Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Ellsworth guard gets prison time for sex assault
Racine, Wisc. - A Former Robert E. Ellsworth Correctional Center prison guard was sentenced to 3½ years in prison Monday for having sexual contact with a female inmate.
Michael D. Boivin, 34, of Waukesha, will serve an additional 6½ years on extended supervision when he is released from prison, Racine Circuit Court Judge Gerald Ptacek ordered.
Boivin is convicted of second-degree sexual assault by a correctional officer, which carried a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison and 15 years on extended supervision.
According to the criminal complaint, Boivin groped the inmate in a room in which the two were alone in June 2004 at the woman's prison in Dover.
For some time, Boivin had apparently been following the inmate around the institution, questioning her about her guest, who she'd been on the phone with, and even provided her with his telephone number, court records show.
"The victim felt as though Mr. Boivin was stalking her," said prosecuting attorney Randall Schneider, of the Racine County District Attorney's office.
During the sentencing hearing Boivin apologized for his actions.
"I don't where to begin. Sorry doesn't cut it," Boivin said. "What I did was wrong. I took advantage of the position I was in."
Boivin was taken into custody immediately following his sentencing. He had been out on bond.
When Boivin is released from prison he must also register as a sex offender, Ptacek ordered.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Pastor, church face civil lawsuit from sexual abuse victim
ROCKFORD, Ill. -- A civil lawsuit has been filed against a pastor who had a sexual relationship with a teenage girl in his youth group. The suit also names the church's senior pastor and the church as defendants.
The Winnebago girl, who is now an adult, claims that her former youth pastor, Bradley Bounds of Rockford, "exploited and perverted his position of trust" by engaging in a consensual romantic and sexual relationship with her when she was 17.
Bounds, then 28, was married with a 2-year-old son.
She also claims that Rock Church, the Rockford church that she attended from age 7 to 17, and the church's senior pastor, John Sprecher, did not do enough to protect her from Bounds and was negligent in hiring and training him.
She is asking for in excess of $150,000 in damages -- $50,000 per defendant -- and costs of the lawsuit.
The lawsuit states that the woman sustained "severe and enduring emotional and psychological damage" because of the affair.
Bounds was found guilty of aggravated criminal sexual abuse in December. The age of sexual consent in the state of Illinois is 17, but is 18 in cases involving people in position of authority or trust. Bounds was sentenced to 48 months of probation.
He also is required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
The Rockford Register Star does not identify victims of sexual assault.
The woman's attorney, James Devine, declined to comment on the lawsuit except to say that she and her family will be asking for more than $50,000 from the defendants.
Sprecher, who has been senior pastor at Rock Church for the past 25 years, said the church never had a problem of this nature in the past and didn't have any problems with Bounds until the incident with the girl. Sprecher said Bounds, who worked at the church for five years, was fired immediately.
"My heart goes out to the young lady," Sprecher said.
"I'm sorry she felt she needed to go to this level. We knew nothing of the activities going on. We do all we can to protect all persons on our campus. We make sure we provide as safe an environment as we can. ... There have been no other allegations. This was a single incident, a single person."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor Gets 18 Months for Tax Non-Payment
CHICAGO -- A pastor was sentenced Tuesday to 18 months in prison for failing to pay taxes on the roughly $1,000 a week that federal prosecutors say he skimmed from the collection plate.
Hundreds of church members packed a federal courtroom for William Ellis' sentencing to show support for the former bishop of the Apostolic Pentecostal Church, and many were in tears over his punishment.
Ellis, 62, stared down, held his head in one hand and shook it sadly as U.S. District Judge Robert W. Gettleman imposed the sentence _ the minimum called for by federal guidelines.
Ellis allegedly skimmed $525,000 in church money over about five years. He pleaded guilty to a single count of tax fraud in a plea agreement with prosecutors under which six other counts were dropped.
Besides dipping into the weekly collection plate, Ellis allegedly used a church credit card for personal travel and clothes, and bought a life insurance policy and paid for a Mercedes Benz with church funds.
Defense attorney James Montgomery argued the church wasn't swindled because its officers knew that Ellis was dipping into the collections and approved the car payments.
Ellis is due to begin serving his sentence Oct. 17.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Attorney in diocese lawsuit seeks to introduce priest allegations
FARGO, N.D. - The attorney for a woman accusing the Roman Catholic Diocese here of discrimination is seeking to introduce the issue of priest misconduct during the trial in her case.
Robert Schultz, the lawyer for Melissa Enebo, a former secretary for the diocese, said he wants to include evidence of misconduct by priests to show the diocese treated them differently from Enebo.
In her gender discrimination lawsuit, Enebo says she was fired in 1999 for getting pregnant outside of marriage.
Benjamin Thomas, the diocese attorney, told East Central District Judge John Irby at a pretrial hearing Monday that allowing allegations of priest misconduct as evidence would confuse jurors and "invite a media circus."
Thomas said priests are not considered employees of the diocese and are not subject to state labor laws. Only the Vatican can appoint and remove priests, so they are not a fair comparison in Enebo's case, he said.
Schultz said some priests are considered employees of the diocese and are under the bishop's oversight.
Irby said he would review any evidence of priest misconduct in private and then decide whether to allow the evidence in the trial. He ordered the diocese to provide records of lawsuits going back to 1985.
The diocese has said it warned Enebo that she was violating church policy by living with the father of her child even though they were not married.
Enebo's civil lawsuit seeks lost wages, compensation for distress and lawyer's fees.
The trial, starting Tuesday, is expected to last the rest of the week.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
State prison guard accused of urinating on jail computer
OLYMPIA, Wash. -- A state prison guard who was arrested after a drunken brawl at a nightclub may also be charged with urinating on a municipal jail computer, police said.
Willie M. Shannon, 26, of Lacey, employed at Washington Corrections Center in Shelton, was transferred to the Thurston County Jail, where he was booked for investigation of first-degree malicious mischief and then was released after posting bail, according to police reports Monday.
His employment status was unclear. A state corrections spokesman said the personnel office at the prison had closed by the time he was asked about the case Monday by The Olympian newspaper.
Shannon, Sean W. Dack, 25, of McCleary, who works with Shannon at the prison, and Randy M. Hinchcliffe, 38, of Olympia, who has previous felony convictions and knew Shannon from the prison, were arrested after fighting early Sunday morning at The Vault, police St. James Costa said.
Describing all three as apparently intoxicated, investigators found Shannon and Hinchcliffe had been thrown out of the club after punching and shoving each other, and Dack joined the fray after initially seeming to be trying to break it up, Costa said.
Dack and Hinchcliffe were cited at the municipal jail for disorderly conduct and released, but Shannon, while confined in a holding cell, relieved himself through a protective screen onto a nearby computer workstation, according to police reports.
Damage to the computer, monitor, fax machine and other hardware was estimated at $1,500, and other equipment was rendered unusable because of the contamination, Costa said.
Shannon apologized afterward, Costa added.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Answers expected in funeral home murder case
HUDSON, WIS. -- The families of two funeral home workers killed more than three years ago in western Wisconsin may soon get some answers in the case.
Police have finished their investigation into the case and its connection to a priest who killed himself after officers interviewed him.
St. Croix County District Attorney Eric Johnson said he would not reveal any details until after meeting with the slain workers' families. He hoped to meet with the families early next month after he reviews several findings.
"They should hear it from me first," Johnson said.
Funeral home director Dan O'Connell and his intern, James Ellison, were shot to death in the O'Connell Family Funeral Home in February 2002. Hudson Police Chief Richard Trende has said investigators ruled out that the killings were random and listed the motive as personal.
The priest, the Rev. Ryan Erickson, 31, was working at a church in Hudson at the time of the slayings. Investigators questioned him about the killings in 2004 as part of a separate investigation into an allegation involving a minor or minors, authorities have said.
Erickson committed suicide Dec. 19 outside his new parish in Hurley, Wis., after police searched his church residence and office. Police said Erickson had denied any involvement in the slayings.
Trende has refused to say what led detectives to question the priest about the murders, and a judge has sealed court documents in the case, including requests for search warrants.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Diocese dismisses priest who stole church offerings
It's estimated that fully 20% of American churches of all denominations are victims of embezzlement...
Indialantic, Fla. - A priest at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Community in Indialantic has been removed from his duties after $10,520 went missing from church coffers, the Diocese of Orlando said Monday.
The church's pastor David Page found money was missing after the church's weekly audits of donated money showed discrepancies, diocese spokeswoman Carol Brinati said.
The diocese oversees churches in nine counties, including Brevard County.
It was discovered the Rev. Marek Maczynski had taken the money from church donations, and church officials reported the missing money to the Brevard County Sheriff's Office in early August, Brinati said.
Bishop Thomas Wenski at the chancery office in Orlando didn't pursue litigation against Maczynski after Maczynski returned the money and issued a letter of apology to the diocese, church leaders and parishioners, Brinati said.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
New lawsuits allege 1950s sexual abuse by priest
Kansas City - Two men have sued the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, contending they were sexually abused in the 1950s by the Rev. Sylvester Hoppe, who died in 2002.
Gary Lee Smith of Topeka and Hank Talbot, who lives in northwest Missouri, filed lawsuits late last week in Jackson County Circuit Court. The lawsuits said the diocese “ignored, covered up and concealed” Hoppe’s behavior.
In a written statement released Monday afternoon, the Rev. Robert A. Murphy, vicar general of the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, said the diocese had no record of complaints from Smith or Talbot.
Still, he expressed regret for the harm done by a few priests. “The diocese is deeply sorry for what has happened to innocent children due to the abuse perpetrated by some priests,” Murphy’s statement said.
In September 2003, the diocese settled a 2002 lawsuit against Hoppe for $10,000. A California man, Thomas Dorrell, sued the diocese and Hoppe, alleging that Hoppe molested him in the 1950s, which Hoppe denied at the time through his lawyer.
Smith lived at an orphanage in St. Joseph that the diocese operated. Hoppe lived in a rectory attached to the orphanage and gave Smith gifts, clothes, wine and candy and began sexual activity with him at age 10, the lawsuit alleges. The abuse occurred between 1951 and 1956, it says. “Plaintiff repressed all memory of the abuse and/or could not ascertain his injury until 2005,” the lawsuit states.
Talbot lived in St. Joseph with his family when Hoppe recruited him as an altar boy at age 10 or 11, the lawsuit states. Hoppe would take the boy on overnight trips to towns where Hoppe would say Mass the next morning. They slept together, and Hoppe abused Talbot starting at age 13 in 1950, the lawsuit states.
“Hoppe told the plaintiff that such abuse was OK and favored in the Catholic faith,” the lawsuit states.
Smith and Talbot seek unspecified monetary damages.
Both lawsuits mention Hoppe’s lifelong involvement with the Boy Scouts. Hoppe served as a chaplain for Scout groups. In his 2002 lawsuit, Dorrell said Hoppe abused him at a Scout jamboree.
In 1999, a chapel at Camp Geiger near St. Joseph was named after Hoppe.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Priest's name staying on hall
CHEYENNE - Wyoming's Catholic bishop said accusations of sexual misconduct against a former bishop were not enough to remove his name from a residence hall at the St. Joseph's Children's Home.
Bishop David Ricken said former Bishop Joseph Hart's name would remain on the Torrington facility, despite a new lawsuit filed last week accusing Hart of sexually abusing a young parishioner in Missouri.
"In this wonderful country, a person is innocent until proven guilty," Ricken said. "I am sure any one of us would welcome the protection of the law and the presumption of innocence if we had been accused.
"As far as I know, none of the accusations against Bishop Hart have been deemed credible enough to have been introduced into a court of law, let alone brought to a formal trial. Therefore, there is no cause at the present time to remove his name from the building at St. Joseph's Children's Home."
Last week, an unnamed plaintiff sued Hart, alleging that Hart had molested him starting when he was 12 years old. He was the fifth person to make such accusations against Hart.
Hart has not responded to media inquiries about this latest lawsuit, but he has repeatedly denied any sexual misconduct.
In conjunction with the lawsuit, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests asked that the Wyoming diocese remove Hart's name from a residence hall at St. Joseph's unless and until he is cleared of wrongdoing.
"We're really disappointed and believe that they're sending the wrong message," said SNAP president Barbara Blaine. "We believe it sends a chilling message to those who have been hurt, and we think the bishop could do much better."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Dallas Theological Seminary, molestation victim reach settlement
Dallas - On the eve of what could have been an emotional trial, Dallas Theological Seminary reached a out-of-court settlement with a Trophy Club resident who blamed the seminary for his abuse by one of their graduates.
Jury selection was set to begin Monday in Tarrant County's 17th District court in Aaron Babb's lawsuit against the seminary, where a man now imprisoned for molesting Babb graduated in 1992.
But attorneys for Babb and the seminary said Monday the case was settled late Friday, with all terms to remain confidential.
"Our client is pleased with the terms of the settlement," said Babb's attorney, Thomas McElyea. "He was prepared to go to trial, but we believe it is in the best interest of all parties to solve the lawsuit amicably."
Thomas Brandon Jr., who represented the 80-year-old nondenominational seminary, agreed.
"The matter was settled to the satisfaction of all parties involved," Brandon said. "My personal hope is that this will help promote healing for Mr. Babby and for the seminary."
The seminary previously reached an out-of-court settlement with another victim of Jon Gerrit Warnshuis, the seminary graduate who is serving 40 years in prison after pleading guilty in 2001 to sexually molesting Babb.
Babb contended that the seminary was partly to blame for his abuse because they did not alert authorities after being told in 1988 that he had molested another boy.
Instead, the seminary allowed Warnsuis to graduate in 1992, said Babb, now 22-year-old security guard. Warnsuis was later hired by Oak Hills evangelical Free Church in Argyle, where Babb was attending when he was molested in 1996.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Dog found dead in oven; burglary suspect charged
I keep meaning to start a new category of Bobo's World entries-- those involving animal cruelty, which really gets at the heart of a certain kind of American consciousness that leads to violence against the most helpless. For now, I'll just continue to post the occasional story:
SAVANNAH, GA. - A suspected burglar was charged with felony animal cruelty after police found a resident's missing dog burned to death in an oven that had been set to 400 degrees.
The dog's owner, Angela DeLettre, noticed an open back door, items missing and a kitchen sink overflowing with water when she came home Thursday. She found one of her dogs safe, but the other, a 1-year-old rat terrier, was missing.
Police later found the dead dog in the oven.
Police arrested Alexander Davis, 19, based on an anonymous tip. In addition to the cruelty charge, he was charged with burglarizing DeLettre's home and another home in the area. Another person was charged with theft by receiving stolen property.
"This is just sick. This is just very, very strange," said Melanie Higgins, a prosecutor who handles most of the county's animal abuse cases.
Davis remained in the Chatham County Jail. A court hearing was scheduled Thursday.
"To rob someone is one thing," DeLettre said, "but why hurt such a little animal?"
Series of racist messages a 'very rude awakening' at University of Virginia
But racism is a thing of the past. Or, Racism is only found in the backwaters amoung the lower classes. Or, Educated people aren't racist anymore. Or, something...
RICHMOND, Va. — University of Virginia officials are considering making hate speech a violation of the campus honor code after racist messages were scrawled on doors and shouted from passing cars.
Charlottesville and university police are investigating five racial incidents, the first reported Aug. 20, university spokeswoman Carol Wood said Monday. Police had not charged anyone in the incidents.
"The writer of the spiteful words and the passing motorist who shouts an insult have no place in a community built on mutual trust and respect," University President John Casteen III wrote in an e-mail to students and staff.
More than 250 students attended a meeting Saturday about the racist messages.
"For the new students, this is a very rude awakening to societal problems that are everywhere, including the University of Virginia," said Noah Sullivan, a student organizer of the meeting. "For older students, this is nothing new."
Phil Jackson said he found a racist message written on a dry-erase board outside his campus dorm room early Saturday.
"I didn't think it was something that would happen," he said. "I don't think anyone should ever really get used to the disappointment or the frustration of individuals who don't embrace diversity."
Integrated in 1955, the University of Virginia has combatted a lingering reputation as a white, Southern stronghold. About 10 percent of the school's roughly 13,000 undergraduates are black.
Incidents over the past few years have fanned the flames, including a 2002 Halloween party at which two students dressed as black women and 2003 attacks on a biracial student council hopeful and a Peruvian business student.
Monday, August 29, 2005
Shooting rampage at church ends with 5 dead
Thanks to John G. for pointing this out:
SASH, Texas — A shooting rampage outside a rural church near the Texas-Oklahoma border left five dead, including the suspected shooter who turned the gun on himself today after a nine-hour standoff with police, authorities said.
Witnesses told police that A.P. Crenshaw, who lived across the street from the Sash Assembly of God church, exchanged words in the church parking lot Sunday night with church member Wes Brown, who asked Crenshaw to leave.
Crenshaw went back to his house but soon returned and shot Brown, 61, at close range, and then shot pastor James Armstrong, 42, the witnesses said. Deputies found both men dead in a grassy area next to the church parking lot, and it didn't appear they were shot inside the church, Fannin County Sheriff Kenneth Moore said.
Crenshaw then went back to his house, got in his truck and drove down the road. A truck pulling a horse trailer was stopped at a nearby intersection and Crenshaw began firing at the truck, witnesses told police.
Two women inside the truck tried to flee out the passenger side, but Crenshaw got out of his truck, went behind the horse trailer where the women were hiding and shot them, witnesses said.
"The witnesses said they could hear the women screaming," Moore said.
Police have identified one of the women as Holly Love Brown, 50. She is not related to Wes Brown, Moore said.
"We believe it was just random," Moore said of the women's slayings. "They were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."
Police believe Crenshaw then circled back toward the church, fired at a home and cafe near the church without harming anyone, then went home.
Deputies arrived after receiving a 911 call from one of the church members, and the long standoff began. A 10-member SWAT team made two attempts to go into house, but Crenshaw fired at them so the officers retreated, Moore said.
Police finally made their way into the house about 6 a.m., after firing tear gas into the home. Crenshaw was found in a bedroom with a gunshot wound to head, Moore said. Police believe Crenshaw shot himself about an hour earlier.
A pistol, revolver and shotgun, along with ammunition, were found in the home, Moore said. They appeared to match the weapons used in the shootings, he said. Police found 12 spent rounds from a 9mm semi-automatic pistol outside the horse trailer where the women were shot. The pastor and church member were shot with a .38-revolver, Moore said.
Moore said the shootings have obviously shaken the 300 residents in Sash, a tiny community about 120 miles north of Dallas where the biggest crimes are usually stolen property or drug arrests.
"It was a very tragic night for the community of Sash," Moore said.
Moore said the motive for the shootings was under investigation.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Megachurch pastor biggest beneficiary of charity he founded
Thanks to sittenpretty, a commentor over at Eschaton, for bringing this to our attention:
LITHONIA, Ga. - Jesus wasn't broke, and leaders of churches shouldn't be either.
That's what Bishop Eddie Long, who heads Georgia's biggest church, has to say in defense of his grand lifestyle, funded largely by the nonprofit religious charity he started in 1997.
