sexual
discrimination. One woman filed 3 claims for $30 million against the Air Force,
alleging discrimination & official incompetence by investigators handling
her complaints. He told her during a staff meeting on Dec. 3,1991, that he was
"authorized by God & the Air Force" to be Randolph's priest &
would not tolerate further complaints. The chaplain has been reassigned overseas.
Source: _San Antonio Express-News_ 10/20/92.
*** VERMONT ***
OFFENDING PRIEST FAILS PROBATION, GETS PRISON. After failing a sex offender
treatment program that was a condition of probation for his 1989 conviction for
lewd contact with a Barton boy, Rev. Michael K.
Madden, 50, has been ordered to serve 2 years in prison. The Catholic priest,
from Warren, had pleaded no contest. Source: _Boston Globe_ 19/28/92.
*** VIRGINIA ***
POLYGAMOUS HILLBILLY PREACHER CHARGED. The leader of the Evangelistic Tabernacle in Martinsville was charged with
felonious seduction & taking indecent liberties with a minor when he
"married" a 16-year-old high school junior. Although
already married, he was not charged with polygamy since he did not legally
marry the teenager. Rev. Elwood Gallimore, 42, was also charged with performing
marriage ceremonies without a license. His favorite
topic for sermons is polygamy, citing such polygamous biblical characters as
David & Solomon. He said the _Bible_ will be his only defense
during the trial. Gallimore, whose dutiful 42-year-old wife was hospitalized
for "nerves" after the second "marriage" was proposed, says
he is being prosecuted by "jealous" men. A magistrate ordered him to
stay away from the teenager on Jan. 19. Source: _Washington
Post_ 1/21,27,28/92.
MONSIGNOR SUICIDE FOLLOWING REVELATIONS. Two days after former altar boy Joe
McDonald, now 39, confronted priest William T. Reinecke about molesting him 25
years ago, the priest committed suicide.
McDonald went to the Diocese of Arlington to discuss his allegations, but was
rebuffed so took his story to the press. The diocese now claims it was not
trying to suppress anything. The dead priest had officially been in charge of
investigating claims of pedophilia in the diocese for 13 years. The publicity unleashed savage comments against the victim
& vows of loyalty to the priest's memory by many in the parish. However,
a second man came forward to say he too had been molested by Reinecke. Joseph
T. O'Brien of Virginia Beach said the priest molested him 23 years ago on an
overnight trip with other boys. A Falls Church police dispatcher says police
phones have been tied up by people calling to say what a wonderful man &
dedicated priest Reinecke was. Source: _Washington Post_ 8/30/92, 9/12/92.
PROMINENT EPISCOPALIAN REMOVED. Nationally known Rev.
W. Graham Pulkingham, now living in Virginia, was suspended temporarily from
the Episcopalian priesthood after admitting he initiated a sexual relationship
with a man he was counseling, destroying the man's marriage. Church
officials asked everybody to pray. Source: _Denver Post_ 8/92.
*** WASHINGTON, D.C. ***
METHODIST LEADER ADMITS IMPROPER RELATIONS. Newly retired Rev. Edward W.
Bauman, once named one of the country's top preachers by _Time_ Magazine,
admitted in a September letter to the Foundry
United Methodist Church in D.C. to "relationships of a sexual
nature...with several women in the congregation". Bauman, 65, has a TV
show, "Bauman _Bible_ Telecast", airing worldwide. The admission came
only have 2 women filed grievances with Bishop Joseph Yeakel; one had sought
counseling from Bauman. Bauman agreed to seek counseling at Johns Hopkins
Hospital & to retire. After a 3rd woman came forward. Bauman agreed to
write a letter to the congregation & make financial restitution to 2 women.
Bauman insists the relationships were "fully consenting" &
"could not be interpreted as harassment". Among
Bauman's congregants were Sen. Bob Dole & Elizabeth Dole, & former Sen.