According to tax records, Bishop Eddie Long Ministries, Inc. provided him with more than $3 million in salary and benefits, including a $1.4 million 20-acre home and use of a $350,000 Bentley. Long also received more than $1 million in salary, including $494,000 in 2000.
Long maintains the money came from royalties, speaking fees and several large donations - not from members of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, where he became pastor in 1987. The charity stopped operating in 2000.
During his 18-year tenure, New Birth has swelled from 300 members to 25,000. Long told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution he heads an international corporation, not just a church.
"You've got to put me on a different scale than the little black preacher sitting over there that's supposed to be just getting by because the people are suffering," he said.
Long's charity and his church were separate organizations, and his charity was incorporated as a nonprofit religious corporation - not a church. He and his wife, Vanessa, were two of the charity's four board members.
The charity, which Long incorporated in New York in 1995, made $3.1 million in donations to others between 1997 and 2000, according to tax records - compared to at least $3.07 million paid to Long during the same period.
Nonprofits are exempt from paying state and federal income taxes if they meet certain criteria, but executives' benefits may not be excessive according to federal law.
Churches must report to the IRS how much they pay employees, but those records are not public. The charity's tax returns are public record.
Long's benefits were excessive, said Jeff Krehely, deputy director of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, a Washington-based group that promotes accountability in the philanthropic community.
"After reviewing the compensation packages of foundation executives, including those who have been written up in the press as being excessive, I've never seen anything quite like what Long (was) getting, when you include his salary, the house and the car," Krehely said.
Long's tax attorney, J. David Epstein, said the charity's compensation committee decided to use some of the charity's assets to pay Long for his work at New Birth to make up for years when he was underpaid.
"Bishop Long has never received the legal amount of compensation he is due by law," said Epstein, a Philadelphia lawyer specializing in church law and producer of a video for pastors called "How to Maximize Your Clergy Salary and Benefits Package."
Long used to receive a salary from New Birth, but now accepts "love offerings" from church members, according to a church spokesman.
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who chairs a Senate committee investigating lavish salaries of nonprofit executives, expressed concern upon hearing about Long's situation.
"I'm worried that a few people are confusing the ringing of a church bell with the ringing of a cash register," Grassley said in a statement to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "When I hear about leaders of charities being provided a $300,000 Bentley to drive around in, my fear is that it's the taxpayers who subsidize this charity who are really being taken for a ride."
Long says he represents a "paradigm shift" in the black church, and that any problems people have with his charity stem from people's expectations that pastors should be poor. He said his congregation is inspired by seeing its pastor do well.
"I'm not going to apologize for anything."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Ex-Pastor Facing Probe Over Herbal Paste
ROCHELLE, Ga. -- Curtis Brown carries business cards with old pictures of his tumors, including an egg-sized growth on his neck. He says they were each shed after the application of a flesh-eating paste containing the medicinal herb bloodroot.
"I cured myself of cancer," the cards read.
Georgia's medical board and the federal Food and Drug Administration don't share Brown's enthusiasm for the paste.
The state board has accused its maker, Dan Raber, a rural pastor-turned-healer, of practicing medicine without a license. FDA agents recently raided Raber's business, and a doctor could lose her medical license for allegedly knowing Raber was giving people the paste _ not approved for the treatment of cancer _ and not reporting him.
Raber's paste is described by the medical board as "a caustic, tissue-destroying substance that eats away human skin and flesh."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Ellwood priest resigns
Ellwood City, Penn. - The Rev. Mauro Cautela has resigned as pastor of Holy Redeemer Parish, Ellwood City, amidst serious allegations of impropriety.
According to the Rev. John R. Rushofsky, director of clerical personnel for the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, Cautela has been placed on administrative leave, though he would not say what the allegations against Cautela are.
The official statement from the diocese was read at the 6 p.m. Mass Saturday in Holy Redeemer Parish and was to be read after all Masses today.
Additional diocesan personnel will be on hand after the noon Mass today at the church to answer any questions they can within the confines of the confidential nature of the matter.
The statement made no further reference to the specifics of the allegations, but said, "When allegations of this nature have been made, church law mandates that specific procedures must be followed. In response to this requirement, a preliminary investigation has already begun. This action does not imply guilt but is intended to find the truth while preserving the rights of everyone involved, including both the person against whom an allegation has been made and the alleged victim.
Because of the length of time involved in the procedures and "to ensure that the pastoral leadership of the parish continues" Cautela resigned effective immediately, according to the statement.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Deal keeps ex-officer out of jail
Oklahoma County [Oklahoma]prosecutors have arranged a plea agreement that allows a former police officer accused of raping two children to avoid a jail sentence.
Ki Mitchell Harrington, 34, pleaded guilty this week to one count of child abuse, while 13 felony counts were dismissed. Harrington will serve a five-year deferred sentence.
The charges against Harrington included seven counts of first-degree rape, two counts of sexual abuse of a child and five counts of child abuse.
Prosecutors said there is insufficient evidence to prove Harrington committed any of the crimes alleged in the dropped charges.
The Oklahoma County district attorney's office issued a written statement Friday to The Oklahoman about Harrington's case:
"After lengthy investigation and interviews with the victims we were able to ascertain that the level of crime thought to be committed was not as egregious as originally thought. While we acknowledge a level of criminal activity was committed the difficulty was in proving it without sacrificing the victims."
An investigation into Harrington began Nov. 24, 2003, when the children's mother contacted police.
The children, a brother and sister, testified in a preliminary hearing in July 2003 that they were beaten with a belt containing multiple buckles or studs.
"I'm satisfied that these children will never be around him again and he'll never be a law enforcement officer again," Assistant District Attorney Sarah McAmis said. "I believe the outcome is in their best interest."
Under the terms of the plea agreement, Harrington never can have contact with the victims and he surrendered his Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training certification.
Harrington worked in the 1990s as a Blaine County deputy and as a police officer in Okarche and El Reno. Harrington was fired May 7, 2003, from the El Reno Police Department, where he had worked since September 2000.
He was an Okarche officer from September 1999 to June 2000.
Sunday, August 28, 2005
Weekly church-related crime update, August 21- 27
This, of course, is just this week's update. See the entire never-ending chronicle of church-related crime here.
Return to Bobo's World homepage.
Minister charged in baby's scalding
CROWN POINT, Ind. -- A minister fired from a 2,000-member Gary congregation nearly a year ago has been charged with neglect after a son he fathered with a parishioner was hospitalized with burns across his lower body.
Carlton Franklin Davis, 47, Munster, the charismatic former pastor of New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Gary, and Serrita Monique Kendrick, 24, Merrillville, have been charged with neglect of their 7-month-old son, Samuel Kendrick.
Munster police arrested Serrita Kendrick on Thursday. A warrant was issued for Davis' arrest, and it was not clear Saturday whether he had been taken into custody. The charge carries a penalty of six to 20 years in prison.
Samuel Kendrick arrived at Community Hospital in Munster on Tuesday with deep burns across his legs, feet, groin and buttocks, apparently after having been immersed in very hot water, according to court records.
The baby was transferred to University of Chicago Children's Hospital, where a child protection team found that "at the time of the injury the child would have had to have been in serious pain and that there was no way caretakers could not have known he was injured," a probable cause affidavit said.
Davis and Kendrick told Munster police they changed the baby's diaper late Monday and washed him off with cool water in a tub. The mother said she put a clean diaper on the infant, wrapped him in a blanket and laid him down. Both said the baby was not crying.
However, about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, the mother said she checked on Samuel and discovered skin was peeling off. The woman said she drove the baby to Community Hospital, and Davis followed in his car.
Davis was fired by the New Hope church board in September after Kendrick went public with allegations that he had fathered her child. Davis had guided the church through a $2 million renovation the year before.
It was the second time the married pastor had been publicly confronted with impregnating a parishioner. In 2002, a woman told church members during a Sunday service that Davis had impreg-nated her 16-year-old daughter.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Saturday, August 27, 2005
Pastor charged with bad behavior, drinking
LAKEWOOD, N.J. — A controversial pastor who was paid $35,000 in township funds to run a parental outreach program and criticized by some residents as a vagrant who hangs out and drinks at a local bus terminal has been charged with disorderly conduct and drinking outside the public depot.
Rev. Jimmy Wilcox, who had moved to Lakewood this year but gave police a Brick address, was arrested Aug. 12, police said.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor arrested on porn charge
Tallahassee, Tenn. - The former pastor of a Bradford County church was arrested in Tallahassee on a felony charge of sending pornography to minors, a Leon County Sheriff's Office spokesman said.
But what wasn't clear Friday was why it took 2½ years to arrest him. Investigators had seized his computer in late 2002, according to a press release, and the man had admitted sending the photos.
Aaron D. West, 49, was booked into the Leon County Jail on Friday on $50,000 bail but will be taken to Bradford County to face a judge there, spokesman Chris Chase said.
West was arrested at the Thomasville Road Wal-Mart, where he works as an assistant manager. Store manager Wally Davidson declined comment and a corporate spokeswoman would say only that West was suspended without pay.
West had been pastor of Bradford County's Faith Baptist Church; a message left on the office phone was not returned Friday.
He had been communicating over the Internet with two Wisconsin girls, ages 14 and 15, beginning in late 2002, when he still the church's pastor, according to a press release.
Law enforcement there found out and tipped off sheriff's deputies in Bradford County. Sheriff's Sgt. Daniel Wolfe went to West's house and spoke with him.
West said he talked to the girls in a chat room and sent nude photos of someone else, saying it was him, according to the release. He also said he talked with the girls about meeting them, but never made the visit.
West also allowed Wolfe to seize his computer, in which was found "information indicating West collected child pornography," the release said.
But it wasn't until Aug. 24 that an arrest warrant was put out for West, who had to be tracked down because he had moved from the county a year ago. He was soon found in Tallahassee.
Lt. Kenneth Hinds, Bradford County sheriff's spokesman, said he could not immediately explain why the case took so long.
"With hundreds of cases coming in, it sometimes just takes a while," he said.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Church settles with more abuse accusers
Seattle - Seven men have reached a $2.6 million settlement with the Seattle Archdiocese and a Kansas religious order over accusations that a priest sexually abused them in the 1970s when they were altar boys.
The Rev. John Forrester was accused of molesting four of the boys while he was serving at Holy Rosary in Seattle and the other three while serving at All Saints in Puyallup, according to their attorneys.
The settlement is believed to wrap up all known allegations involving Forrester, who is dead, though the Seattle Archdiocese still faces dozens of other sexual abuse claims.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Bexar jailer under probe after gunfire
The Bexar County [Texas] Sheriff's Department is investigating one of its jailers after he fired eight rounds at an SUV after an apparent confrontation with a passenger in the vehicle.
No one in the SUV was hurt.
Mark Vargas, a 26-year-old Bexar County Jail guard of about five years, is not facing criminal charges, but the Sheriff's Department is investigating whether he violated departmental rules.
Vargas told San Antonio police he thought the small silver item the passenger held up during the traveling confrontation on Northwest Loop 410 was a handgun and that he was afraid the passenger was going to shoot him, according to a police report.
Although the only thing police found in the SUV that resembled a small gun was a cell phone, Vargas isn't being investigated for criminal wrongdoing because he feared for his life and "was taking law enforcement action at that time," said Sgt. Gabe Trevino, an SAPD spokesman.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Air Force specialist indicted on child porn charge
OMAHA, Neb. — An Air Force computer security specialist has been indicted on a federal charge of producing child pornography.
Tech Sgt. Erik Dean Rabes, 44, is assigned to the U.S. Strategic Command at Offutt Air Force Base south of Omaha. The unit oversees the nation's nuclear arsenal and is responsible for defending U.S. interests in space.
Rabes was indicted Tuesday. He has been jailed since April on a related charge of sexual assault of a child.
The indictment accused him of enticing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct and producing a visual image of that conduct in November 2000, while stationed at Colorado Springs, Colo.
Air Force officials were cooperating with civilian authorities in the investigation, said Army Lt. Col. Randi Steffy, a spokeswoman for Rabes' unit. She said she couldn't confirm whether military computer had been used in any of the alleged activities.
A military investigation could lead to additional charges.
Denton constable removed from office
Denton County [Texas] Deputy Sheriff Roger Shaw was appointed temporary interim Precinct 2 Constable today after Larry Floyd was temporarily removed from the position.
The removal and the appointment were ordered by visiting District Judge Robert Thornton in the 158th District Court following civil charges filed against Floyd by the District Attorney's office after a Denton County grand jury indicted him on three third-degree felony charges of possession of child pornography.
Constable Shaw, 61, will begin his duties immediately and will fill the position until the suit against Floyd is resolved. If Floyd is permanently removed as result of the suit, the Denton County Commissioners Court will appoint a permanent interim constable to serve until a special election is held in 2006.
Constable Shaw began working for the Denton County Sheriff's Office in 1993. In 1997 and 1998 he was a Constable Deputy in Precinct 2. He has been a court bailiff since November 1998. He lives in The Colony.
Friday, August 26, 2005
Wal-Mart Shootout Video Released
CEDAR HILL, Texas -- A gunman fleeing from pursuing officers ran inside a Cedar Hill Wal-Mart store in May. The officers from Cedar Hill police and the Ellis County Sheriff's Department chased the man into the store, where they ultimately killed him.
Thursday, a Dallas grand jury cleared the officers of any wrongdoing after viewing surveillance camera video of the incident.
Jeffery Spradling, facing arrest on a child-support warrant, ran from officers, who feared for the lives of bystanders, officers said.
"(The officers) took the action deemed appropriate to stop that," said Sgt. Don Peritz of the Dallas County Sheriff's Department. "The officers knew the suspect was armed. The officers knew the suspect attempted to pull his weapon."
The grand jury ruled that Spradling represented an immediate danger to officers and customers inside the store. The video supported witness statements taken by investigators soon after the shooting.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
1 killed at Wal-Mart in Albuquerque
ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO -- One man was killed and a woman was injured Thursday during an apparent domestic dispute inside a Wal-Mart on the city's Southeast Side.
Police spokeswoman Trish Hoffman said a witness told authorities that a man had been stabbing the woman inside the store when another man intervened and shot her attacker. Hoffman said the stabbing appeared to stem from a domestic dispute.
The woman, whose name was not immediately known, was taken to a hospital where she was being treated for multiple stab wounds. The man who was shot was pronounced dead at the scene. His name was not immediately released, nor was the name of the man accused of shooting him.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Lawsuits allege violence, sex abuse at church-run home
Marrero, Alabama - Half a dozen men have filed lawsuits alleging they were sexually molested, beaten and humiliated as children 40 years ago by nuns, priests and civilian staff members at Madonna Manor, a Catholic home for troubled children in Marrero.
In response, the Archdiocese of New Orleans has been poring over old records to reach its own assessment of conditions at Madonna Manor during the 1960s, said the Rev. William Maestri, the archdiocese's spokesman.
"We want to make sure that where there are victims, we respond appropriately to them," he said. But the task is difficult and time-consuming, Maestri said, because records are vague and full of gaps.
"We're dealing with such a long period of time over 40 years ... What we're trying to do is build a paper case in terms of time lines what actually took place."
Another problem for the archdiocese is that the people making the claims say they had blocked the incidents out of their memories and only recently began to acknowledge and confront their childhood experiences. "You don't want to revictimize anyone but this whole notion of repressed or recovered memory, it's very hard for us to deal with it."
Complaints about Madonna Manor "have been on our radar for more than a couple of years," said Michael Kuczynski of the New Orleans chapter of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests.
"The first thing that impressed us was the severity of the abuse reported. These aren't cliched single instances of abuse against children, but repeated acts of abuse" by other students, priests, nuns and lay staff members, he said.
Madonna Manor and an affiliated institution, Hope Haven, are operated by the Archdiocese of New Orleans' charitable arm, formerly called Associated Catholic Charities. At the time of the complaints Madonna Manor was staffed by nuns belonging to the School Sisters of Notre Dame.
Many youngsters were placed there under court order. In other cases, families unable to care for all their children sent some to be cared for by the church.
Within the past six weeks, four men, Larry Daigle of Kenner, James Harvey of Altadena, Calif.; Keith Porche of Slidell and a man identified only as John Doe of New Orleans, have filed claims that they were frequently abused at Madonna Manor.
In addition, two other former residents, Stacey Brown of Harvey and Ted Lausche, of Lake Geneva, Wis., recently amplified suits they filed last spring that now allege specific acts of abuse at Madonna Manor by named priests, nuns or other staff members.
Brown and Lausche say they were raped by a now-retired priest, who vehemently denies the allegation.
Maestri said the archdiocese believes the priest may be the victim of a "misidentification." He noted that Brown said in his suit he "was heavily dosed with psychiatric drugs during most the years he lived at Madonna Manor."
The church's internal review process months ago concluded that Lausche's claim against the priest was "without semblance of truth," Maestri said. A second inquiry will look at Brown's allegations, he said.
Four of the six plaintiffs claim they were raped or sexually fondled by priests or men they thought were priests; three allege they were sometimes molested by nuns in dormitories at night; five allege they were sexually molested by Madonna Manor's civilian staff or other adults, sometimes off campus.
Among the nuns listed in the lawsuit, two are dead; two are aged and mentally incompetent and one left her order and her whereabouts are unknown, according to a church investigation. The order has no record of another defendant's name.
Lausche also said he was raped by then-priest Gilbert Gauthe, a visitor to Madonna Manor whose exposure as a serial pedophile in later years was the precursor to the national sexual abuse scandal that rocked the church in 2002.
All of the plaintiffs allege they lived in an atmosphere of harsh beatings by nuns, including one who, several said, favored a collapsible military shovel as a regular instrument. Two men claimed they were locked in a closet for up to three days as punishment.
Maestri said Thursday that records searchers will try to determine whether the allegations were true and whether beatings were so severe that they violated standards existing at the time. "Corporal punishment was an accepted standard of treatment not only in Catholic schools but in public schools and private schools," he said.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Priest says molestation allegations have "half-truths"
Denver - A former Roman Catholic priest accused of molesting boys across the Denver Archdiocese told a Denver TV station Wednesday that there were "half-truths" in the allegations and suggested that his accusers' attorneys are out for money.
In an interview with KCNC- Channel 4 outside his Denver apartment, Harold Robert White said he felt bad upon learning about the allegations against him. In the past month, 17 men have told The Denver Post that White molested them from the early 1960s to early 1980s.
"I'm just sorry that these guys are all going through this right now," said White, 72. "I feel they might be just doing it to themselves. Or their lawyers are doing it because lawyers are all out for money, and I don't have any money."
Five men have filed civil lawsuits in the past week accusing the Denver Archdiocese of covering up for White. None has named White as a defendant.
Asked if he was wrongly accused, White said, "There's a lot of half-truths, and I don't want to say lies, but ...."
White also took issue with a lawyer who at a news conference last week displayed a poster suggesting White abused minors from the early 1960s through 1993, the year he left public ministry.