George McGovern. According to the national United Methodist
newsletter, 13% of pastors in 5 Protestant
denominations acknowledged having intercourse with parishioners.
Source: _Washington Post_ 9/18/92.
HO HUM ... BISHOPS MAKE NOISES. At the conclusion of a 4-day conclave, U.S.
Roman Catholic bishops issued its first joint policy declaration suggesting
voluntary guidelines on the subject of priest molesters, citing the "pain,
anguish & sense of alienation felt by the victims", pledging a
"healing ministry". The body has refused
to deal since the mid-1980's with evidence of widespread abuse in the nation's
clergy, researched by former canon attorney Rev. Thomas Doyle, then on the
staff of the Vatican Embassy. The hastily-drawn recommendations came
only after the bishops were embarrassed by picketers into meeting with
survivors of priest misconduct. Eight protesters met privately with only 3
bishops. No reforms were promised. The 372-word resolution recommended that
dioceses adopt policies that provide prompt response to allegations, remove
clergy where charges are supported, report abuse when required specifically by
law, reach out to victims, & inform the community of abuse "when
appropriate". Legal judgments for sexual abuse cases already have cost the
church at least $300 million, according to Jeffrey Anderson, an attorney
representing many victims. Source: Associated Press 11/20/92, _Boston Globe_
11/17,22/92.
*** WASHINGTON STATE ***
LUTHERAN PRINCIPAL ACCUSED. Denying
charges of indecent liberties with a student is John P. Rossow, who resigned in
March as principal of Central Lutheran Christian School, Tacoma. Now a senior,
the youth said Russow took him on outings and French kissed him for hours when
he was a 5th grader, and tried to
masturbate him at a state park after plying him with whiskey. A teenager
said, "He had kids at his house a lot." Source: _Morning News
Tribune_ 4/8/92.
METHODIST MINISTER PLEADS GUILTY. Rev. Lawrence
"Larry" E. Trim, 55, of Evangelical Methodist Church in Methow,
pleaded guilty to 3rd degree rape of a child, in
connection with an assault of a boy, then 13. Source: _Wenatchee World_
9/17/92.
WOMAN SUES SPOKANE DIOCESE. Debra Hatcher filed suit against the diocese of
Spokane, the Franciscan Order & Brother Berard
Connelly, saying he sexually abused her more than 20 years ago when
she attended Marycliff High School in 1968-1973. Connelly left Spokane in 1973,
received "treatment", & is on administrative leave now in
California. Source: _Spokesman-Review_ 1/24/93.
*** WEST VIRGINIA ***
CONVICTED MOLESTER RECRUITING BOYS. A convicted child molester barred in
Pennsylvania from recruiting choirboys to tour in Europe is now operating out
of Morgantown, WV. John B. Shallenberger, 74,
was convicted in 1985 of indecent assault, indecent exposure and corrupting the
morals of a Dutch choirboy, 11. He was convicted in 1961 and 1975 on similar
charges. In 1990, a judge ordered him to reveal his criminal record while
recruiting boys and to pay a $5,000 fine for violating a 1978 agreement with
the Bureau of Consumer Protection to reveal his background. He has not paid the
fine or signed the petition. Shallenberger insists, "Every choirmaster and every music teacher in the country
knows of my criminal record ... You would be surprised at how many parents beg
me to take a second brother on tour." His July in Paris tour
was handled through the Children's Choir Federation. Source: _Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette_ 2/15/92.
CONVICTED MOLESTER STOPS TOUR. Following an investigation by the West Virginia
attorney general's office, convicted child molester John
B. Shallenberger, 74, folded his Children's Choir Federation,
soliciting boys from grades 4-7 to take 2-week singing tours in Europe. He had
been convicted in 1975 & 1961 for child molestation. In 1991, Pennsylvania
authorities charged him with ignoring a court order to reveal his child
molestation convictions to the parents of recruited children, so he moved to
West Virginia. Shallenberger has moved back to Pennslyvania & is running an
elevator repair company. Source: _Charleston Gazette_ 7/8/92.
MINISTER PLEADS GUILTY TO ABUSING NIECE. Baptist
minister Rev. Ernest Lee Rowsey, 51, of Wharton Missionary Baptist Church in
Bim, pleaded guilty to 1 count of 1st degree sexual abuse, involving his niece.
Originally, he was charged with molesting 2 nieces between 1976-1982, but they
agreed to drop all but one charge against their uncle. The kids were molested
for 6 years starting from ages 5 & 7. Rowley's sister also said he molested
her as long ago as 1969, but at that time, child sexual abuse was a
misdemeanor, & the statute of limitations has expired. Source: _Charleston
Gazette_ 11/1/92.
RELIGIOUS ACTIVIST FACES INCEST-PATERNITY SUIT. An anti-sex
education activist in Marshall Co. is being sued by his stepdaughter to pay
child support for her son, now 18. Richard Rose, 75, has sued the
school board to stop sex education classes. Ruth Elaine Limes of Glendale,
Arizona also claims that Limes is her father, not her stepfather, & that
when he married her mother after her birth, he pretended he was helping an
unwed mother. Source: _Charleston Gazette_ 2/6/92.
*** WISCONSIN ***
PRIEST CONVICTED. A priest who knew one of serial
killer Jeffrey Dahmer's victims pleaded no contest to 2nd degree sexual assault of a teenage boy. Rev.
Peter Burns, 32, was found guilty in Sheboygan court of molesting a boy, 13, in
1988 and a boy, 14, in 1987. Source: _Wisconsin State Journal_ 1/23/92.
WOMAN SUES MILWAUKEE DIOCESE. "Jane Doe"
is suing the Milwaukee Archdiocese and St. Stephen Martyr parish for $1
million, saying Rev. Maurice Hayes enticed her into a sexual
relationship and into giving him money while instructing her, serving as her
counselor. Hayes was reassigned in 1990 after allegations surfaced. Source:
_Appleton Post-Crescent_ 1/21/92.
FUGITIVE PRIEST SURRENDERS. Rev. Bruce Ball, of
Colby, a fugitive for 12 hours, was taken into custody to start his
prison sentence of up to 5 years. Ball, 44, was convicted of sexually touching
a boy, 12, during a counseling session. Ball was relieved of duties as priest at St. Mary's Catholic Church. Source:
AP/_Wisconsin State Journal_ 10/14/92.
15 VICTIMS NAME SHEBOYGAN PRIEST. Father William J.
Effinger, who was removed as pastor of Holy Name Catholic Church in Sheboygan,
after more than 15 victims came forward, was charged with molesting an 8th
grade boy. He admitted sexually abusing a 13 year old boy 23 years ago. The man
wore a hidden tape recorder & confronted the priest, who acknowledged the
abuse. The victim took the tape to the Milwaukee Archdiocese & a TV
reporter. Archbishop Rembert G. Weakland told the reporter an accusation was
bought against the priest about 15 years ago, & that he has been
"monitoring" him since then. He then invited anyone knowing of sexual
abuse by Effinger to contact him directly. However, the DA's office said the
victims they have been hearing from have no intention of contacting the
archdiocese. Victims say as grade school children were served liquor by the
priest, especially martinis. One woman molested by him said he was a close
family friend. She never told her parents because "My father thought he
was God (and) walked on water." Source: Milwaukee Sentinel_ 10/92; 12/92.