"It ended way back in 1981," White said. He declined to elaborate on what he was referring to. He said his attorney told him not to say anything.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Boy Scout leader arrested on molestation accusations
LOS ALTOS, Calif. - A Boy Scout leader was arrested Thursday on accusations that he molested a scout over a five-year period beginning in the 1980s.
Gregory Allen Wagner, 42, was arrested Thursday morning in his Los Altos home by the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office. He is being held in jail for continuous molestation of a child, lewd acts on a child under 14 and distributing pornography to a child.
The victim told authorities that the molestations began in 1987 when he was a 12-year-old Boy Scout and continued until 1992, Deputy Terrance Helm said. The unidentified victim told authorities that Wagner molested other children as well.
"We will investigate until we find every victim," Helms said.
Wagner's family declined to comment Thursday to the San Jose Mercury News.
Wagner had been associated with Troop 31 since 1986.
Man nabbed at Wal-Mart for handcuff prank
CONWAY, N.H. (AP) -- They say you can get just about anything at Wal-Mart, including arrested. Police say employees at a Wal-Mart called to report a young man was in the store on Tuesday in an orange prison jumpsuit and handcuffs, asking for a hacksaw.
It turns out Joha Turner, 18, of Pittsburg, hadn't escaped from anywhere. He told police it was a prank. They told him he was under arrest, for disorderly conduct.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Minister gets term and fine for fraud
Houston - A televangelist from El Salvador who pleaded guilty to passport fraud to help a girl he claimed as his daughter has been sentenced to time served and two years' supervised release, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Houston announced.
Edgar Lopez Bertrand, 65, a naturalized U.S. citizen living in El Salvador, also was fined $2,000.
He pleaded guilty in July to two counts of making false statements in applications for U.S. passports after striking a plea agreement with federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C. The U.S. Attorney's Office here also handled the case.
Lopez Bertrand had been in jail about three months before being sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal.
Lopez Bertrand first presented a fraudulent Salvadoran birth certificate in the name of Pamela Lopez Bertrand to the U.S. Embassy in El Salvador on Feb. 17, 1995, according to court documents.
He renewed the passport in February 2000. When he came to the embassy for a third renewal on Jan. 27 this year, a consular official became suspicious, court documents state.
Under questioning, Lopez Bertrand admitted that the woman, now 20, is not his biological daughter and that the birth certificate was false.
He was arrested in May at Bush Intercontinental Airport while en route to Israel, sparking headlines in El Salvador. He heads the Baptist Biblical Tabernacle Friends of Israel Church in San Salvador.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Thursday, August 25, 2005
Lawyer Set to Challenge Vatican Status
Thanks to Aaron for the heads-up on this article!
ROME (AP) - The lawyer who is suing Pope Benedict XVI in Texas for allegedly covering up the sexual abuse of children by a seminarian said Wednesday he would challenge the U.S. diplomatic recognition of the Vatican if the pope is given immunity in the case.
The pope's lawyers have already asked President Bush to certify Benedict's immunity from liability in the civil lawsuit since he is a head of state - the Vatican city-state.
Attorney Daniel Shea, who is representing one of three boys suing the pope, told a news conference Wednesday that Bush could abstain from confirming Benedict's immunity. In that case, the judge handling the case, Judge Lee Rosenthal of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas in Houston, would decide how to proceed, he said.
But if Bush grants the immunity, Shea said he would challenge the constitutionality of the U.S. diplomatic recognition of the Holy See as a sovereign state on First Amendment grounds.
``The Holy See is a church,'' Shea said.
Joseph Ratzinger - Benedict's former name - is named as a defendant in the civil lawsuit, accused of conspiring with the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston to cover up the abuse of three boys during the mid-1990s. The suit is seeking unspecified monetary damages.
The three boys, identified in court documents as John Does I, II and III, allege that a Colombian-born seminarian on assignment at St. Francis de Sales church in Houston, Juan Carlos Patino-Arango, molested them during counseling sessions in the church in the mid-1990s.
Patino-Arango has been indicted in a criminal case by a Harris County, Texas, grand jury and is a fugitive from justice, the lawsuit says.
Shea has argued in civil court documents that a May 18, 2001, letter Ratzinger wrote to bishops around the world was evidence that he was involved in a conspiracy to hide Patino-Arango's crimes and to help him escape prosecution.
The letter, written when Ratzinger was still prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, explains that ``grave'' crimes such as the sexual abuse of minors would be handled by his congregation and that the proceedings of special church tribunals handling the cases were subject to ``pontifical secret.''
While international experts say the pope can certainly claim immunity in the case and that ultimately Shea's suit won't succeed, lawyers for church sex abuse victims say the case is significant because it has gone further than other recent attempts to implicate the Vatican and high-ranking church officials in the sex scandal.
Shea acknowledged that a previous court challenge to the U.S. diplomatic recognition of the Holy See failed, but said it was because the plaintiffs - a lobbying group seeking further separation of church and state - didn't have standing, meaning they weren't affected by the issue.
``John Doe I, II and III have got standing and then some,'' he said.
He said Bush may also choose to abstain from the case because of the political implications it may have.
``The Evangelical community has been horrified at what they've seen in these cases, and I don't think his political base can stand him in effect providing cover for Ratzinger. But that's a political question,'' he said.
The State Department has said the pope already is considered a head of state and automatically has diplomatic immunity. Spokeswoman Gerry Keener said Tuesday that Benedict doesn't have to ask for immunity and Bush doesn't have to grant it.
The Vatican spokesman and Ratzinger's lawyers have declined to comment on the case.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor-turned-conman wanted
The Charlotte County [Fla.] Sheriff's Office Economic Crimes Unit is looking for a pool-cage installer who allegedly swindled at least 48 area residents of more than $500,000 before disappearing.
An arrest warrant has been issued for Jack Wendell Ruff, 58, of North Port, for contracting without a license during a governor-declared State of Emergency and failing to complete work after taking advance monies for repairs to pool cages damaged by Hurricane Charley.
Detectives say Ruff, acting as a salesman for a pool cage company, took sizable deposit checks from homeowners for repair work that was never done.
Ruff, the senior pastor at the Praise Tabernacle Church on Edgewater Drive, recently moved to North Port after living in the Deep Creek area for several years.
Detectives have been investigating mounting allegations against Ruff since June.
However, in a Tuesday press release, the Sheriff's Office said Ruff "has since fled the area" and requested help from the public in finding him.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor convicted of child cruelty gets out of prison
Macon, Georgia - A minister is free after serving two years in prison for having children at his church whipped with belts.
The Rev. Arthur Allen Jr. was released Wednesday from Central State Prison in Macon, Department of Corrections spokeswoman Peggy Chapman said.
Allen's wife, Trina, picked up the minister from the medium security prison, Chapman said.
Allen, 73, has been in the prison since 2003 on child cruelty and aggravated assault charges stemming from activities at the House of Prayer church in northwest Atlanta.
He was accused of ordering church members to discipline children with whips and belts when they misbehaved. The spankings left welts on two boys.
He served a 90-day jail sentence but refused to comply with the condition of his 10-year probation that children in his congregation could only be hand spanked at home by their parents.
Allen skipped a probation revocation hearing and was on the run for five months before his capture in Cobb County two years ago.
Four other church members also were convicted three years ago in connection with the beatings of children at the church and served jail time.
Wearing jeans and a casual shirt, Allen gathered with his small congregation Wednesday afternoon at the church. He declined to comment on his release.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Sexual abuse suit filed against former KC priest
A Kansas City-area man on Wednesday filed a sexual abuse lawsuit against a former local priest, calling the priest’s alleged actions “utterly repugnant.”
The plaintiff, identified in court papers as “John Doe E.K.,” alleged he was sexually abused by the Rev. Joseph Hart on at least two occasions in the early 1970s at St. John Francis Regis church.
The suit was filed in Jackson County Circuit Court.
Hart, who served at several parishes in Kansas City, is now a retired bishop in Wyoming. Hart’s attorney, Larry Ward, said Wednesday he had not read the lawsuit but that Hart “absolutely, categorically” denied any wrongdoing.
The lawsuit was revealed at a sidewalk news conference just outside the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph chancery in Kansas City. The news conference was organized by a Chicago-based organization called Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.
“(Hart) is very distressed that this organization continues to try and attack his reputation and the years of service that he has given to the people,” Ward said. “It’s hurtful and it’s harmful, and he denies it completely.”
Hart was named as a defendant in sexual abuse lawsuits filed in January 2004 and October 2004. Both of those cases are pending.
In the latest lawsuit, the plaintiff said Hart “used his position of trust and authority to sexually abuse and exploit the young E.K.”
According to the lawsuit:
In approximately 1973 and 1974, when the plaintiff was about 12, the plaintiff answered phones in the church rectory. At one point, Hart told the plaintiff he was in trouble, then took him into the hallway of the rectory and molested him.
Later in 1973 or 1974, the lawsuit says, Hart and the plaintiff were both participating in “several basketball sessions.” While playing basketball, the lawsuit says, Hart groped and fondled the plaintiff, “passing it off as mere sport.”
The lawsuit says the plaintiff has suffered from shock, emotional distress, physical manifestations of emotional distress, embarrassment and other problems. It says he has sustained loss of earnings and will continue to incur expenses for medical and psychological treatment.
The Kansas City area plaintiff, now in his mid-40s, works in construction. He is married and has children. In a written statement, he said, “I’m doing this because what happened was wrong and the church handled it badly. I started drinking right after the abuse and I have had an alcohol problem my whole life.”
His lawsuit asks for a jury trial and unspecified damages.
The lawsuit also names the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph as a defendant, saying it engaged in a “cover-up” that allowed Hart access to numerous children.
In a statement Wednesday afternoon, the Rev. Robert A. Murphy, vicar general of the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese, said in part: “As we’ve learned in recent years, some priests did betray our trust and preyed on the most vulnerable among us: our children. … These misdeeds led to a critical self-examination by every bishop in the country. People who have been harmed deserve justice.”
However, the statement said, “We also must cautiously explore every allegation, because not every accusation is just.”
After Wednesday’s brief news conference, members of the organization tried to deliver a letter to Bishop Robert W. Finn at the chancery office.
The letter asked Finn “to personally stand in your Cathedral pulpit and prod witnesses and victims to break the silence.” The same letter also was addressed to Bishop David Ricken of Cheyenne, Wyo., and encouraged both bishops to remove Hart’s name from an orphanage in Wyoming.
A spokeswoman at the Kansas City office said the letter would be delivered to Finn.
Hart was ordained in 1956 and served in five parishes in the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese. He was ordained bishop of Cheyenne in 1976 and retired in 2001.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Iraqi War veteran faces molestation charges
SCRANTON, Penn. — An Iraq war veteran taken in at a Taylor home – where he allegedly molested his host’s 13-year-old daughter – waived his preliminary hearing Wednesday in Central Court.
Dietrick Weitz, 26, of Hughestown, is charged with involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault and other crimes.
The mother of the girl told Taylor police she allowed Mr. Weitz to stay in her home because he was a family friend who had served in Iraq.
The sexual contact allegedly took place in March.
Mr. Weitz, who allegedly told police he wanted to marry the girl, is free on his word to appear at future court hearings.
Man sues seminary that graduated pastor later convicted of molestation
Ft. Worth, Texas - Aaron Babb believes a single phone call to police 17 years ago would have changed his life: he might never have been sexually abused, attempted suicide or been awakened by his own screams.
If Dallas Theological Seminary officials had alerted authorities in 1988 -- when they learned that one of their students, Jon Gerrit Warnshuis, was accused of sexually molesting a 12- or 13-year-old boy -- Warnshuis might have gone to prison then.
Instead, Warnshuis was allowed to graduate from the seminary in 1992 and later became pastor of an Argyle church. In 2001, he was sentenced to prison for molesting Babb and other boys for years at Oak Hills Evangelical Free Church.
On Monday, Babb, 22, will seek to hold the seminary accountable in a Fort Worth courtroom. The case will test whether an institution that knew of his past abuse but granted Warnshuis a master's degree in theology is responsible for his actions.
Last week, the nondenominational Dallas Theological Seminary, one of the largest in the nation, agreed to an out-of-court settlement with another of Warnshuis' victims. Both sides agreed to keep the terms of the agreement confidential.
Babb's lawsuit alleges that the seminary knew Warnshuis was a danger but failed to warn Oak Hills of his past when the congregation hired him in 1996. The seminary has previously said no one from the church called to check on Warnshuis' credentials when he was hired.
In court depositions, seminary officials say they didn't call police in 1988 because they were unclear on whether they were legally required to do so.
The state law requiring anyone who suspects child abuse to alert law enforcement went into effect in 1995, according to a spokeswoman with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.
In depositions, officials said they let Warnshuis graduate because a psychologist changed his opinion and said Warnshuis was mentally sound.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Jail employees accused of having inmate beaten up
One Muskogee County/City Detention Facility [Oklahoma] employee was arrested Tuesday night and another will be arrested today in the assault of an inmate, Muskogee County Sheriff Charles Pearson said.
The employees are accused of conspiring to get inmates to assault Alisha Mackey, 30, who was in Muskogee County on Monday for a preliminary hearing on two child abuse charges. Mackey is serving a 20-year sentence for permitting one of her sons to be sexually abused by her husband, Jimmy Don Mackey.
Jail runner Stacy Gray, 26, was booked into the Muskogee County jail on a complaint of conspiracy to commit assault and battery on an inmate. She was to be taken to Wagoner County Jail later Tuesday night, Pearson said.
Booking supervisor Shelley Ford, 39, said she would surrender after she found a baby-sitter but later refused.
Pearson said a warrant will be issued today to arrest Ford, who lives in Cherokee County.
"This is a very serious offense," Pearson said. "I am going to submit it to the DA's office and probably to federal authorities."
Female inmates who clean the jail kitchen said that Ford sent Gray to talk to two inmates who later beat up Mackey, Pearson said.
Pearson said jail officials started getting notes from inmates late Monday about the assault on Mackey.
Mackey did not report the assault, Pearson said, but a transport officer taking her back to Mabel Bassett Correctional Center in McLoud noticed she had a black eye and reported it.
Gray was crying when she told investigators that Ford had asked her to go into the jail kitchen and ask two inmates to beat Mackey up, Pearson said. Gray told investigators she took Mackey to Cell 1 where she was beaten.
Pearson said he would seek the same charges against the inmates as the jail employees.
Gray excused the assault, saying she didn't like what Mackey had let happen to her son, Pearson said.
"We don't either," Pearson said. "That's why she is in prison.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
Prison guard sentenced for stealing drugs
RACINE, Wisc. - A former Racine Correctional Institute prison guard was sentenced to two years probation for stealing inmates' prescription drugs.
As a condition of his probation, Michael S. Cline of Union Grove, will have to serve 90 days in jail with work-release privileges.
Cline, 31, was also charged with felony possession of narcotic drugs and misdemeanor theft of property. Those charges were dismissed when he pleaded no contest on July 11.
Cline will remain free on $2,500 signature bond until Sept. 10, when he is scheduled to report to the Racine County Jail.
Cline is convicted of stealing Oxycodone from inmates at RCI, according to the criminal complaint. He admitted to stealing the drug to support his addiction habit, the complaint said.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Molotov Cocktail Tossed Into Wal-Mart
Melbourne, Fla. - A man hurled a Molotov cocktail inside a Wal-Mart store Tuesday night, igniting a small fire before employees tackled him and an off-duty police officer arrested him, police said.
Investigators said a man, who was not identified, drove to the Wal-Mart located at 3950 N. Wickham Road in Melbourne Tuesday night and walked into the Neighborhood Market area of the store.
Witnesses said he shouted something at a cashier before throwing the bottle of flammable liquid about 8 p.m.
Employees extinguished the fire and fought the man to the ground until police arrived.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Two Arizona Wal-Mart workers shot dead
GLENDALE, Ariz. - Two Wal-Mart employees were shot to death Tuesday as they gathered shopping carts in the parking lot of one of the retail stores in suburban Phoenix, and police later arrested the suspected gunman.
The shootings occurred in the middle of the parking lot, about 75 yards from the store entrance. At one point, a body could be seen in one of the corrals used for collecting shopping carts.
Hours later, police spokesman Mike Pena said a suspect had been arrested without incident in a retirement community in nearby Peoria.
Investigators initially sent a robot to Ed Lui’s door, fearing he could still be armed. The man came out with his hands up and was booked on two counts of first-degree murder, Pena said.
No known motive
Authorities did not have a motive for shootings. It does not appear Lui knew the victims or had a vendetta against them or Wal-Mart, Pena said. The gunman did not appear to have been under the influence of any substance.
“We don’t know why he did this. This was barbaric,” Pena said.
Lui drove into the parking lot, got out of his car and shot each victim several times with a handgun. It does not appear Lui spoke with the victims, he said.
The gunman then drove away but was followed by two witnesses who were able to provide license plate numbers that police used to track Lui’s car.
After he was captured, Lui was calm at the police station, answering ’yes’ and ’no’ questions, Pena said. He did not know whether Lui had a criminal record.
The victims were identified as Anthony Spangler, 18, and Patrick Graham, who was either 18 or 19. Both were from Glendale.
Delia Garcia, a Wal-Mart spokeswoman on the scene, said the two young men were collecting shopping carts when the gunfire broke out. She said the store would be closed at least until Wednesday.
“This is an extremely tragic situation,” company spokeswoman Sharon Weber said from Wal-Mart headquarters in Bentonville, Ark.
Screaming shoppers
Authorities initially kept customers inside the store, but they were later allowed to leave.
Lisa Crider said the store was filled with screaming people who were trying to get out. “It was just pure chaos,” she told The Arizona Republic. Crider said she initially tried to stay inside the store but later fled.
Late Tuesday, police had cordoned off the suspect’s neighborhood about two miles from the Wal-Mart. Plainclothes officers roamed through the area of stuccoed homes with red-tile roofs and desert landscaping.
At the scene of the shooting, police also cordoned off much of the store’s parking lot, telling anyone whose car was within a perimeter that they would have to leave their vehicles there.
Some of the store’s 450 employees could be seen leaving the business Tuesday evening. The company planned to offer help for workers upset by the shootings, Garcia said.
The scene of the shooting was about 20 miles northwest of downtown Phoenix.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Pastor Indicted on Child Sexual Assault Charges
A former San Antonio pastor convicted of having sex with a minor was indicted on similar charges early this month. The accusations involve a different woman who was a child at the time of the alleged assault.
Just three months ago, former Alpha Joy Temple pastor Duane Hammons was convicted of sexual assault of a child. The incident happened in 1993, when his victim was only 15 years old.
She says Hammons would make her skip school and would take her to motel rooms to have sex.
Hammons was sentenced to six months in prison and ten years probation. He is currently appealing that decision.
Now, three months later, Hammons is charged again. And just like the last case, this one involves a woman who was a minor at the time of the allegations.