FRIARS NAMED BY EX-STUDENTS. Eight former students at a Catholic prep school
run since 1857 by the Capuchin order in Fond du Lac say they were sexually molested by friars who plied them with liquor & showed them
pornography. Three of the victims have attempted suicide. Most assaults
occurred in the 1970s, although tne
episode occurred in 1987. The assaults were reported to school authorities, who
broke Wisconsin law by not notifying authorities. Two former students who
entered the order themselves say they were given $4,000 each for therapy on
condition of not reporting the crimes. One of them, Michael Rocklin, 30, now of
San Diego, has since left the order & alleges more than 50 sexual
encounters over a 3 year period with 3 friars. Director of the Detroit-based
province, Rev. Kenneth Reinhart, acknowledged being aware of some of the
allegations, adding he wants to "address any friar that I become aware of
who needs help". Two accused friars have left, 2 have died, & 1 was at
the school when the allegations broke. The friar named in a 1987 molestation
was fired in 1988, then rehired, & was suspended only in December. The
Capuchin order, known for its soup kitchen feeding 500 a day in Detroit, set up
hotlines in Detroit & Milwaukee so abuse victims could call. Two Detroit
men also came forward saying they were abused at a program for young men
interested in entering the order. Capuchin officials did not indicate their
intention to report new allegations to police. Abuse victims have set up their
own hotline in Milwaukee: (414) 256-1362. Sources: _Boston Globe_ 12/21/92,
_Detroit Free Press_ 12/22/92.
"NOT A TIME FOR JUDGMENT." The arrest of Brookfield minister Richard O. Bidwell for lewd & lascivious conduct is
"not a time for judgment" but "a time when we in the Christian
community need to offer our support & our prayers," opines Rev. Kenneth Wheeler, an official with the
Greater Milwaukee Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Bidwell,
pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church, married with children, was arrested at a
park in the afternoon with his genitals exposed, in the company of another
exposed man. Source: Milwaukee Sentinel_ 7/14/92.
OSHKOSH CASE INVOLVES CHICAGO DIOCESE. Winnebago Co. DA Joseph F Paulus filed a
motion seeking to use testimony by 6 Cook Co. youths alleging sexual misconduct
by Rev. Norbert J. Maday, 54, who is being tried in
Oshkosh for molesting 2 youths during a 5-day outing. One boy said
the priest threatened to kill his little brother if anyone learned of the
episode. Five men & a 16 year old in Cook Co. came forward too, but the statute
of limitations had run out except for the teenager. Maday was removed in March
1992 when the Wisconsin allegations
arose. The DA also wants to call 4 Chicago priests to the stand. The trial was
postponed indefinitely in December. Sources: _Chicago Sun-Times_ 9/12/92,
_Toledo Blade_ 12/7/92.
*** *** CANADA *** ***
*** BRITISH COLUMBIA ***
B.C. PRIEST CONVICTED OF BUGGERY. Priest Kevin
Michael Rolston, whose testimony was characterized as
"glib", "insincere" and "crafted to suit his
convenience" by the judge, was convicted of gross indecency and buggery of
3 young boys in Kelowna, B.C. Source: _Canadian Press/Spectator_ 2/12/92.
INDIANS ASK POPE TO DEFROCK RAPIST BISHOP. A British Columbia judge stayed
charges against Bishop Hubert O'Connor, 63, ending a
trial for legal technicalities. He was accused of raping 2 workers
& indecently assaulting 2 female students while principal of a Native
residential school near Williams Lake in the 1960s. Eight Native women
testified at a preliminary hearing about being taken from their homes, forced
to go to the church school and being sexually abused. O'Connor resigned as Bishop of Prince George although the
Pope hasn't accepted it yet. "In the name of justice, we call
upon the Pope to defrock & excommunicate Bishop O'Connor for his admitted
violations of canon law & church doctrine," said Terry Saul, president
of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs. "The case against Bishop O'Connor is
not over. Nobody is off the hook." Source: _Canadian Press_/_Regina
Leader-Post_ 12/12/92.
RC CHURCH PAYING FOR THERAPY. The Catholic Church in
Canada, admitting about 60 priests have been charged with sexual abuse, has
been urged to help pay for counseling & therapy for victims of priests by
the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. The Archdiocese of Vancouver says
10 victims are now receiving subsidized counseling, even when criminal charges
have not been brought. "We look at this way: If a person is alleging abuse
by a priest & it happened, they need help. And if they are alleging abuse
& it didn't happen, they also need help," said Father Gregory Smith.
What Smith didn't mention is that such minor financial help may buy the silence
of victims, & discourage costly civil suits. Source: _Spectator_ 1/7/93,
*** NEW BRUNSWICK ***
NEW BRUNSWICK PREACHER CONVICTED. Calling his crimes a "most sick,
disturbing and tragic matter", Justice Thomas Riordon convicted Pentecostal preacher Rev. Aubrey McCallister of touching,
fondling and sodomizing a young girl for 10 years, beginning when she was 7.
The assaults took place at his home and church Sunday school in Minto, New
Brunswick. He was convicted of the same offense 2 years ago and sentenced to 5
years in jail but was granted a new trial. His loyal congregation packed the
courtroom during both trials, and had to be warned not to repeat their angry
outburst. Followers shook the convict's hand and said they were sticking by
him. The victim, now 20, was jeered by the minister's congregation. McCallister
called her "daddy's little girl" and rewarded her with Oreo cookies
or told her to pray for forgiveness after each encounter. "Aren't we
sneaky? If we ever get caught, mom would kick us both out," he told her.
Source: Telegraph Journal_, Saint John, N.B., 3/6/92.
*** NEWFOUNDLAND ***
NEWFOUNDLAND BROTHER GETS 4 YEARS. Mount Cashel
Christian brother Alan Ralph was
sentenced to 4 years after pleading guilty to 11 counts of sexually abusing 10
boys at Mount Cashel orphanage. Victims told the sentencing judge of continual
problems since leaving the orphanage more than 15 years ago, including
flashbacks of abuse, difficulty forming relationships with women and lack of
trust. Ralph is the 7th of 8 Christian Brothers convicted on charges reopened
in 1989, after a 1975 investigation into rampant abuse was stifled. Source:
_Spectator_ 2/8/92.
MT. CASHEL SUPERINTENDENT GETS 5 YEARS. The last of 9 men charged with sex
crimes at the Mount Cashel orphanage, Douglas Kenney, was ordered to serve 5
years in prison for 7 counts of indecent assault
against 7 boys. He insisted he was innocent of all charges, including molesting
a boy the day he arrived at the orphanage. "Kenny's
self_ indulgent search for sexual gratification has left the wreckage of seven
lives in his wake," said Justice
Leo Barry of Newfoundland Supreme Court. "If anything is the epitome of
evil, it is this. Public abhorrence must be great." The 8 other members of
the Christian Brothers lay order have received prison terms ranging from 6
months to 13 years. The orphanage closed 2 years ago and will be demolished.
The land will be sold to fund programs for victims. Source: _Spectator_
2/11/92, _Ottawa Citizen_ 4/14/92.
MOUNT CASHEL REPORT ISSUED. A 1,029-page report of
the official inquiry into Mount Cashel concludes sexual abuse at the orphanage
in the 1970's was covered up by a deputy justice minister and the police chief.
Retired Ontario judge Samuel Hughes cited collusion and disdain for sex
offenders, advising that public funds not be wasted in treating "people
animated by evil". The Justice Department interfered when an inquiry was
made into abuse in 1975, although ample evidence was
found to charge Christian Brothers. Abuse was occurring long before
then. Hughes advised creating a solicitor general's office to oversee police,
a government compensation fund for
victims, an independent police complaints commission, training on sexual abuse
with a special child abuse unit in each police department, and charges against
any citizen who fails to report their knowledge of abuse.
PRIEST ACCUSED OF ASSAULTING GIRL. Catholic priest Hillary Maher, 42, was charged
with 6 counts of sexual assault on a girl between the ages of 14-16 in the
early 1980s while he was a parish priest in Stephenville. Source: _Ottawa
Citizen_ 8/11/92.
*** NOVA SCOTIA ***
"GOD HAS FORGIVEN ME FOR WHAT I'VE DONE." Nova
Scotia religious leader Harold Jollimore, 63, convicted in December of sexual
and indecent assault of young girls, was sentenced to 2 years in prison.