Hammons' trial on the latest charge is set for October. He could face more jail time.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
LI Preacher Arrested for Making False Reports
Suffolk County [New York] Police have arrested a Port Jefferson preacher for three counts of falsely reporting an incident after he made several bogus calls from his cell phone to 911. Police say 44-year-old Richard Lydon is the preacher with the Oil of Joy Ministries. Police say he made two calls to 9-1-1 on August 22nd.
The first call at 1:47 a-m reported an off duty police officer needed assistance. This call was determined to be unfounded. The second call at 3:54 a-m reported that there was a violent domestic incident taking place. This call was also determined to be unfounded.
Police say Lydon was responsible for an additional false report on August Fifth at about 12:39 p-m. During that call, he alleged that a car accident had occurred and someone was hurt. This was determined to be false when police got there.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Minister Driving State Supreme Court Judge's Car Arrested In Alleged Kidnapping Attempt
NEW YORK A man who says he is a minister is under arrest and due in court for allegedly trying to kidnap a little boy in the Bronx.
Forty-four-year old Lawrence Craig will be arraigned on Wednesday morning as investigators and everyone else try to figure out what really happened.
Craig told police he was drunk in the wrong place and was trying to help somehow when he apparently attempted to snatch a four-year-old Bronx boy from his apartment on Saturday.
Craig was wearing a priest's collar but it is not clear where or if he is a minister. Neighbors had no problem remembering the license plate of the Volvo sedan he drove away in because it read Supreme Court 237 belonging to Supreme Court Judge Donna Mills who said she lent him her car.
The judge, according to a police source, identified Craig as her boyfriend and said he had a drinking problem and was looking for help.
The judge herself is perhaps best known for crashing another car, a Rolls Royce, into two parked cars in Riverdale three years ago. She was charged with drink driving, but acquitted by a Bronx jury.
The mother of the little boy in the weekend attempted abduction picked Craig out of lineup but said nothing to reporters when she returned to her ground floor apartment on Beaumont Avenue.
But neighbors all know the story she told police about the strange man who banged on her door Saturday afternoon insisting he knew her.
“He attempted to grab the child by the arm and that is when she pushed the door and closed it,” says Anna Molina, a neighbor.
In 2001, Craig was charged with sexually assaulting a minor in the state of Wisconsin. He pleaded no contest, paid a fine and served no jail time. Now he is facing charges of attempted burglary and attempted assault.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
"Officer of the year" arrested on suspicion of child molestation
BAKERSIELD, Calif. - A Bakersfield police officer who was once named officer of the year is due in court tomorrow to answer to child molestation charges.
Ryan Floyd, a six-year-veteran of the Bakersfield Police Department, was arrested yesterday on suspicion of lewd acts with a child under 14, inflicting injury on a child and assault with a deadly weapon.
The 32-year-old officer is accused of molesting a girl over a period several years, beginning when she was 13-years-old.
Floyd was named "officer of the year" by the Kiwanis Club in 2002. At the time he was described by a police captain as a "rising star."
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Federal Funds For Abstinence Group Withheld
Thanks to John at AmericaBlog for the heads up:
Washington, D.C. - The Bush administration yesterday suspended a federal grant to the Silver Ring Thing abstinence program, saying it appears to use tax money for religious activities.
Officials at the Department of Health and Human Services ordered the group to submit a "corrective action plan" if it hopes to receive an expected $75,000 grant this year.
In a letter to the program director, Harry Wilson, associate commissioner of the Family and Youth Services Bureau, concluded that the project funded with federal dollars "includes both secular and religious components that are not adequately safeguarded."
The action comes three months after the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit against HHS, accusing the administration of using tax dollars to promote Christianity. In documents filed in federal court in Boston, the ACLU alleged that the activities, brochures and Web site of Silver Ring Thing were "permeated with religion" and use "taxpayer dollars to promote religious content, instruction and indoctrination."
Teenage graduates of the program sign a covenant "before God Almighty" to remain virgins and earn a silver ring inscribed with a Bible passage reminding them to "keep clear of sexual sin." Many of its events are held at churches.
In filings with the Internal Revenue Service, the organization describes its mission as "evangelistic ministry" with an emphasis on "evangelistic crusade planning."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor arrested again
FORT WORTH - Bishop Terry Hornbuckle is being held without bail, accused of violating conditions of his release for a second time since his arrest in March on sexual assault charges.
Hornbuckle, 43, is accused of sexually assaulting five parishioners of Agape Christian Fellowship in Arlington, where he serves as senior pastor. On Friday, he was arrested at his Colleyville home late Friday by Tarrant County sheriff's deputies.
``We were given arrest warrants for violations of his bond, but I cannot say anymore about it because of the gag order issued in the case,'' said Terry Grisham, spokesman for Tarrant County Sheriff's Department.
It is the fourth time Hornbuckle has been arrested.
The first time was on March 11 when he was arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting three former female congregants of Agape.
He was arrested again May 11 after court officials said he tested positive for methamphetamines while free on bail.
Hornbuckle was arrested a third time on June 29 when prosecutors filed two new sexual assault cases against him and charges that he threatened and attempted to bribe witnesses.
After each arrest, state District Judge James Wilson increased his bail and tightened restrictions on Hornbuckle, including placing him on electronic monitoring, suggesting he enter a drug rehabilitation program and submit random urine samples for drug testing. Hornbuckle's most-recent bail was set at $905,000.
A trial date has been set in late January in Wilson's 371st District Court. Hornbuckle faces fives charges of sexual assault, a felony charge of drug possession, a charge of tampering with a witness and a charge of retaliation against a witness.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor charged with lewd act on child
Gadsden, S.C. - A Gadsden pastor was charged Monday after authorities said he used candy to entice a 7-year-old girl to visit his church office, where he then fondled her and exposed himself.
Theodore Myers, 61, of Gadsden, faces one count of a lewd act upon a child and one count of indecent exposure, Richland County sheriff’s spokesman Chris Cowan said.
Myers, the pastor of Temple of Faith Bible Way Church in Gadsden for at least 20 years, was released Monday night from Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center on a $50,000 personal recognizance bond.
The girl was enrolled in an after-school program at the church at the time of the alleged incidents, Cowan said.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Suits filed against priest
SPRINGFIELD, MA - A Westfield man who was barred from serving as a Catholic priest after being accused of sexually abusing minors in three dioceses has been accused of sexually abusing four minors in Vermont in the 1970s in suits filed recently in Chittenden County Superior Court in Burlington.
Edward O. Paquette Jr., of Belleview Drive, who was previously accused by two men of abusing them as minors in Vermont in suits filed in 2004, refused comment yesterday on the recently filed suits.
In all the suits, the plaintiffs have listed the Diocese of Burlington as defendants.
"We will investigate each complaint as they come forward and recognize that they date back to the 1970s. As lawyers for the diocese, our first job is to see if they can withstand test of statute of limitations," said William M. O'Brien, lawyer for the Burlington diocese.
Five of the six men allege that Paquette sexually abused them while they belonged to Christ the King Church in Burlington. Those plaintiffs are Thomas A. Murray, Michael Gay, Perry Babel, David Navari and James Perras. No addresses or ages were listed in the suits.
The other suit, which was filed by a man using the pseudonym of John Doe, alleges the abuse took place while he was an altar boy at St. Augustine's Parish and a student at St. Michael's School, both in Montpelier, Vt.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Catholic Diocese Confirms Priest Sex Abuse
Marquette, Michigan - The Catholic Diocese of Marquette has validated charges of sex abuse against an Ishpeming priest who died five years ago.
The complaints against Father Clement Lepine date back more than 30 years. The abuse was committed against two females, whose names were not released.
The charges have been under investigation for months.
Father Lepine served as pastor at St. Josephs from 1957 to 1986.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Couple accused of selling teenager for packet of cocaine
Bob D. sends along this Guardian story:
Pittsburgh - FBI agents have thwarted an alleged plan by an Ohio couple to sell a 15-year-old girl in exchange for a packet of cocaine.
Police say Pamela Tilley and Gregory Lowery drove 70 miles from their home to hand the girl over to a drugs dealer in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she was destined to become a child prostitute.
"This is the worst type of crime that can be perpetrated on a child, to turn the child into a sex slave," said US attorney Mary Beth Buchanan. "They were selling this child to an adult male in Pittsburgh in exchange for drugs."
Ms Tilley, 45, and Mr Lowery, 44, were arrested after police officers found them asleep with the victim and a 13-year-old girl in a car in Pittsburgh's North Side in the early hours.
They are due to appear in court this morning, and both face up to 30 years in jail if convicted of transporting a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
Ms Buchanan would not discuss the relationship between the adults and the children, but FBI special agent Donald Kirk Duran said both girls were runaways, the younger from a court-ordered juvenile placement centre in Ohio.
Agent Duran's affidavit said that the adults had taken crack cocaine and alcohol and that Mr Lowery had sex with both girls before the Pittsburgh trip. He had also filmed Ms Tilley and the girl engaging in oral sex. It was Ms Tilley's idea to sell the older girl into prostitution, he said.
"We are trying to determine what happened in the vehicle, whether there were any attempts by the children to get away," Ms Buchanan said.
Ms Tilley and Mr Lowery, who has a long criminal history, are being held at Allegheny county jail, Pennsylvania. Both are unemployed and have court-appointed lawyers. The girls have been placed into foster care.
Pastor removed from ministry
Fairbanks, Alaska - Catholic Bishop Donald Kettler announced Sunday he has removed the pastor of Immaculate Conception Church from ministry in the Fairbanks diocese following an investigation of sexual abuse allegations.
Kettler read a letter about the removal of the Rev. Richard L. McCaffrey to Immaculate Conception parishioners at both services Sunday morning. Priests around Fairbanks read the letter at other churches.
Donna Gavora, a 45-year member of Immaculate Conception and its organist, said Kettler's reading was followed by absolute silence in the church.
"It was a very sad moment. It was hard on people," Gavora said. "Some people are very upset. I am really disappointed, too."
Kettler did not return phone calls but has scheduled a news conference at 2 p.m. today. He said in the letter that he made the decision after reviewing the report of an investigation conducted by former Alaska State Trooper James McCann, which included testimony from McCaffrey.
"Due to the severity of the allegations and based upon the interviews and the credible evidence gained from the discovery process of the investigations, I have decided to remove Father McCaffrey from ministry in the Diocese of Fairbanks immediately," Kettler wrote.
One woman has filed sexual abuse lawsuits against McCaffrey. Kettler put McCaffrey on administrative leave in May in response to an allegation that he sexually abused a minor about 25 years ago.
McCann investigated three allegations of child sexual abuse in separate and unrelated incidents reported at various locations around the state, according to the letter. McCaffrey, who has a long history of ministry in Alaska, is now living with the Oregon Jesuit community in Portland and has been advised of Kettler's decision. The bishop also has notified McCaffrey's provincial and the Archdiocese of Portland.
As for any disciplinary action, Kettler stated, "The Jesuits have policies and procedures in place to determine what future actions will take place." Kettler wrote that he took the action in line with policies set forth by the United States Catholic Bishops Conference and the "Faithful Healing" policy of the diocese regarding prevention and responding to ministry-related child sexual abuse.
Earlier this month, a woman raised in Tununak, a village on Nelson Island, filed a civil lawsuit against McCaffrey, saying he molested her several times over a yearlong period in 1978 when she was 10 years old.
McCaffrey, 62, has been pastor at Immaculate Conception since 1998. He came to Alaska in 1967 as a Jesuit scholastic. He taught at the Copper Valley Catholic Mission School and returned to the state every summer until his ordination in 1973. He served at Fairbanks' Sacred Heart Cathedral from 1973-76 and in 1977 started ministering in villages on Nelson Island for one year, followed by two years serving in parishes in Hooper Bay and Scammon Bay. He served as Diocesan chancellor from 1981-85, oversaw the two-year building of the Kobuk Center in Fairbanks and spent the following decade as a parish pastor in Bethel, before being transferred back to Fairbanks.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Weekly church-related crime update, August 14 - August 20
This dreadful chronicle continues back to June 5. See the whole thing here.
Return to Bobo's World's homepage.
Sunday, August 21, 2005
Fired Pastor Sues for $15 Million
This is a hoot, and really worth reading through the link...
Orange County, Cal. - After flat-lining twice on the operating table, Pastor Joe Sabolick figured the worst chapter of his life was over.
But when he returned to his office at Calvary Chapel of Laguna Beach a few weeks later, the locks had been changed — and his handpicked church board, including his older brother, had fired him amid allegations that he embezzled money and was "fixated" on the wife and daughter of an assistant pastor.
Today, Sabolick and the assistant pastor oversee a Calvary Chapel in Northern California and are suing Sabolick's brother and the Laguna church, accusing them of defamation. Claiming that church officials spread false rumors of wife-swapping and pedophilia — later discounted by police and outside clergy — the exiled ministers and their families are seeking $15 million in damages.
The lawsuit also describes accusations that Sabolick lied about having Jewish ancestors, fell under the control of Satan and "abused" his wife by making her wear "tight jeans."
The case has caused a stir in local Christian circles, shattering friendships and occasionally drawing pickets to Sunday services at the Laguna church.
Sabolick, 46, blames the imbroglio on "jealousy" from his brother George, 50. His lawyer compares the situation to Cain turning against Abel in the Bible.
On the other side is Calvary Laguna's board, which includes men who have been friends of Sabolick's since high school and college. They agree their former boss didn't commit adultery or molest girls, but they insist his behavior toward women was inappropriate for the job.
And they stand by accusations of sloppy finances, staff turmoil and warped theological teachings during his tenure.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Accused priest was frequently reassigned
Munster, Ind. - Reviewing the work history of a region priest accused of sexual abuse, two former Catholic monks turned victims advocates and one priest turned whistle-blower said they picked up on a familiar set of patterns.
A timeline compiled by The Times of the Official Catholic Directories during the Rev. Richard A. Emerson's 26-year career in the priesthood shows nine different moves to various parishes or other diocesan assignments, an average of about one move every three years.
Emerson's timeline shows extensive contact with youth during his career, including four years as head administrator of Schererville's Hoosier Boys' Town -- a home for troubled youth now called Campagna Academy -- and six years as the Diocese of Gary liaison for the Boy Scouts.
And throughout his career, Emerson has held high positions of authority within the Diocese of Gary, including a three-year stint at the diocesan chancellor -- or chief administrator -- and as a consultant on policy to the diocese and its bishop.
Add to Emerson's resume two accusations of sexual abuse against boys that the church has now deemed credible, and you have the "classic profile" shared by many priests who have been accused of and/or proved to be pedophiles, former monk Patrick Wall said.
"It's the perfect profile, actually," Wall said, noting that many of the priests who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse across the country have held high positions of authority within their diocese or religious orders and often have had positions giving them access to children.
Wall served as a monk for 11 years and a priest for 6 years during the 1980s and '90s. During that time, he said he was tasked with defending priests in his order who had been accused of sexual abuse. Wall now works for a California law firm as a consultant in cases in which victims of abuse seek civil action against accused priests.
Emerson, who is on suspension from his latest assignment as a priest at Michigan City's Notre Dame Church but has not been charged with any crimes, could not be reached for comment by The Times. He has previously denied the allegations through an attorney in Miami.
Late last year, Emerson was accused in a civil lawsuit of molesting a Florida boy during a four-year period in which he served as a visiting priest in the Diocese of Orlando. And earlier this month, the Diocese of Gary announced that both that accusation and a second one that has surfaced involving another boy have been deemed credible by a diocesan review board.
The Rev. Brian Chadwick, Diocese of Gary spokesman, said Emerson's assignments during the priest's career -- made by diocesan bishops over the years -- had nothing to do with allegations of sexual abuse or other scandals. He said the diocese had no knowledge of any previous accusations of sexual abuse against Emerson until late last year.
But the Diocese of Orlando, where Emerson served as a visiting priest for four years between 1988 and 1991, confirmed last week that Emerson was sent back to Gary by a Florida bishop amid accusations that the priest was becoming too personally involved in a family situation within that diocese.
The Rev. Tom Doyle, a former Vatican canon lawyer in Washington, D.C., who now is an outspoken critic of the church's handling of sexual abuse matters, said he agreed with Wall that Emerson's resume is similar to that of other priests who have been accused of sexual abuse.
Doyle was among three priests who were stifled by the church in 1985 after presenting a report noting a rise in accusations of sexual abuse by priests and warning the church to take action.
"It's not necessarily indicative of a regular pattern that everybody who has been accused of abuse has had high-profile positions, but it's not uncommon," Doyle said. "I'm working on a case right now where a priest was denounced for having sexually abused a young teen-aged boy in a parish and then went from that assignment to teaching at a boys' high school."
Richard Sipe, a retired Benedictine monk who works as a traveling lecturer on celibacy and sexuality within the Catholic Church, said he also has noted that it is common for abusers or others involved in scandal to hold leadership positions within their orders or diocese.
"How do you handle a scandal? One way is to send them out to the boondocks or move them around a lot," Sipe said. "But the other way is to draw them close to the bishop so they can be better managed. You draw them into the chancery. I've seen dozens of cases in which these guys are chancellors or other leaders within their diocese."
Sipe said he dealt with a case in Arkansas in which four of the six administrative heads of a religious order had been implicated as either sexual abusers or alcoholics.
Emerson, a Hammond native, began serving as chancellor of the Diocese of Gary in 1992, returning to the region after his four-year stint in Orlando. Emerson was reported to have gone to Orlando during that time period to care for his ailing mother.
Orlando Diocese spokeswoman Carol Brinati confirmed last week that Emerson returned to Gary in the midst of a different scandal. While in Florida, Emerson requested to be incardinated there -- or permanently transferred from Gary to Orlando, Brinati said.
However, that request was denied and the Orlando bishop commanded Emerson back to the Diocese of Gary for disobeying orders to stay away from a parish family there, Brinati said.
Brinati would not comment on the specific nature of that allegation, except to say that it did not involve sexual abuse. Brinati said the Orlando bishop had received a call from a mother of a parish family, complaining that Emerson had been meddling in family affairs.
The bishop warned Emerson to break off contact with the family. When that didn't happen, the priest was sent back to Gary, Brinati said.
A lawsuit filed late last year in Orlando alleges that when Emerson returned to the Diocese of Gary, he continued having a relationship with a Florida boy who he had been molesting. The suit alleges that Emerson often plied the boy with alcohol before molesting the child.
It also alleges that he took trips across the country with the boy and sent bus tickets so the child could travel to Indiana.
Details about the separate, most-recent allegation have not been disclosed by the Diocese of Gary, whose leaders have said they want anyone else who may come forward with allegations of abuse to know that their identities will be protected.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Archdiocese audit: priest mishandled $40,000
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A priest in Mandeville improperly put $40,000 meant for his church into an account only he could access, then spent about $14,000 of it to boost his salary and household allowance, according to an audit by the Archdiocese of New Orleans.
The Rev. Rhenne Cervantes is on "extended leave from the parish for a period of renewal, self-examination and reflection," Archbishop Alfred Hughes said during Saturday Mass at Our Lady of the Lake Parish.