He preached biblical passages while sexually abusing neighbor girls. One
9-year-old who had a breakdown after 8 years of abuse has been in therapy since
1978. He attracted children by running a candy and soda pop store on his
property. He told the judge, "God has forgiven
me for what I've done," saying he doesn't understand why the victims
haven't been able to "put this behind them". He was also
ordered to take psychiatric counseling during a 3-year probation. Source: _The
Spectator_ 2/11/92.
*** ONTARIO ***
PRIEST ADMITS MOLESTING GIRLS. Priest Paul Blancard
pleaded guilty to molesting 5 girls, ages 6 to 10, including an 8 year old whom
he said would "feel like the mother of God" if she went to bed with
him. Church officials knew of his
pedophilia by at least 1967, when he was told to stay with the
Jesuits and pray. In 1988 he went to Southdown Institute in Ontario for problem
clergy. Source: _Spokesman Review_.
"HORRIFIC" HARASSMENT IN CHURCH OF CANADA PROMPTS STUDY. The task
force on sexual abuse, exploitation, and harassment urged the Church of Canada
to develop a code of ethics for ministers because of
~horrific proportions" of sexual harassment in the church. The panel said
women are more likely to be sexually harassed in the church than in the
workplace. "A five-denominational study [in the U.S.] conducted
in 1987 found 5.5% of therapists had sex involving intercourse with their
clients, while 12.6% of clergy admitted to sexual
involvement including intercourse with their parishioners," reported Rev.
Peter Lougheed of Evanville, Ontario. Many ministers are engaging in
personal counseling without any training or codes of ethics, said Walter
Faquharson, moderator of the United Church.
LUTHERAN TEACHER CHARGED. Arrested for
sexually assaulting boys at John Calvin Christian School in Burlington, Ontario
is Theodore Richard Vanderveen, 30, who taught 4th grade for 4 years. Source:
_Spectator_ 3/2/92.
CHRISTIAN BROTHER CASES: 300 VICTIMS GET $13 MILLION. Helpline, a 300-member
organization of former students at 2 Ontario reform schools run by the Brothers
of the Christian Schools, signed a historic agreement, netting them
compensation of about $13 million. The settlement
will be financed by the Ottawa branch of the Brothers, Ontario taxpayers &
the Roman Catholic archdiocese of both Ottawa & Ontario. The
Ottawa brothers ran St. Joseph's Training School for Boys in Alfred, which
closed in 1974. Helpline is planning to sue the Toronto branch of the Brothers
for $300 million unless they agree to pay the victims $3 million. The Toronto
branch is resisting because they claim "only" 8 of their brothers
have been charged with sexual or physical assault. Two of them have been found
not guilty & one pleaded guilty to a charge of common assault but was not
jailed. The Toronto brothers still own & operate the St. John's Training
School for Boys in Uxbridge. "Our position is that the St. John's Training
School for Boys is a well-run school & it has been for 100 years,"
insisted the attorney representing the Toronto brothers. The Ontario government had evidence of abuse as early as 1960
but did not act. More than 500 men have come forward alleging abuse
at the 2 Ontario reform schools. Nearly 200 charges, ranging from buggery to
assault, have been laid since 1990 against 29 members & former members of
the Brothers of the Christian Schools, a Catholic lay order not associated with
the Christian Brothers who ran Mount Cashel. In August the church &
government had proposed a $16-million compensation package demanding
ex-students to sign a waiver promising never to sue, & quashing an investigation.
Victims refused to sign. Source: _Ottawa Citizen_ 8/14, 9/3,12/12/92.
CHRISTIAN BROTHER GETS JAIL TIME. After admitting he fondled students at St.
Joseph's Training School for Boys in the early 1960s, Christian brother
Jean-Louis Jeaurond, 53, was sentenced to 4 months
in jail after a plea bargain. Cleared
of a criminal charge was Giles Nadeau, 49, a former Christian brother who is
now vice-principal of a high school. There were inconsistencies in the
statements of the man set to testify against Nadeau for sodomizing him at St.
Joseph's. The witness is serving a rape sentence. Source: _Ottawa Citizen_
9/29/92, 10/15/92.
CHRISTIAN BROTHER GETS ONE YEAR. Andre St. Jean, 54,
was sentenced to a year in jail for sexual assaults
committed against students at St. Joseph's Training School for Boys in the
early 1960s. Charges
against Jean Ravacley, 76, were stayed because of his poor mental health. St.
Jean & Ravacley are 2 of 19 Christian brothers charged with crimes of
physical or sexual assault alleged by former inmates at the school in Alfred.
Source: _Ottawa Citizen_ 11/14/92.
CONVICTION BRINGS "MEMORIES OF HELL". A jury convicted Lucien
Dagenais, 67, of 15 counts of physical & sexual assault of students at St. Joseph's Training School for Boys. During the 5-week
trial, Albert Daigneault testified that in April 1954, he was beaten by a goon
squad, handcuffed, stripped naked, held
in solitary confinement & sexually assaulted almost daily. Now 50, he
testified against "Father Joseph", known as "the Hook".
Dagenais was also convicted of sodomizing victim David McCann, credited with
launching the investigation into the home. Source: _Ottawa Citizen_ 12/4, 9/92.
76-YEAR-OLD CHRISTIAN BROTHER JAILED. A probation officer & Christian
brother at the Catholic reform school in Alfred was jailed for 2 years less a
day for crimes he still denies. Camille Huot was the
3rd Christian Brother to be imprisoned since the St Joseph's scandal. He was found guilty of indecent assault & sodomy,
while proclaiming his innocence. Source: _Ottawa Citizen_ 10/3/92.
CBC SERIES BANNED. A fictional CBC mini-series, inspired by the scandalous
abuse of children by Catholic Christian Brothers in Canada, was banned in
Ontario & Montreal by a Toronto judge. He ruled the broadcasting of "The Boys of St. Vincent" would compromise the
rights to a fair trial by 4 Christian Brothers facing charges in connection
with St. Joseph's training school in Alfred & St. John's training school in
Uxbridge. Neither the court nor the Christian Brothers' attorneys had seen the
movie. It may be broadcast in Ontario & Montreal after the trials are
completed. An appeal court lifted a 2nd ban that made it illegal to publish
information about the program, the injunction or the fact that an injunction
had been sought. A 3-judge panel overturned that gag order, comparing it to a
"Star Chamber".
PRIEST GOING ON TRIAL. Rev. Brian Hart, 38,
goes on trial in April on charges of sexually assaulting an altar boy 9 years
ago in Belleville. The victim, 16 at the time, said Hart assaulted him at St.
Michael's seminary. Source: _Ottawa Citizen_ 10/28/92.
CHURCH SUED FOR CHOIRMASTER'S ASSAULTS. St. George's
Cathedral & the Anglican church are being sued over a choirmaster's sexual
assaults on choirboys. John Gallienne
is serving a 6-1/2 year sentence for abusing boys. Now 17 plaintiffs are suing,
claiming damages, plus interest & costs. The suit in part claims church
officials were aware of Gallienne's misconduct & held at least 5 meetings
over a 6- year period to discuss them, yet took no action to protect boys.
Source: _Ottawa Citizen_ 11/11/92.
MONK CHARGED WITH ASSAULTING GIRLS. Former Catholic
priest Henry Paul Veilleux, 55, was
charged with sexually assaulting & raping 3 girls at an Ottawa monastery 20
years ago. The girls were 6, 7, & 11 in 1968-70. Source: _Ottawa Citizen_
11/21/92.
ANGLICAN PRIEST SUSPENDED WITH PAY. Owen Sound minister Jim Francom was
suspended With pay from St. George's Anglican Church after being charged in July with rape & assault
of a girl under 14. The assaults were alleged to have occurred in London,
Ontario between 1975-1984 Source: _Ottawa Citizen_ 8/18/92.