Although Cervantes remains on salary as pastor of the church, Hughes said he has not decided whether Cervantes will return there. "I will make that decision based on the needs of the parish and the reports I receive," the archbishop said.
Hughes said Cervantes cooperated with the audit and agreed to repay any misspent money.
The archdiocese began the audit several weeks ago after members of the church's finance council raised concerns about Cervantes' spending.
Archdiocese officials discussed the audit with church leaders before the Mass, said the Rev. William Maestri, spokesman for the archdiocese.
He said the audit did not ask about Cervantes' purchase of a new rectory for $298,000, plus $92,000 in renovations and improvements. He said the archdiocese determined immediately that Cervantes did not, as required, ask permission for any purchase of more than $10,000.
Cervanates has said the money was his to spend as he wanted. That was a misunderstanding — the donor's family told investigators it was meant for the church, Maestri said.
He said Cervantes has returned the remaining money and agreed to repay the balance, and will return any money to the parish that the archdiocese has deemed improperly spent. Maestri would not say which purchases may have been inappropriate.
Frank Caponegro, president of the finance council, has said Cervantes had begun spending more than $6,000 a month on expenses such as dining out, electronic equipment and tennis lessons. At the time, the finance council was giving him $3,000 a month in addition to the salary paid by the archdiocese.
Caponegro declined to comment Saturday.
Cervantes, who had been living in a small rental home nearby with the church's parochial vicar, bought the house in the church's name. The project's total cost rivaled an amount previously rejected by the archdiocese to renovate a cottage on church grounds as a new rectory.
Caponegro said earlier that Cervantes also went to restaurants 15 to 20 times a month, often at a price indicating he paid for a guest, and bought a global positioning system for his car and a $3,300 guitar to replace one lost while visiting family in the Philippines.
Cervantes also exercised with a personal trainer and took tennis lessons at Pelican Athletic Club in Mandeville, he said. In addition, he routinely exceeded his monthly cell phone plan, causing his bill to exceed $500 a month, Caponegro said.
Cervantes joined Our Lady of the Lake three years ago after stints at churches in New Orleans, Slidell, Kenner and Algiers. In addition to instituting some needed programs, Cervantes is credited with helping to reduce the church's budget deficit of nearly $3 million.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Volunteer minister at Meeks' church faces cocaine charge
Chicago - A volunteer minister with Salem Baptist Church was arrested on a drug charge after he was stopped for a traffic violation in south suburban Harvey.
John T. Nelson, 44, of South Holland, was driving a 2001 Mercedes E320 at 9:30 a.m. Thursday when a Harvey police officer noticed he did not have a front license plate, prosecutors said. Nelson did not have a driver's license or proof of insurance, and he identified himself with traffic citations he had previously received, officials said.
He was asked to step out of the car and was frisked. Officers allegedly found 7.3 grams of cocaine concealed in Nelson's pants. He was charged with possession of a controlled substance, a felony.
A judge in the Markham courthouse ordered Nelson held in lieu of $10,000 bail Friday. He was seen leaving the courthouse in the custody of Harvey police officials. A spokesman for the Harvey Police Department declined to comment.
In a federal bankruptcy filing, Nelson said he is a truck driver with 20 years' experience. State records list Nelson as president of Nelson's Transport Inc., based in his home.
'A really nice guy'
Employees of the 20,000-member Salem Baptist Church, 752 E. 114th, said Nelson is a volunteer minister there. Stella Blakley, a six-year church member, said Nelson was on the stage with the church's high-profile pastor, the Rev. James Meeks, and other ministers at a service two Sundays ago. She said she attended a funeral he presided over more than a year ago.
"Rev. Nelson is a really nice guy," Blakley said. "I am surprised he would have anything to do with drugs. He is in the inner circle with the rest of the ministers and the pastor."
Meeks, who also is an Illinois state senator, could not be reached for comment.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Minister guilty of sex assault
PAXTON, Ill. -- A former Gibson City minister accused of molesting a woman for more than six years was convicted Friday in a Ford County jury trial.
The Rev. Danny Hill, 54, of 614 S. Lott Blvd., former pastor of First Baptist Church, Gibson City, was convicted of two counts of criminal sexual assault.
He faces four to 15 years in prison and up to a $25,000 fine for each count when he is sentenced Sept. 26.
Jurors heard recordings police made of telephone calls between the victim, now 22, and Hill. In the calls, she confronted Hill and he appeared to admit his guilt.
The woman testified that Hill had sexually molested her two to three times a week from the time she was 14 until last year. The incidents continued even after she had moved into an apartment with her fiance, she said.
Hill testified he thought that when she called him Oct. 19 and 21, 2004 -- conversations that were caught on tape -- that she was acting out as she previously did during counseling. Hill said he used to counsel the young woman to help her heal from sexual assaults by her father in Arkansas when she was a small child.
Hill said he used a role-playing technique during the counseling sessions and allowed the woman to direct her wrath at him.
"I started coaching her and asked her, 'If I was this man what would you say to him?'"
The woman said she decided to tell authorities about the sexual abuse after she was involved in a traffic accident that left her in critical condition five days before her wedding.
She said Hill molested her while she was under sedation while recovering at Hill's home.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Congregation locks pastor out of church
TEXAS CITY — It wasn’t exactly Cain and Abel, but a nearly eight-month dispute between the congregation of an east Texas City church and its pastor took a volatile turn Friday.
The locks of Mount Paran Baptist Church were changed. The pulpit was vacant, and a congregation leader said Sunday services have been canceled.
The battle between many in the congregation and the Rev. W.W. Jackson came to a head after a majority of the church membership voted to remove the preacher from the job.
But Jackson, who had been the pastor for 10 years, refused to accept the vote of the membership. Several of the church’s deacons are backing him.
On Friday, just as members of the church’s advisory committee arrived to have the locks on the church changed, Jackson and a few of his backers arrived, too. For nearly an hour, Jackson and the deacons holed up in the church, refusing to leave.
Texas City police were called to the church, but quickly left after telling those at the house of worship the matter would have to be worked out among themselves.
The pastor also made a quick exit after officers left and did not return repeated phone calls to his home for comment.
That left members of the church advisory committee and a trio of church deacons locked in a heated discussion in a sweltering backroom of the church.
Money and management of the church are at the center of the battle, said advisory board members.
Longtime church member Linda Cooper and others contend that church finances have been mishandled and that money earmarked for church operations was used for repairs to the pastor’s home.
Deacons of the church were vehemently denying those claims Friday in a discussion that at times was louder than a choir during Sunday service.
“I am about doing what is right, and being right,” Deacon Osbe Sherwood shouted. “Give us time, and we will show you what is right.”
Sherwood would not answer questions from The Daily News about Jackson’s tenure.
Instead, the deacon stormed out of the meeting and refused to answer questions.
In February, an advisory committee formed by the congregation retained an attorney and informed the pastor that the church was going to put in new financial controls and establish bylaws.
Cooper said Jackson refused to meet with the committee and avoided talking with its members, instead communicating only through members of the board of deacons.
On Monday, a church meeting was called. In a 15-4 vote — with nine members abstaining — Jackson’s tenure as pastor ended.
Not so, said Sherwood.
“You have no right to do this, no one does,” he said to Cooper. “He is still pastor.”
Church advisory board Chairman Ruben Cooper Sr. said the congregational vote stands.
“As far as we are concerned, we are looking for a new pastor,” he said. “And given what transpired (Friday), we canceled services Sunday.”
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Trumpeter turned minister charged with tax evasion
CLEVELAND, Tenn. - A trumpeter who bridged from secular music into gospel has been charged with income tax evasion in Tennessee and Florida.
Phil Driscoll allegedly funneled up to one (m) million dollars through his various ministries.
Driscoll's wife and mother-in-law also are charged.
Driscoll began recording with several pop acts in the 1970s, including Joe Cocker, Stephen Stills and Blood, Sweat and Tears.
Since then, he has recorded more than 30 of his own albums of gospel and patriotic music.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Friday, August 19, 2005
Pastor admits videotaping up girl's skirt
AUGUSTA, Georgia — A former pastor has admitted in court to videotaping under the skirt of a teenage girl at a mall last summer.
Michael Jay Brown is a former assistant pastor at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Martinez. He pleaded guilty Thursday to child molestation and was sentenced to 10 years probation, a $5,000 fine and 200 hours of community service.
Before his July 2004 arrest, Brown also was a volunteer working with abused and neglected children. He lost both positions after his arrest.
At his sentencing, Brown said he is thankful he was arrested. He has been to a residential treatment program and now attends counseling for sex addiction.
He vowed to never do it again.
Brown said he got the idea of taping under skirts from Internet web sites. He said he didn't think it was illegal or would harm anyone at the time. But he said he now understands his acts were an invasion of privacy.
In July 1986, Brown was arrested for peeping into a woman's bedroom window. He said in his police statement then: "Believe me, I'll never do it again."
Thursday's child molestation conviction means Brown will have to register as a sex offender and abide by strict rules while on probation. As a condition of probation, he is not to have any contact with children other than family members.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
California regulators shut down pastor's investment firm
SAN DIEGO - California regulators shut down an investment firm run by a pastor who allegedly promised congregants 5 percent monthly returns.
Steve O. Cooper, founder of Nu-Way Christian Ministries Inc. of San Diego, failed to seek permission to sell securities, as required by state law, the California Department of Corporations said.
The order, dated Monday, prohibits Cooper and his investment firm, SOCM Enterprises Inc., from selling securities. It also banned Peggy Cooper, the investment firm's secretary and chief financial officer, who is also identified on the church's Web site as Cooper's wife.
Steven and Peggy Cooper did not return a call for comment.
FBI special agent Lori Jensen in San Diego declined comment.
According to the order, the Coopers promised 5 percent monthly returns on investments of more than $5,000 and 3 percent monthly gains on investments between $2,000 and $5,000. In August, they began committing to 3 percent monthly returns, no matter how large the investment.
The order didn't say how much money the Coopers raised or how many clients they had. SOCM was incorporated in California in December 2004.
Barry Minkow, an anti-fraud investigator who called the firm to the attention of state and federal authorities, estimated the Coopers recruited between 15 and 25 church members and raised more than $1 million.
Minkow, who posed as a potential investor, once served time in prison for defrauding investors through the ZZZZ Best carpet-cleaning business he founded as a teenager. He has since co-founded the San Diego-based Fraud Discovery Institute.
Nu-Way was founded in 1993 and holds services for about 200 members in San Diego and Temecula, according its Web site.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Victims’ group targets retired bishop
Reno, Nevada - Members of a group that supports people who have been sexually abused by priests delivered a letter Thursday to the office of retired Reno Bishop Phillip Straling, calling for him to “come clean” about abuse by clergy he worked with in Southern California.
“We are very disturbed by the sheer number of sex abuse cases to which Bishop Straling is linked,” members of the national Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, said in their letter.
“We are also upset that, in spite of a troubling track record on abuse, the bishop has publicly patted himself on the back for allegedly ‘aggressive steps’ he has taken on this issue, while at the same time, refusing to publicly discuss his involvement in or knowledge of sex crimes by some of California’s most notorious predator priests.”...
Straling is a key witness in dozens of lawsuits in Southern California filed against priests accused of molesting children. He was a priest in San Diego from 1959 to 1978, when he became bishop of San Bernardino.
During that period, he lived or worked with numerous priests who are named in lawsuits or have been convicted of sexually abusing children. Lawyers for these cases believe he knew or should have known that the abuse was occurring and can provide valuable information that could help in the lawsuits.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Accused Mormon molester won't get prison time under plea deal
Las Vegas - A former Mormon missionary accused of molesting two children at a Mormon church in Las Vegas is taking a plea deal that'll get him probation, but no time in prison.
John Misseldine of Utah entered the equivalent of a no contest plea Thursday to coercion and attempted lewdness with a child under 14.
Misseldine had been arrested in 2003 after two girls, ages four and seven, accused him of fondling them while he was watching them.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Former Carmel Police Officer Sentenced on Child Molestation Conviction
Indianapolis - A judge has sentenced a former Carmel police officer to 40 years in prison for the molestation of a girl that began when she was 7.
53-year-old Paul Terry knew the girl, who is now 12, through a previous marriage.
Under terms of the plea agreement, he was sentenced Thursday on 3 counts of child molestation and 1 count of attempted child molestation.
Prosecutors say Terry had displayed pornography to the child and coaxed her with alcoholic drinks.
The girl wrote a letter that was read at the sentencing hearing that she learned stuff she shouldn't have and saw stuff she shouldn't have seen.
Terry was fired by the Carmel police department after his arrest. He was a 28 year veteran of the force.
Prison guard fired for abusing inmate, lying
This link contains a video of the pepper spray incident...
Atlanta - A state prison guard has been fired for abuse of an inmate who later died and then lying about it, prison officials said today.
Lt. Reginald Goodrum was fired for "excessive and unnecessary force" against Charles B. "Chad" Clarke III and "making false statements to a departmental investigator," Georgia Department of Corrections spokeswoman Peggy Chapman said.
Guards at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson videotaped a "use-of force" incident on March 18 when they removed 27-year-old inmate Charles B. "Chad" Clarke from his cell.
Clarke had barricaded himself in the cell and was threatening to hurt himself and other guards, according to a report of the incident.
This clip shows guards shooting pepper spray into Clarke's cell. Officers wrote in the report that the camera's batteries went dead before they removed Clarke from his cell.
After the camera went dead, officers claim in a report that Clarke was hurt when he slipped on wet stairs. Clarke died less than a month later from a blood clot in his leg, though an autopsy ruled that his death was not caused by the scuffle with guards.
Clarke, 27, of Blairsville, died at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison on April 19, about a month after he scuffled with guards trying to force him from his cell. A GBI autopsy determined that Clarke died of natural causes, and prison officials insist the force used against Clarke on March 18 did not contribute to his death.
Goodrum, 39, had been employed as a Georgia prison guard since 1992. He did not return a telephone message left at his home today.
A second guard, Capt. Ricky Goodrum, 48 — who prison officials say is not related to Lt. Goodrum — retired Aug. 1 while an internal investigation into Clarke's death was ongoing, Chapman said. After inquiries by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, both men were suspended with pay in July pending the investigation's outcome.
Capt. Goodrum, a prison guard since 1980, could not immediately be reached for comment today.
Lt. Goodrum became the eighth guard fired in the last six weeks amid investigations of inmate abuse in Georgia prisons. Seven guards at Rogers State Prison in Reidsville were fired in July after another guard claimed handcuffed inmates were routinely beaten there.
Clarke died of cardiac arrest when a blood clot in his leg moved to block his pulmonary artery, according to a GBI autopsy. Prison records show Clarke was injured in a scuffle with prison guards on March 18. Several inmates wrote letters to Clarke's family and lawyer claiming they saw guards repeatedly punch and kick Clarke.
Prison officials would not specify how they concluded that Lt. Goodrum lied to investigators. In his report on the March 18 incident, Goodrum said he sprayed pepper spray at Clarke for one or two seconds as they prepared to remove him from his cell. He wrote that Clarke was injured a short time later when he slipped on a flight of wet stairs while handcuffed.
A videotape of the March 18 incident — required during any "use of force" incident — shows a guard reaching into Clarke's cell with a can of pepper spray for at least 15 seconds. The videotape ends before Clarke was injured. Goodrum's written report said the tape ended because the camera's batteries died.
The autopsy found some bruises on Clarke, including a roughly 10- by 4-inch bruise on his thigh. Doctors concluded the bruises were minor and did not contribute to his death.
Clarke's father, Charles B. Clarke Jr., said today that Lt. Goodrum's firing is not enough.
"I think there's more than one person involved," Clarke said. "But it's a start. More than anything else, it's an admission of guilt on their part that things were not done correctly."
The Clarke family also says that the warden promised to turn over Chad Clarke's medical records to the family. Clarke was initially denied his son's medical records, because prison officials say the inmate had failed to properly designate him as "next of kin" on a required prison form.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Denver man sues ex-Catholic priest for abuse
DENVER (Reuters) - A man who says he was sexually abused by his godfather, a now-defrocked Catholic priest, sued the Archdiocese of Denver for $10 million on Thursday, claiming that church officials covered up three decades of sexual misconduct by the man.
Delbert C. Nielsen III, 52, alleges that Harold Robert White molested him multiple times over several years, beginning in 1963. White, 72, is not named as a defendant in the Denver District Court lawsuit.
Nielsen's attorney, Jeffrey Herman, said the archdiocese shuffled White around to various parishes even though complaints about him surfaced shortly after he became a priest in 1960 and continued until he was removed from active ministry in 1993.
"The archdiocese knew Father White was a child molester and instead of protecting the children, they provided a safe haven so this could happen again and again," Herman said.
Fran Maier, chancellor for the archdiocese, said church officials had just started reviewing the lawsuit but do not comment on pending litigation.
"Even if I knew (the allegations) backward and forward it's not something we would discuss," he said.
Maier confirmed that White served in 11 parishes during his career, spanning the terms of four archbishops. His active ministry was terminated in 1993 and he was removed from the priesthood entirely in 2004. Maier would not comment on the reason for White's removal from the priesthood. White, who now lives in a Denver retirement community, could not be reached for comment.
Herman said Nielsen's father and White were high school classmates. The priest was the best man at the elder Nielsen's wedding, and White was his client's godfather.
The lawsuit is the first against the Denver archdiocese since the clergy sex abuse scandal began roiling the Catholic Church three years ago. The story of White's past broke last month when a California man told the Denver Post that White had molested him in the early 1970s.
Since then, 15 men have come forward - some anonymously - claiming that White also molested them.
Herman said he represents other victims of White and will be filing more lawsuits against the archdiocese. He said Colorado law allows the two-year statute of limitations in negligence cases to be extended if it's proven that the archdiocese fraudulently concealed White's history of molestation.
"As far as I'm concerned, they haven't come clean yet," he said.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Preacher allowed to return to pulpit
Tyler, Texas - A day care owner charged with sexually assaulting two children can go back to preaching in his church where children attend, a judge ruled on Thursday.
Jefferson Marion Moore, 57, Flint, owns the neighboring Dogwood City Preschool and Daycare, 22284 Texas Highway 155 South, and the Dogwood City Chapel.
He was arrested May 5 and indicted June 23 on two counts of aggravated sexual assault of children.
As part of his conditions of bond, Moore was to have no contact with children and was forced to shut down his church in July because youngsters attended. He requested that he be allowed to resume his duties as the sole pastor of the church, which has no Sunday school classes or nursery.
Judge Kerry Russell of the 7th District Court modified the conditions of his release Thursday, allowing Moore to continue as pastor as long as he has no contact with children unless two other adults are present.
Under the other provisions of the bond release, he is not to supervise or participate in any programs including children younger than 17 or have employment that involves minors.
Moore testified Thursday that he has been at the church for 11 years. Both alleged victims attended the church and his day care, he said.
His defense attorney, Jeffery Clark, said Moore has been abiding by his conditions of bond and will continue to do so. He said the handful of children who attend the church are always accompanied by their parents and he would be shocked, after hearing the allegations against Moore, if the parents wouldn't provide supervision during his services.
Assistant Smith County District Attorney Daphne Session asked the judge to deny Moore's request for modification of the conditions for the safety of the community.
She said both victims were younger than 10 years old and were sexually assaulted in his day care, which is one big, open room. The fact that the church is also a single room does not provide a safety precaution, she added.
Ms. Session said Moore abused his position of trust and should not be pastor at his church or reopen the doors to his day care until the pending cases are disposed of.
The day care center has been closed since the investigation began in December.
Smith County sheriff's Detective Peggy Scott said the investigation into the center and its owner began after a small child reported possible inappropriate behavior.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit, the two victims, ages 6 and 7, told investigators they were asked by "Brother Jeff" to lie with him at naptime.
One of the victims stated that she didn't like lying with "Brother Jeff," because "he doesn't do good things."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
State board votes to investigate preacher
FRANKFORT, Ky. -- A state board has unanimously voted to investigate a Southern Baptist preacher who's accused of offering unlicensed therapy.
The Rev. Robert G. Humphreys, 69, surrendered his marriage and family therapy license in 2001 after the board accused him of 15 counts of illegal and unethical conduct.
Four years later, his office is still open and he continues to offer what his business card describes as "personal, marriage and family counseling" _ only now he calls himself a pastoral counselor.
On Thursday, the state Board of Family and Marriage Therapy voted to spend up to $2,500 on investigators and authorized them to seek subpoenas for Humphreys' tax, insurance and other business records. Investigators must report back within 60 days.
Humphreys wasn't present for Thursday's hearing. In a phone interview with the Lexington Herald-Leader, he said he would continue to cooperate with investigators.
Humphreys' problems began in 1998, when three Baptist women filed complaints against him with the board, accusing him of misconduct.
After investigating, the board accused Humphreys of using inappropriate counseling techniques, violating his clients' confidentiality, touching clients in ways that caused "emotional discomfort and emotional confusion," making "comments about his own sexuality," referring clients to an unlicensed, untrained therapist and having improper social or business contacts with clients.
In 2000, Humphreys agreed to pay a fine, take classes and submit to closer supervision. But in 2001, he surrendered his license and continued counseling clients. In 2003, accused by the board of practicing without a license, he promised to "cease and desist."
But he never closed his office.
Board attorney Diane Fleming recommended that the board look into what she termed "credible information" against Humphreys, but couldn't say whether the board would be able to recoup the costs.
"At this point, you're basically fulfilling your charge to protect the public," she added.
Licensed marriage and family therapists must submit to state oversight. But pastoral counselors, as Humphreys calls himself, can choose whether they wish to be regulated.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Scout leader suspected of child molestation
Mesa, Arizona - Mesa police arrested a trusted family friend and Boy Scout leader on suspicion of child molestation after a 14-year-old boy heard a lecture on sexual abuse and notified his parents.
The boy's parents called police, who arrested Chance Lee Ray, 25, on Aug. 5, said Sgt. Chuck Trapani, a police spokesman.
Ray admitted to detectives that he molested the 14-year-old and a second boy in the same troop, Trapani said. advertisement
Ray discouraged his victims from revealing the abuse, telling them that they would be embarrassed and treated differently if they reported the sex acts, Trapani said.
"It took a lot of courage for him to sit down with his parents and explain what happened," Trapani said regarding the Boy Scout.
Ray, who was a Boy Scout leader for two years, was arrested on suspicion of three counts of sexual conduct with a minor and one count of attempted sexual conduct with a minor, Trapani said. A judge ordered Ray held at a Maricopa County jail without bond.
Detectives believe there may be additional victims and asked parents to question their children and call police if they suspect Ray might have abused them.
Police plan to notify the parents of all members of Ray's troop to see if any other scouts were victimized, Trapani said.
Police said the 14-year-old victim revealed the abuse to his parents on July 20. Ray was questioned by detectives on Aug. 5, when he admitted the sex acts, Trapani said.
On Saturday, police interviewed a second member of the same troop who verified that Ray also molested him, he said.
Court records said the abuse occurred during Ray's two years as scout leader and one incident happened in the victim's home.
Trapani said Ray met the 14-year-old victim's family at church and gained their trust. Ray had no previous arrest history, lives with his parents in Mesa and works for his father's construction company, he said.
Mother admits injections
An Oklahoma City woman has confessed to police she injected feces into her 2-year-old daughter, who has had 15 surgeries and hundreds of medical procedures.
Court papers signed by Oklahoma City police Detective Teresa Sterling link the injections, which have occurred since shortly after the girl's birth, to her severe medical problems.
Sarena Sherrard, 30, was arrested Sunday on a complaint of child abuse by Munchausen syndrome by proxy. In a probable cause affidavit filed Wednesday, Sherrard confessed "to injecting feces into Sarah's central line, urethra and ears to cause infection."
Sarah Sherrard, who weighs 17 pounds and has a "failure to thrive" diagnosis, is in serious condition at OU Medical Center's Children's Hospital.
Sherrard confessed "she knew what she did was wrong and she did these things for attention," the affidavit shows.
Doctors contacted police Aug. 11. A search warrant was obtained to conduct video surveillance in a hospital room.
Aug. 13, Sherrard was seen taking "two syringes containing an unknown substance" and injecting them into her daughter's catheter. Police detectives later found two syringes.
Sarah, who is in Department of Human Services custody while in Children's Hospital, will be 3 years old on Nov. 15.
Earlier this year, Sherrard established a Web page journal through CaringBridge, a Minneapolis-based Internet organization started in 1997 to encourage people going through a medical crisis.
In her last journal entry Aug. 7, Sherrard described how her daughter has a persistent problem with a high fever, has been very fussy and needs to have her blood drawn three times a week.
One doctor, according to the journal, was worried about the Sherrards, advising that Sarena and her husband "needed to get a night away."
But as they traveled to a movie theater, the couple were called by Sherrard's mother, who said Sarah "was shivering and breathing weird," with a fever that reached 104.8.
After her mother called a second time, Sherrard wrote, "I went and grabbed (husband) Kevin and we headed home to take her to the ER. At least we got half a movie in, though. Better than nothing."
A day later, Sarah's "breathing started acting weird again and she started choking ... her fingertips turned blue," according to the journal.
A home health nurse wasn't able to get a blood sample from Sarah's arms. "Either her veins were too small and the few 'okay' veins were already busted from blood draws at the hospital," according to the journal.
Sherrard's Web page was deleted Wednesday, John Wingate, a CaringBridge spokesman, told The Oklahoman.
Inmate's water cut for 4 days
Dallas - A mentally ill inmate at the Dallas County Jail was left in his cell without running water for four days this month after a jail guard apparently violated a year-old policy and ordered the water turned off without getting higher approval, jail officials say.
The inmate's health was not affected, officials say, but the incident is causing an outcry among mental health advocates because it comes a year after a high-profile case in which an inmate nearly died after his water had been turned off for two weeks...
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Priest drugged, raped boy in 1960s, lawsuit against Archdiocese of Miami alleges
A Fort Lauderdale man has accused the Rev. Neil Doherty of drugging and raping him several times in the late 1960s when he was about 11, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday against the Archdiocese of Miami.
The man, referred to as John Doe No. 21, met Doherty while receiving counseling through the Catholic Welfare Bureau, the lawsuit said...
According to the suit, Doherty took the boy to numerous houses in Broward County and to his mother's home in Palm Beach County, where the priest took other boys.
Doherty gave the boy marijuana and alcohol and after the child passed out, sexually abused him, the suit said.
"He would wake up and find Doherty abusing him," said Jeffrey Herman, an Aventura attorney who filed the suit. "Now, he's facing the demons."
Herman's client said Doherty, who went by "Gus," first formed a close relationship with him.
"He came across as my friend and that I could trust him," said the man, now 47. "But he took so many things away from me, and I had been struggling with what to do about it."
As a result of the abuse, the man said he is no longer a practicing Catholic.
So far this year, Herman has settled three cases against the Archdiocese of Miami for about $4 million.
Doherty has been accused of raping other boys in the 1970s.
In one case, Broward prosecutors said they could not file criminal charges because the statute of limitations had expired.
"Doherty was accused of abuse before and the Archdiocese put him in charge of dealing with children," Herman said. "Doe's father was sick, his mother was mentally ill and [Doherty] took advantage of that."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Priest accused of sex misconduct with minor
LEXINGTON, Ky. — A priest who once served two parishes in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lexington and now works in Nashville has been accused of sexual misconduct with a minor, the diocese said yesterday.
The diocese identified the priest as the Rev. Pete Richardson, who was pastor at the Kentucky parishes of West Liberty and Owingsville from July 1994 to January 2004.
On Wednesday, the diocese received a letter dated Aug. 11 to Lexington Bishop Ronald Gainer from the Rev. Dan Dorsey, the president of the Cincinnati-based Glenmary Home Missioners. Richardson now is the director of Glenmary's department of pastoral services, which is in Nashville.
The letter said the allegations were made Aug. 8, diocesan spokesman Tom Shaughnessy said, and that Dorsey had contacted the alleged victim and his parents, as well as the county attorney for Morgan County, Ky.
It also said that Dorsey had engaged an Arlington, Texas-based risk management company to investigate the allegations.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor Charged With Child Molestation
Union County, N.C. - A Union County pastor, former NAACP president and Union County School Board member faces charges of child molestation.
George Watson's picture and details of the molestation charges against him are all over the front page of the Union Daily Paper, while the charges date back nearly 10 years ago, the 21 year old victim says he wants closure now.
Watson is charged with three counts of criminal sexual conduct with a minor. According to police, the victim is Watson's relative. The incidents allegedly happened when the boy was 12 or 13 years old through his senior year of high school. The Sheriff's Office report says Watson sexually assaulted the boy at several locations in Union and Spartanburg counties. The victim says Watson performed oral sex acts on him, against his will. Sexually instances allegedly happened at Watson's home, the church where he was a preacher at and Arthur State Bank.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Another Stabbing Incident At A Private Prison In Cushing
Cushing, Oklahoma - For the third time this year, an inmate has been stabbed at the same Oklahoma prison.
It happened at the Cimarron Correctional Facility in Cushing. It's a private prison, which remains on lockdown following the stabbing on Tuesday.
Officials say the inmate was stabbed in the chest and abdomen, but his injuries are not life-threatening.
Two people are in isolation and a weapon was confiscated after the stabbing.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Ex-sheriff found guilty of abuse
MUSKOGEE, Oklahoma - A jury Tuesday found former Sheriff Melvin Holly guilty of sexually abusing inmates and jailers and lying about it to federal authorities.
The jury deliberated slightly more than four hours and found the 40-year peace officer guilty on 14 of 15 charges...
He was arrested in October, three months after he lost his re-election bid. Holly was accused of having sex with four inmates, having sexual contact with four others and improperly touching three employees and the teenage daughter of an employee. He has been in custody since.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Names added to priest abuse lawsuit
Anchorage, Alaska - Three men and one woman have added their names to a lawsuit alleging sexual abuse by two priests in rural Alaska villages.
According to the complaint, Rev. Segundo Llorente and Rev. Francis Nawn are accused of abusing 10 children. The latest victims include Jack Doe VII, who claims Father Nawn sexually abused him in Scammon Bay.
Jack Doe VIII and Jackie Doe I claim Nawn abused them in Sheldon Point, Alaska. And Jack Doe IX claims Father Segundo Llorente sexually abused him in Sheldon Point.
Ken Roosa, the plaintiffs’ attorney, says the amended complaint is significant.
“So far as Father Nawn is concerned, the addition of these three more victims of Father Nawn is really significant in that we now have another person who was molested outside of Sheldon’s Point, this person in Scammon Bay. And, most significantly is, we have found a woman who was molested by Father Nawn,” said Roosa.
“We do want the truth to come out. We do want to know if there are anything like this in our past, so that we can use this to go in the future,” said Ronnie Rosenberg, human resources director for the Diocese of Fairbanks.
Both Nawn and Llorente are dead.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Former church comptroller surrenders
Baton Rouge, LA. - The former comptroller for St. James Episcopal Church, accused of embezzling more than $700,000, surrendered to authorities Tuesday accompanied by his attorney, police said.
Stephen Clarke Van Sickle, 57, 16959 Ticonderoga Ave., was booked into East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on one count of felony theft by embezzlement, police spokesman Sgt. Don Kelly said.
Van Sickle's theft was discovered in March.
Van Sickle admitted to stealing $2,900, repaid the church, then resigned his post, an arrest warrant says.
He later admitted, under the advice of attorney Thomas Damico, to stealing other funds as well.
Van Sickle admitted to taking the money for personal use "through a method primarily involving duplicate payments of payroll taxes," the warrant says.
The church first announced the misappropriation in an open letter dated June 24 in the July 1 issue of church newsletter, "The Messenger."
The newsletter said the amount was at least $100,000.
In the July 8 issue of "The Messenger," Associate Rector the Rev. Robert Odom said the community had expressed profound sadness over the theft, but also care and concern for each other, especially for Van Sickle.
The church performed an audit, which revealed Van Sickle stole $723,031.54 from May 1999 to July 2004, the warrant says.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Former church employee guilty of embezzlement
Missed this from last week...
WENTWORTH, N.C. -- A former office manager charged last year with embezzling more than $41,000 from Leaksville United Methodist Church will have to repay $2,400.
Thomas K. Dunn, 40, could have faced up to 25 years in prison.
Dunn was sentenced July 11 to 36 months of supervised probation and 250 hours of community service and ordered to pay the church $2,400 in restitution, according to court documents.
The state agreed to consolidate 10 charges, and Dunn agreed to plead guilty to one count of embezzlement and three counts of forgery.
Eden police charged Dunn with embezzlement on Oct. 24, 2004, for stealing $41,738. Then on May 9, 2005, a grand jury indicted him on one count of embezzling and nine counts each of forgery and uttering forged paper.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
County fires jail guard
ST. CHARLES TOWNSHIP, Ill. — A Kane County jail guard has been fired for lying about drug use, authorities said.
Last week, the sheriff's disciplinary commission agreed with the department's recommendation that 8-year veteran Thomas Simmons had lied on his initial application and during an internal investigation about smoking part of a marijuana cigarette while off duty. Simmons also was accused of stealing a jail guard uniform.
We can't have our employees using drugs; it's the same for the people we're watching," said Undersheriff Mike Anderson. "And our whole careers are based on integrity. If you're a proven liar, you can't work here."
Simmons was accused originally in May. His only recourse now would be to appeal his termination in civil court.
Simmons, 42, is the second guard to be disciplined in the last month as part of investigation into problems in the jail's booking department.
Guard Michelle Kelly received a 120-day suspension for insubordination two weeks ago. Two other guards recently have been charged with crimes.
In May, Montgomery resident Albert Jackson, a 16-year veteran, resigned after being charged with two counts of official misconduct, one count of felony theft and one count of misdemeanor theft for allegedly stealing jewelry and clothing from inmates. He has pleaded not guilty.
Frederick B. Shead, 34, an Aurora resident who worked as a correctional officer for about a year, was charged in October 2004 with engaging in sexual acts with a female inmate on at least three occasions between July 23 and Aug. 8 of last year.
Another disciplinary commission is expected to convene at 9 a.m. today in the sheriff's office, charging a deputy with neglect of duty. This investigation is unrelated to the previous incidents, Anderson said.
"It's unpleasant for everyone who works here," Anderson said. "For 99.9 percent of the employees who are doing a heck of a good job, they get painted with a wide brush. But you find out something's wrong and you deal with it."
According to Kane County State's Attorney John Barsanti, a grand jury investigation looking into alleged illegal activities by jail personnel will conclude by the end of August. Barsanti originally thought the grand jury would end Monday, but new information has extended the investigation, he said.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
More trouble for Marcellus official
CASSOPOLIS, Indiana -- Trouble keeps piling up for Marcellus Village President Allen Fisk.
Charged in April with embezzling some $13,000 from the Trinity Bible Church, the 45-year-old Fisk had additional charges filed against him Friday by the Cass County prosecutor's office.
Besides the initial charges of embezzlement and larceny by conversion, Fisk is now facing two misdemeanor charges as well stemming from his alleged use of a Marcellus News bank account to make his July mortgage payment.
The $925 payment was made on July 17, when Fisk was out on bond in the embezzlement case, county Prosecutor Victor Fitz said.
In addition, on May 17, the U. S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Michigan received a grand jury indictment against Fisk for allegedly devising a scheme to defraud the Internal Revenue Service and 10 private taxpayers, Fitz said. He said the scheme involved money, funds, credits and similar property rights.
Fisk is scheduled to go to trial on Sept. 13 on the embezzlement and larceny by conversion allegations. Both charges are felonies.
An active member and one-time treasurer at Trinity Bible Church, he's accused of taking the money between May 2002 and February 2005.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Accused Child Rapist Finds Support From Local Church
NEWARK, Ohio -- A congregation is standing up for a church youth group leader who is being accused of molesting children and rape.
Joe Aleshire is accused of raping a 16-year-old girl inside the church and carrying on a sexual relationship with her younger sister when she was between 13 and 15 years old, NBC 4's Monique Ming Laven reported.
Members of the Licking Baptist Church in Hebron drove to the county jail on Monday night to support Aleshire, 34, the son of their church pastor.
But a group of several former church members protested Aleshire's support. They believe the girls, Laven reported.
Both sides said they would be back for Aleshire's trial, which is scheduled in the fall.
Licking County prosecutor Michelle Seeds says she has a strong case against Aleshire, including DNA evidence recovered from the church where the 16-year-old claimed she was raped.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Priest sentenced for embezzlement & child pornography
Allentown, Penn. - A Schuylkill County Catholic priest who admitted owning hundreds of child pornography movies and photos and embezzling more than $23,000 from a church has been sentenced to three to 23 months in prison and 10 years' probation.
As a sex offender, the Rev. Ronald J. Yarrosh, 57, will have to register his address with state police for 10 years after he is released from prison under Megan's Law...
The prison term came on a theft charge for embezzling money from St. Ambrose Church in Schuylkill Haven, where he was an assistant pastor and served on the advisory board of the parish elementary school.
He also was ordered to pay restitution of $6,617 to the church and $17,012 to Catholic Mutual Group, a self-insurance fund of the Catholic Church.
In a plea deal with prosecutors, Yarrosh pleaded guilty April 27 to three counts of sexual abuse of children, theft, receiving stolen property and criminal use of a communication facility.
Yarrosh was charged with 110 counts of sexual abuse of children after state police at Schuylkill Haven investigating the embezzlement case found hundreds of photos, magazines, videotapes and DVDs in the church rectory, on the parish computer's hard drive and at a storage unit Yarrosh owned at U-Rent-It in Hazle Township, Luzerne County.
But Assistant District Attorney Karen Byrnes-Noone dropped the number of charges so the clerk of courts office would not have to deal with a flood of paperwork. The reduction did not affect the sentence, she said.