BOYS' CLUB OWNER WANTED BY POLICE. Ron Carron, who
ran a club for altar boys at a church on Hamilton Mountain in the
1970s, faces 6 sex-related charges regarding 4 victims, molested as young
teenagers in 1976. Police are checking Ireland & the United States for his
whereabouts. Source: _Spectator_ 1/6/93.
BISHOPS' POLICY: "CORPORATE DAMAGE CONTROL". A 92-page report
"From Faith to Hope" released in June by the Canadian Catholic
bishops, which makes 50 recommendations on priest
sex abuse, of which only 4 deal with victims, was called "corporate damage
control" by reporter Bob Harvey of the _Ottawa Citizen_.
"Fair but feeble" was another evaluation published in the _Toronto
Globe_. The report does recommend a policy of complete openness with judicial
authorities, the public & the media on all incidents of sexual abuse. In
the past 6 years, more than 70 priests & members of Canadian religious
orders have been charged for sexual offenses. Source: _Ottawa Citizen_ 6/13/92.
*** SASKATCHEWAN ***
SASKATCHEWAN "SAINT" SENTENCED. Rev.
Lucien Larre, 59, dubbed a saint for his work with troubled youth, was
sentenced to one symbolic day in jail and a $2,500 fine for slapping and
choking one youth and forcing another
to take pills. He was acquitted on 9 other counts, including a charge of sexual
assault. His jail sentence was waived. Source: _Toronto Star_ 4/25/92.
*** YUKON ***
PASTOR GETS 6 MONTHS. Pastor Ed Brennan, 45, of
Whitehorse Christian Bible Fellowship Society, got 6 months in jail
and 3 years' probation for sexually assaulting a young married parishioner in
the Yukon. Source: _Spectator_ 12/17/91.
*** *** *** ABROAD *** *** ***
*** *** AUSTRALIA *** ***
CHILDREN OF GOD CULT PROBED. Sydney social workers interviewed 140 children,
ages 2 to 14, seized from Children of God, a cult
founded by "Moses David", accused of brainwashing members,
forcing children to watch adults have sex, and encouraging preteens to have sex
with each other. Source: AP 5/17/92.
ANGLICAN BISHOP CHARGED FOR SOLICITATION. Anglican
Bishop Owen Dowling, 57, of Canberra and Goulburn, was recently
charged with soliciting a male off-duty cop for prostitution. Source: _Christian
Century_ 5/13/92.
New South Wales Anglican priest Eric William
Griffith, 50, of Gratton, was jailed for 18 months after pleading
guilty to 3 counts of indecent assault & 4 counts of gross indecency
against a boy, 14. Source: _Courier-Mail_ 11/15/92.
*** *** IRELAND *** ***
IRISH BISHOP FATHERED CHILD. Catholic Bishop Eamonn
Casey of Galway, Ireland resigned in May after admitting publicly
that he fathered a boy 17 years ago after seducing Annie Murphy, now 44. He
resigned after learning of a secret video of a meeting between Murphy and
himself at a New York hotel. Murphy said they had a "magical love"
affair, but he refused to help her when she became pregnant. She gave birth at
a home for unwed mothers and kept his paternity a secret. The Connecticut woman
negotiated a $125,000 payment from the bishop 2 years ago. Her son Peter went
public after Casey, 65, was not forthcoming with the payment. Casey's public
statement asked "forgiveness from God". He admitted taking nearly
$120,000 in church money for child support, saying private donors had repaid
that amount for him with interest in the week the scandal was publicized.
*** *** UNITED KINGDOM *** ***
London religious-education teacher Monika Kocanek, 27, says a priest is the father of her baby daughter. A
priest, 38, not identified, urged her to have an abortion in 1991, she said.
Source: AP/Reuters,_Arizona Republic_ 9/1/92.