She said one count of sexual abuse of children is for pornographic books, another for photos and the third for videos.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
God comes to Wal-Mart
MOULTON, Alabama — Teresa Woods was wide awake at the Wal-Mart Supercenter here during a 3 a.m. Saturday shopping trip. But a manager's alleged behavior turned her experience at the cash register into a nightmare.
"He just got up in my face and said he wanted me to say Hebrew," she said Tuesday. "I didn't say anything to him. I just kept backing off and telling him to leave me alone. He kept going between me and the assistant manager and he came to me and grabbed my arm, squeezing and slapping it, and raked his watch across my arm."
Woods, of Tuscumbia, said the manager kept walking back and forth, saying things she did not understand. She filed an incident report at Moulton City Hall but said she does not want the man arrested.
"He needs help, not jail," she said.
Two Wal-Mart employees said the manager held five of their coworkers hostage in the store's training room from 10 p.m. Friday to about 3 a.m. Saturday. He allegedly said he was God or Jesus, said the end time was near and determined which of them was going to Heaven.
A store employee, who asked THE DAILY not to be identified, said the manager asked employees Biblical questions and allowed one woman to leave when she answered correctly. It was that employee who reportedly called police.
Moulton Police Chief Lyndon McWhorter said an employee called police about a disturbance at Wal-Mart and said the manager might have emotional problems.
"I talked to the officer who went out there, and he said (the manager) wasn't violent toward police," McWhorter said. "They restrained him and handcuffed him."
The officers called an ambulance, and emergency workers took the manager to a hospital. A store employee who asked not to be identified said it took three officers to subdue the man, who has a third-degree black belt and has demonstrated his skill level to store employees. She said one of the officers used a Taser on the man.
McWhorter said a Lawrence County Sheriff's deputy may have stunned the manager with a Taser but his officers did not.
Three of the people involved have filed reports with Moulton police about the incident. But no one has taken out a warrant against the manager.
The employees said Wal-Mart has launched an investigation into who leaked details of the incident to THE DAILY.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Retired bishop faces sex abuse allegation
Sioux City, Iowa - A long-time Catholic priest who served for more than 15 years in the Quad-City area before being named bishop of the Sioux City Diocese is being sued for the second time in three months under sexual abuse allegations.
The Catholic Diocese of Davenport and a Catholic high school in Iowa City also are named in a seven-count lawsuit filed this week in the Iowa District Court for Scott County by Dennis Allen, identified only as a resident of Iowa.
In the lawsuit, Allen claims he was the victim of the Rev. Lawrence D. Soens, who used his principal's office at Iowa City Regina High School to sexually abuse male students.
A Florida man filed a similarly worded lawsuit in June, alleging sexual abuse by Soens and naming the Davenport Diocese and Regina High as co-defendants.
Among his posts in the Davenport Diocese, Soens was vice-rector for the college-level seminary at St. Ambrose University, Davenport, from 1952-54. He was rector of the seminary from 1967-75.
And he was pastor at St. Mary in Clinton from 1978-83, when he was named bishop of the Diocese of Sioux City.
Soens is now retired.
Allen claims in his lawsuit that he was abused by Soens during the priest's final year at Regina High School. The lawsuit further alleges the abuse continued in Davenport and accuses the Diocese of Davenport of failing to do anything about it, even though diocesan officials were aware of the allegations.
"Bishop Soens continued his sexually perverse acts at St. Ambrose," the lawsuit states. "The Diocese of Davenport knew of these acts and yet still recommended his promotion to bishop."
Soens was appointed bishop of the Sioux City Diocese by Pope John Paul II in 1983 and served until retiring in 1998.
At least three complaints were filed against Soens in the past, which Bishop William Franklin of the Davenport Diocese acknowledged in January. In October, the diocese paid $20,000 to settle a claim against Soens.
Allen's lawsuit is the third to be filed against the Davenport Diocese since it agreed in October to pay $9 million to settle more than three dozen claims of sexual abuse by priests. The latest action contains counts of assault and battery, sexual abuse, infliction of emotional distress and breach of fiduciary duty.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Man sues former priest at St. Louis church
St.Louis - A Missouri man sued the St. Louis Archdiocese and a former Redemptorist priest this morning, alleging that he was sexually abused and given a sexually transmitted disease at a St. Louis church.
The man, suing as a “John Doe” to protect his privacy, says in his lawsuit that Father James Thiel sodomized him repeatedly at the St. Alphonsus Liguori Catholic Church, 1118 North Grand Boulevard, from 1974 to 1979.
The lawsuit says the church and the Redemptorists’ Denver Province concealed prior accusations of abuse from parents, authorities, parishes and parishioners. Archbishop Raymond Burke is also named in the suit.
The Redemptorists were founded in Italy in 1732 “to spread the Gospel to the poor and most abandoned,” according to their Web site...
Another man sued Thiel, the Archdiocese and the Redemptorists in April of 2004, claiming he had been abused in grade school at St. Paul the Apostle Parish from 1978 to 1981. That lawsuit is still pending.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Lawsuit names dead priest
Pittsburgh - A priest who died more than a decade ago is at the center of another lawsuit facing the Diocese of Greensburg.
Altoona lawyer Richard M. Serbin filed the 33-page civil action in Westmoreland County court on behalf of an unidentified man referred to as John Doe. A signed affidavit filed with the paperwork indicates the man wants to keep his identity from the public record. Named as defendants in the suit are the diocese and retired Bishop Anthony G. Bosco.
According to the suit, Doe was a parishioner of St. Stanislaus Church in Calumet when he was sexually abused by the Rev. Francis Lesniak. Doe was between 12 and 13 years old at the time of the alleged abuse and is now 52. Lesniak died in 1991.
In the mid-1960s, the suit states, Doe was invited to stay overnight at the rectory when Lesniak was transferred from St. Stanislaus to St. Anne Church in Rostraver Township. The court document says Doe woke up while Lesniak fondled him. The priest allegedly then forced the boy to fondle him in return, according to the lawsuit.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Diocese reaches settlement in priest abuse claim
PORTLAND, Maine -- Maine's Roman Catholic diocese has agreed to settle a lawsuit by a Sidney man who claimed he was abused by a priest during a seven-year period beginning at age 13, the two sides announced Tuesday.
Sign up for: Globe Headlines e-mail | Breaking News Alerts The terms of the settlement with Michael Fortin, 34, were not made public and neither Fortin's lawyers nor a spokeswoman for the Diocese of Portland would elaborate...
Fortin sued the church and the Rev. Raymond Melville in 2000, claiming that the priest sexually abused him beginning in 1985 while Melville was assigned to St. Mary's Church in Augusta.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Cop Kills Himself Following Molestation Accusations
A Kalamazoo [Michigan] police officer has been found dead at the station after he was placed on administrative leave. He shot and killed himself last week. Police say he was accused of molesting 2 girls.
Calhoun county prosecutors had issued a warrant for the officer's arrest. The warrant accused him of molesting the girls between May 2003 and October 2004. The 40-year-old road-patrol officer was a 13-year department veteran.
Wal-Mart Health Plan Sues Brain-Damaged Injured Employee
Thanks to YH for this...
Debbie Shank stocked shelves at a Wal-Mart store in Cape Girardeau, Mo., until five years ago, when her minivan was hit by a tractor-trailer. Her Wal-Mart health insurance paid the medical bills. Proceeds from a lawsuit helped finance her care in a nursing home.
Brain damage forces her to use a wheelchair and limits her upper body movement to one arm and two fingers. It stole her memory and her ability to talk to her husband and three sons.
"She'll ask about the boys, she'll ask about the cat," said her husband, Jim Shank. "Whenever I'm there, she thinks it must be a mealtime. We don't really hold a conversation."
Now the Shanks face a new obstacle. Her Wal-Mart health insurance plan wants the lawsuit money to repay its costs.
Last week, the health plan sued Debbie Shank in federal court in St. Louis, demanding the full $417,000 she got in the civil suit - plus at least $51,000 more from the share that already went to lawyers and costs.
A suit such as this is not uncommon, and is a way for self-financed health plans - employer and union-funded plans - to recoup medical expenses, say lawyers who handle health and insurance law.
A Wal-Mart spokesman said the health plan has made no decision on whether to pursue this case; the suit puts a legal foot in the door before the deadline to file it passes. "This is kind of a standard procedure, and it just preserves our options," Marty Hires said.
It has the potential to hit Debbie Shank, 50, particularly hard.
"I can't believe that they've done this," said Maurice Graham, one of her lawyers.
"The cost to care for her in the future is going to be literally millions," Graham said. "She is confined to a nursing home, has a normal life expectancy and requires full-time care."
Shank and her husband sued G.E.M. Transportation Inc. and Texas truck driver James David Shivers in federal court in September 2000 after Shank was hit by the tractor-trailer while making a U-turn on Highway 177 near Cape Girardeau, according to the original lawsuit.
Shank suffered injuries to her brain stem and other body parts and was in a coma after the accident, the suit says.
The Shanks settled in August 2002 for $900,000. After attorneys' fees and expenses, an irrevocable trust set up for Debbie Shank got $417,477 and her husband got $119,280, according to court documents.
Jim Shank, 52, who does maintenance and risk management work at Southeast Missouri State University and also is a real estate agent, is not named in the health plan's lawsuit.
Lawyers familiar with employment law said that while state law generally bars a health insurance company from trying to get a piece of a settlement, self-funded health plans are allowed under federal law to recover their costs.
In this case, Shank's total medical expenses exceed $469,216, the suit says.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Sheriff: Jailer arrested has been terminated
Carter County [Oklahoma] Sheriff Harvey Burkhart said Monday that a jailer who was arrested Friday at Lake Murray State Park was terminated from his job at the detention center. An article in The Daily Ardmoreite said the man had been placed on paid leave.
Kenneth Matthews, 50, was arrested at a Lake Murray campground after allegedly pointing a gun at some campers and identifying himself as a police officer. Matthews has been charged in Love County with feloniously pointing a firearm, as well as misdemeanor charges of impersonating a police officer and entering a game preserve with a gun.
Matthews had two guns in his private vehicle when he was arrested. Authorities said he was not wearing a jail uniform.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Judge: Frat Could Face Torture Charges
JuliusBlog points us to the following article. (Disclosure: I'm friends with the defense attorney.)
OROVILLE, Calif. - A judge raised the possibility that four fraternity members could be charged with torture in the death of a 21-year-old pledge, comparing the alleged hazing death to the torture of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. soldiers.
Butte County Superior Court Judge Robert Glusman said Friday that a summary of facts in the legal motions filed by attorneys appeared to support that charge, which would carry a potential life sentence.
"U.S. soldiers were charged with torturing Iraqi prisoners for doing far less than what happened in that basement," Glusman said.
The four members of the now-defunct Chi Tau house at Chico State University are currently charged with involuntary manslaughter and hazing, which carry a maximum of four years in prison if convicted.
They are accused of forcing Matthew Carrington, 21, to drink large amounts of water while performing calisthenics in the frigid basement as part of initiation rite on Feb. 2. Carrington collapsed and died of heart failure due to water intoxication.
The judge raised the possible torture charge after the defendants' attorneys argued Friday that hazing charges should be dismissed because the rogue fraternity was not an official student organization, and therefore not subject to hazing statutes — and that two of the defendants were not even attending college at the time.
Glusman said the torture charge would avoid the ambiguity of hazing laws. He continued the pretrial hearing to Aug. 26.
District Attorney Mike Ramsey said outside of court that the judge has the authority to add a charge of torture if he believes the evidence warrants it.
"We considered torture, but since it was a life term we felt hazing was a more appropriate charge," Ramsey told the Chico Enterprise-Record.
Defense attorney Dennis Latimer said he was surprised by the judge's comments and declined to comment further.
Three other members of the fraternity face misdemeanor hazing charges.
Jail's records sought
SHAWNEE, Oklahoma - Attorneys for several former Pottawatomie County jail prisoners claim they have been denied jail records needed for their attorneys to build a civil rights case against jail officials.
Shawnee attorney Cregg Webb said the jail administration has refused to turn over records that might help support prisoners' allegations that they were abused by jail employees while incarcerated...
Webb said they have as many as seven clients claiming their civil rights were violated through the excessive use of an electronic Taser or being strapped to a chair for as long as 72 hours.
He said they have photographs of burn marks on the body of one man who claims he was shocked with a Taser 16 times.
Webb said their research shows that restraint chairs are used in jails for combative or self destructive prisoners, although the manufacturers recommend they not be used more than two hours at a time.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Former sheriff cites ailment as his defense
MUSKOGEE, Oklahoma - Former Latimer County Sheriff Melvin Holly testified Monday he couldn't have sexually assaulted inmates because he cannot get an erection, a statement his doctor supported.
"It's kind of embarrassing," said Holly, 64, during his trial in U.S. District Court.
Holly said medication and effects from a gunshot wound years ago have led to the condition. But the prosecution said Holly apparently never mentioned sexual problems to doctors.
Holly faces 13 counts of sexual activity, including rape, that involve female inmates and female employees. He also is charged with lying to the FBI and threatening to kill an inmate if she disclosed their relationship to investigators.
Holly was arrested in October, three months after he lost his re-election bid. He has been in custody since and faces up to life in prison if convicted.
Two Cherokee County Sheriff's Employees Under Investigation
A couple of Cherokee County [Oklahoma] Sheriff’s employees could face drug charges.
A Wagoner County investigator has been called in to help determine whether charges should be filed. Last week, authorities found marijuana and drug paraphernalia at the home of Cherokee County Deputy Dusty Ryals and Jailer Lynn Trammel.
Ryals and Trammel say a superior deputy told them to store the marijuana at their home because there was no space at the county evidence room.
The superior has backed up the story.
Police, on camera, help selves to drinks
RICHMOND, Calif. (AP) -- It's a case, police say, where some officers apparently got caught with their hands in a cookie store.
A security camera showed at least six Richmond police officers pouring cold beverages behind the counter of a closed cookie shop while searching for a gunman at a mall, the Contra Costa Times reported, citing unidentified police sources.
The management of the Mrs. Fields Original Cookies store at Hilltop Mall reported the incident after a security camera captured officers on July 15 helping themselves to icy beverages from dispensers, the newspaper said.
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Woman has baby in Wal-Mart bathroom, leaves infant behind in toilet
MACON, Ga. -- A woman could face charges after her full-term baby was found in a Wal-Mart bathroom toilet, covered in trash and toilet paper.
The newborn girl was found Sunday afternoon by three Wal-Mart employees. A customer started CPR until a fire department worker arrived and revived the baby, according to a police report.
Witnesses were able to identify the mother, who was not at the store when officers arrived and later found at her home. Investigators did not release her name, saying only that she is from neighboring Crawford County, in her mid-20s and has other children.
The mother was being treated at a hospital and will likely face charges after being released, said Bibb County sheriff's Capt. David Davis.
``It's very sad, especially given the amount of help agencies there are out there,'' Davis told The Macon Telegraph, adding that investigators still don't know the mother's motivation for leaving the baby.
Jan Manley, director of the Elizabeth Home Ministries, a Macon maternity and teen parent home, said she occasionally hears of baby-abandonment cases, but they are rare.
``It must feel like they have no alternatives to do something like that,'' Manley said. ``They must not know about the alternatives or maybe, for some reason, don't know how to access them.''
Like many states, Georgia has a ``Safe Place for Newborns'' law lets a mother leave a newborn at any medical facility within a week of birth without fear of prosecution. The law requires that the mother show proof of her identity and report her name and address to the person with whom she leaves the newborn.
According to state officials, 317 babies have been left at Georgia hospitals or medical facilities since the law took effect in 2003.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Prison guard is charged with attempted cocaine purchase
Baltimore - A former state prison guard was arrested and charged yesterday with trying to buy a large quantity of cocaine from an undercover agent, federal prosecutors said.
Rasheem Jamal Robinson, 30, of Baltimore County appeared in court on one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine. Prosecutors declined to say where Robinson lived in the county, noting unspecified security reasons.
Before his arrest, Robinson was a corrections officer at the medium-security Maryland Correctional Institution in Jessup. Robinson was fired within the past two weeks, according to an affidavit filed in federal court by a Drug Enforcement Administration agent.
Robinson could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Maryland prisons have had a troubled history with contraband, including a black market in illegal drugs. It was unclear from court papers filed yesterday whether there had been any plan to sell the cocaine inside the prison.
According to the affidavit filed in federal court yesterday, a man met with an undercover law enforcement agent Friday at Security Square Mall in Woodlawn.
The man and the agent discussed the man's buying 3 kilograms of cocaine and paying for the stash later. After the man took possession of about 1 kilo of cocaine, federal agents arrested him, according to prosecutors.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Deputy, jailer suspended for drug possession
A Cherokee County [Oklahoma] sheriff's deputy and jailer were suspended Friday as part of a drug investigation.
Sheriff Norman Fisher said Friday afternoon he immediately suspended Sheriff's Deputy Dusty Ryals and Jailer Lynn Trammel after learning the two men were allegedly in possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
FBI Investigating Immigration Torture Claim
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- The FBI investigates allegations that as many as six federal Homeland Security deportation agents tortured a Nigerian man at Oklahoma City's Immigration and Customs Enforcement office.
Complaints were filed by Nigerian Daso Abibo and former Homeland Security employee Deanna Burdine. Burdine says she walked in on the alleged assault.
Abibo was deported to Nigeria for working in the United States without a permit.
He describes in a letter the details of the alleged assault and torture he received from officers.
He says he was attacked after telling an officer he wanted his attorney to review a deportation document before signing or placing his fingerprint on it.
Burdine was fired in April. She says her dismissal was retaliation for filing the complaint. She is seeking her job back through arbitration.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
‘Marine of Year’ charged in nightclub shooting
LAWRENCE, Mass. - A decorated U.S. Marine charged with attempted murder after allegedly wounding two people outside a Massachusetts nightclub had been undergoing treatment for post-war stress since returning from duty in Iraq, his attorney was quoted as saying in a report published Monday.
Sgt. Daniel B. Cotnoir, who was jailed on $100,000 bail, was due to be arraigned Monday on charges of assault and battery with a deadly weapon and assault with intent to murder after the incident early Saturday in the city of Lawrence.
Cotnoir had complained to police after a crowd of nearly 30 people gathered outside a nightclub and restaurant near his apartment. After someone hurled a bottle that shattered his bedroom window, Cotnoir fired “a warning shot,” the Boston Globe reported Monday.
The bullet hit a 15-year-old girl and a 20-year-old man, but caused only minor injuries.
“He shot into what he thought was a safe area, but there was some ricochet effects that Mr. Cotnoir never intended,” his lawyer, Robert F. Kelley, was quoted as saying.
“It was a military-type response to a threatening situation that was civilian in nature.”
'Craziest night of my life’
Cotnoir has been struggling psychologically since returning from Iraq in 2004, Kelley said.
Police were not immediately available to comment.
“It was the craziest night of my life,” said Kelvin Castro, the man who was slightly wounded by the gunshot allegedly fired by Cotnoir. “I don’t know what that guy’s intentions were.”
Cotnoir has frequently called police to complain about noise and fights outside the Punto Finale nightclub. Last year, police said, he claimed someone leaving the club had fired a gunshot at his apartment, the Associated Press reported.
During his tour in Iraq last year, Cotnoir had been a military mortician responsible for preparing soldiers for open-casket funerals.
The job took a heavy psychological toll, he told the Lawrence Eagle-Tribune in an interview last month after the Marine Corps Times named Cotnoir its “Marine of the Year,” an award presented to him at a ceremony in Washington. At the time, he was getting counseling at a veterans hospital.
“It’s a lot harder to talk about the job now than it was at the time to actually do it,” Cotnoir told the newspaper then. “The stories I’ve gained from my deployment aren’t the kind of stories you share.”
Life on hold for officer's rape victim
Houston - Every time the memory returns, so do the headaches.
So the woman, now 20, tries to suppress the memory of the night she was raped by a rogue Houston police officer more than four years ago.
"I know it's back there," she said in an interview, "but I don't deal with it."
U.S. District Judge John Rainey recently approved a recommendation to award the young woman $2 million for the suffering that she says she still endures because of the attack by James McMichael.
But her attorney, Ralphaell Wilkins, says the chances of collecting very much are "slim to none." The judge dropped the city of Houston from the lawsuit, and McMichael is serving a 50-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
Weekly church-related crime update, August 7 - August 13
|Arizona pastor pleads guilty to molesting Florida boy
WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - A former Arizona church pastor has pleaded guilty to sexually molesting a 6-year-old Florida boy in 1996.
Robert Enersen, 54, entered his plea Friday as part of a deal with prosecutors. He pleaded guilty to three counts of lewd molestation in exchange for 18 years in prison and 10 years probation.
Enersen was arrested in December in Arizona after the Florida boy, now 15, told sheriff's detectives about the abuse.
The Polk County boy told detectives that he was molested multiple times in late 1996. Enersen conducted youth services for about two months in 1996 at New Life Assembly of God in Wahneta, a small town south of Winter Haven.
Enersen was serving as pastor of the First Assembly of God church in Douglas, Ariz., when he was arrested.
During a Dec. 27 interview, Douglas Police Department detectives reported that Enersen spoke about abusing two other children in North Carolina and Michigan.
Prosecutors said North Carolina authorities have been waiting until the conclusion of the Polk County case before deciding whether to file charges against Enersen.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Jailer is accused of pointing a gun at campers
MADILL, Oklahoma - A Carter County jailer has been arrested for allegedly pointing a handgun at campers at the Lake Murray State Park and telling them he was a police officer.
Kenneth Matthews, 50, of Healdton was arrested early Friday. His bail was set at $12,000, and he is due back in court Sept. 28.
Campers in an undeveloped part of the 18,000-acre park told authorities they had been threatened about 1 a.m. Friday, park Lt. Jon Nelson said.
"They thought it was their friend and went up (to his vehicle)," Nelson said. "He was pointing a gun at them, telling them he was a police officer."
The jailer is charged with feloniously pointing a firearm, a Love County court spokeswoman said. He also is charged with two misdemeanors -- entering a game preserve with a gun and impersonating an officer.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Man accused gas station heist is former prison guard
MANCHESTER, Conn. - The East Hartford man accused of robbing a Hartford Road gas station early Thursday is a former Correction Department officer suffering from a severe addiction to crack cocaine, court officials said Friday.
James Clark, 36, of 30 Sunset Ridge Drive, was charged with first-degree robbery and sixth-degree larceny after police took him into custody Thursday morning.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Pastor gets extra 6 months’ detention
Fort Wayne, Ind. - The fourth time won’t be the charm for a local minister accused of violating his probation.
That was the warning Allen Superior Judge Kenneth Scheibenberger gave the Rev. James Fincher today. Fincher appeared for a hearing to determine if his probation should be revoked, but ended getting another six months on home detention. Officials said Fincher, pastor of Faith Missionary Baptist Church, refused to admit he was a sexual predator to enroll in court-ordered counseling.
A jury convicted Fincher in October 2003 of fondling a woman who came to his office to ask for a loan. As part of his sentence, Scheibenberger ordered the 74-year-old minister to undergo counseling.
Fincher has been back in court twice since, most recently to answer the allegations of violating probation. Scheibenberger ordered him held in jail without bond after a hearing Monday, and gave prosecutors 10 days to file papers to revoke his probation.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Three Enter Pleas In Connection With School Kickback Scam
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) Two former Lawton school officials and a former sheriff's deputy have pleaded guilty to theft.
Former Lawton Deputy Superintendent Willie Lee Anderson, former district security coordinator Mark Edward McFarland and former Comanche County Sheriff's Deputy Edgardo Maldonado were charged in a kickback scam in which law officers were paid for security work they didn't perform.
Court records show Maldonado admitted receiving pay for work he didn't do, while Anderson and McFarland admitted to receiving a cut of the money for making sure the men were paid. All could face up to 10 years in prison and a 4250,000.00 fine.
Two other ex-law officers pleaded guilty Wednesday and two more have scheduled court hearings today.
Twenty people face criminal charges related to the scam.
Friday, August 12, 2005
EEOC suit claims workers posted "Whites Only" sign at Tyson plant
Via Atrios...
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit Thursday against Tyson Foods, Inc. on behalf of black employees at the company's Ashland plant who claim white workers posted a "Whites Only" sign on a locked bathroom at the facility.
Plaintiffs Henry Adams and Leon Walker claim in the federal suit that keys to the bathroom were distributed only to white employees. According to the suit, the plaintiffs were subjected to suspensions and disciplinary write-ups when they complained to management about the segregated bathroom.
"While this country has made great strides in addressing issues of racism, unfortunately there are still people who have not yet gotten the message that segregation in the workplace will not be tolerated," Bernice Williams-Kimbrough, district director of the EEOC's Birmingham district office, said Thursday in a statement.
The plaintiffs also claim that white employees formed a private break room and constructed furniture using Tyson materials.
According to an EEOC release, the suit seeks injunctive relief and compensatory and punitive damages on behalf of Adams, Walker and other black employees.
Adams and Walker are among 12 black Tyson employees being represented by the nonprofit organization Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The Washington D.C.-based group filed a separate lawsuit Thursday seeking to intervene in the EEOC action against the Springdale, Ark.-based chicken processor.
Church Elder Pleads Not Guilty
Newton County, GA - A Newton County church elder entered a not guilty plea to statutory rape and aggravated child molestation charges during a hearing Thursday.
Fifty-four-year-old Samuel Rutledge is accused of molesting a 7-year-old relative in front of her 6-year-old brother.
Rutledge served at the First Discipleship Church in Conyers. He was arrested Friday, June 3, and has been held in the Newton County Jail.
The girl's mother told 11Alive News, "I had no idea," but now believes Rutledge assaulted the girl over a period of several weeks.
After the charges were filed, one of Rutledge's three grown children, a step-daughter, came forward to say she, too, was a victim.
“My stepfather, he sexually, mentally and physically abused me from the age of two to 16,” she said.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor Steps Down Amid Sex Scandal
(AP) NEW YORK - A 79-year-old monsignor named as "the other man" in a Westchester County divorce case resigned Thursday as
rector of St. Patrick's Cathedral, the New York archdiocese said.
Cardinal Edward Egan accepted Msgr. Eugene Clark's resignation despite Clark's denials that he has been carrying on an affair with his 46-year-old private secretary, the church said.
"He offered his resignation for the good of Saint Patrick's and the Archdiocese," the statement said. "He will not be celebrating Mass or the sacraments publicly until this matter has been resolved."
Clark was named in divorce papers filed in Family Court in White Plains by Philip DeFilippo, 46, of Eastchester, who claimed that a private investigator taped his wife, Laura, and the monsignor entering and leaving a hotel in Amagansett, on Long Island. The videotape was shown Monday to New York City newspapers.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Church youth leader accused of molestation
Shreveport, Alabama - A former youth director at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Shreveport has been accused of inappropriately touching a teenage girl when he worked at the church, police said.
Police arrested Antonio J. Rizzo, 30, of Lafayette, late Tuesday and brought him to Shreveport where he was booked on two counts of molesting a juvenile, said police spokeswoman Kacee Hargrave. He was jailed in lieu of $70,000 bond.
In March 2004, Rizzo was booked on three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile. Police accused him of giving alcohol to teenage girls and making sexual advances. After that arrest, Rizzo was fired from the church, said John Mark Wilcox, a spokesman for the Diocese of Shreveport.
Those charges were later dropped, but an investigation continued that resulted in the new charges, said Assistant District Attorney Hugo Holland.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Jasper priest arrested on molestation charges
Jasper, Indiana -- A priest from Jasper faces preliminary charges of molesting a 19-year-old man.
The Rev. Wilfred L. Englert, 52, was arrested Thursday on charges of deviant sexual conduct and sexual battery after an investigation by Indiana State Police.
The alleged victim, described as mentally disabled, was a friend of Englert's, State Police said. The priest allegedly molested the 19-year-old twice this year, once during an Orange County camping trip and once during a Dubois County visit. The teen-ager later told State Police of the alleged molestations, which led to the investigation and arrest.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Duryea priest gets probation in molestation
New York - A former Luzerne County priest who sexually assaulted a teenage boy has avoided prison for a second time.
The Rev. Al Liberatore Jr., 41, was sentenced to 10 years probation Wednesday after pleading guilty to groping a former altar boy in a hotel room in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, according to the Manhattan district attorney’s office.
Liberatore, who was previously assigned to Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Duryea, had faced three first-degree felony counts in New York, including sodomy and sexual assault...
The victim became involved with the priest when he was an eighth-grade altar boy at Sacred Heart. Liberatore admitted giving the boy alcohol and molesting him during overnight stays at the church rectory in Duryea from 1999 to 2004, according to court papers.
Local investigators have said Liberatore showered the teen with gifts, such as money and a computer, and pleaded with the teen to break up with his girlfriend and “give in to his gay feelings.”
Investigators also accused Liberatore of giving the teen alcohol; molesting the boy while “wrestling” with him; sleeping in the same bed with the teen “twice a week for” three years; inviting the teen to homosexual parties at the rectory; and taking him to gay bars in New York City.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Former deputy facing charges commits suicide, police say
Houston - A former deputy, fired Monday and facing charges in a weekend assault on his wife, committed suicide as his former fellow officers arrived to arrest him, authorities said Thursday.
Robert Bryan Ashworth, 32, died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot to the head, said Lt. John Martin of the Harris County Sheriff's Office. Ashworth had joined the department in January 2004, and was assigned to the jail at 701 N. San Jacinto.
Ashworth's sister, Kauh Wood, said her brother's trouble began Saturday, when he and his wife visited a bar. Wood said her brother wanted to leave and his wife didn't. According to Wood, Ashworth's wife tried to stop him from driving away and was knocked to the ground by his vehicle, suffering minor injuries.
Martin said Ashworth was fired Monday and charged Tuesday with aggravated assault on a family member, a felony. Detectives from the department's criminal warrants division had been looking for the suspect since, without success, he said.
Priest accused of DWI, hit-and-run
Oak Cliff, Texas - An Oak Cliff priest was arrested on charges of drunken driving after causing a three-car crash, hitting a fourth vehicle and fleeing the scene, police said.
The Rev. T. Mike Dugan, 43, of St. Elizabeth of Hungary Catholic Church on Hampton Road was arrested in July after the crashes in Cedar Hill. No one was injured in any of the collisions.
In 1990, while Father Dugan was assigned to a Plano parish, church workers accused him of being an alcoholic, and he was briefly placed in treatment by the Dallas Catholic Diocese. Church officials later apologized and said the intervention had been a mistake. Officials said he could continue with his duties.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Ex-sheriff's trial gets under way
MUSKOGEE, Olahoma - A former Latimer County inmate wept Wednesday while she testified she was raped by the former sheriff and that she was too ashamed to report it.
"He said no one would believe me," Vicki Ann Fowler said, adding the sheriff said he would see to it that she wouldn't get out of jail.
Fowler, two former jail employees and three other inmates testified Wednesday in U.S. District Court they were groped by Melvin Holly, the former Latimer County sheriff.
Wednesday was the first day of Holly's trial.
Holly, 64, faces several counts of sexual activity involving female inmates. He also is charged with unwanted sexual contact with three female employees and a staff member's 16-year-old daughter, and lying to the FBI and threatening to kill an inmate if she disclosed their relationship to investigators.
He was arrested in October, three months after he lost his re-election bid. He has been in custody since then and faces up to life in prison if convicted...
[Defense Attorney] Gotcher asked former jailer Cindy Grady why she kept working for Holly if the sheriff had continuously groped her.
"I was scared," Grady said. "I am scared. He knows where I live. He knows my family."
Another former staffer, Tracy Lyn Varela, testified she heard Holly "saying stuff all the time about killing people."
Gotcher responded by saying as sheriff, Holly fatally shot two people, but was cleared.
In 1998, Holly killed a Buffalo Valley man who had pointed a gun at him. In 1993, as Red Oak's police chief, he killed a prison escapee who had tied up a woman and stolen her car. In both cases, investigators deemed the shootings justifiable.
U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot told jurors the trial will last at least until late next week. The prosecution is expected to call additional former inmates and employees.
Kentucky Minister's Moral Breach
(AgapePress) - A retired conservative United Methodist pastor and Christian author who has been a major contributor to the denomination's debates on the integrity and sanctity of marriage has admitted to having a longtime adulterous affair with a woman in his church.
Recently, Pastor David Seamands apologized to his former church in Wilmore, Kentucky, for what he termed "a breach of trust and moral failure." The 83-year-old minister admitted to "abusing the trust" of his family and friends by engaging in sexual misconduct over "a number of years" with a member of Wilmore United Methodist Church, where he had been pastor from 1962 to 1984.
Seamands is a best-selling author of books on emotional healing, who was one of the pioneers of the field of Christian counseling and who served as a professor and dean at Asbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky until his retirement in 1992. According to ChristianityToday.com, he and his wife Helen were leading figures in the Marriage Enrichment and Engaged Discovery movements and have counseled more than 2,200 couples during those weekend programs.
Youth pastor arraigned on child porn charges
YAKIMA, Wash. -- A former youth pastor was arraigned in U.S. District Court in Yakima on child pornography charges.
James Cannel, 45, was charged in a three-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in May. The indictment includes charges that Cannel received and distributed child pornography and received and distributed obscenity.
Those counts are each punishable by a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.
The third count seeks the forfeiture of a camera, computers and compact discs sized from Selah Covenant Church when Cannel was arrested by Seattle police on Feb. 25.
Cannel worked at the church for about four months but resigned shortly after his February arrest. Officers said he used a church computer to try to arrange sex with a detective posing as a 12-year-old boy.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor accused of fraud
MILFORD, Conn. -- A former pastor has been charged with defrauding a credit union and using the proceeds to participate in an e-mail scam in which con artists pose as Nigerian government officials.
Milford police this week arrested Victor Whitworth, 52, the former pastor of the now-closed Victory Temple of the Church of God in Christ in Waterbury.
Whitworth was charged with first-degree larceny and third-degree forgery. Police said he forged his name on a check for $16,245, then used the money to participate in an e-mail scam that they said has cost victims millions of dollars. They said he sent checks to New York, Canada and Nigeria.
Participants pose as Nigerian government officials, then try to persuade people to send them money and bank account numbers. People are told in e-mails or letters that they can earn money by helping to funnel funds from Nigeria to the U.S.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Preacher pleads guilty to molesting teens
HERNANDO, Miss. — A 40-year-old Byhalia man who pleaded guilty Wednesday to sexually molesting two teenage girls could face up to 45 years in prison.
Circuit Court Judge Bobby Chamberlin accepted the guilty plea of Douglas Eugene Parker and set a sentencing hearing for Sept. 26.
Asst. District Attorney Allen Couch said the two DeSoto County victims, who were 14 and 15 at the time of the incidents, are related and Parker was a friend of the family.
“He was also a preacher at a Baptist church in Marks, Miss., and he later became their pastor,” said Couch.
Parker, who was arrested on Dec. 28, was charged by two grand juries which handed down indictments based on the crimes committed against each victim.
On one indictment he was charge with sexual battery, which carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in jail and $10,000 fine, and one count of child fondling which carries a maximum of 15 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. The second indictment charged Parker with one count of child fondling.
The charges stemmed from two separate incidents in 2004. The sexual battery incident took place at Parker’s home over the course of several months; the fondling incident occurred in a truck in which Parker and one of the victims were riding as passengers in the back seat.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Suspended priest charged with molestation
MENDHAM, N.J. -- A priest who was suspended after allegations he molested two youths in the 1980s and 1990s faces new charges of molesting four boys at a drug treatment program where he became a counselor.
The Rev. Richard Mieliwocki, 58, was suspended nearly two years ago by the Archdiocese of Newark. Arrested in December, he was indicted Tuesday on charges of child endangerment and criminal sexual contact.
Authorities said he improperly touched and made sexual comments to the boys, ages 16 to 18, during therapy sessions at Daytop Village last year.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Sandusky police officer resigns after sex charge
SANDUSKY, Ohio - A Sandusky police officer resigned yesterday, two days after being charged by his department with improper sexual conduct with a minor, authorities said.
The resignation of James G. Fitzpatrick, Jr., was accepted by police Chief Robert Runner.
Mr. Fitzpatrick, 38, was hired Sept. 13, 1992, according to Kelly Kresser, the city's public information officer.
The charge stems from an incident during the summer of 2003.
At the time, the victim was a 15-year-old girl, Ms. Kresser said. No further information on the incident was available.
Mr. Fitzpatrick was arrested and charged with the third-degree felony Monday.
Police Say Man Spread Molotov Cocktails Around Wal-Mart
PHILADELPHIA -- Authorities say that a catastrophe at a Wal-Mart in South Philadelphia was averted over the weekend.
A man was apparently bent on setting several fires inside the store, police said. Police are now asking for the public's help in finding the man before he strikes again.
Still photos from the Wal-Mart surveillance camera showed the suspect wandering the aisles of the store, grabbing flammable liquids such as lacquer thinner, charcoal lighter fuel and Tiki torch oil. In some cases, the suspect stuffed rags into some cans in an apparent effort to make Molotov cocktails, police said.
"We also found one of those barbecue lighters that he had opened and we believe he attempted to light the paint lacquer at one point. But according to the fire marshal, that has a very high ignition point," said Sgt. Fran Hoffman, of the Philadelphia Police Department.
When police arrived at the Wal-Mart and realized what they were dealing with, they were concerned that it might be an act of terrorism and called in the joint terrorism task force. Shortly after looking at the tape, the task force realized that it wasn't dealing with a terrorist.
The suspect wandered the aisles of the South Columbus Boulevard Wal-Mart for three hours before finally being noticed. The store has surveillance cameras inside and outside.
"One of the store employees did speak to this gentleman and then another employee had smelled something and she alerted the manager, who attempted to find the guy and that's when he left," Hoffman said.
Police at South Detectives said that they don't believe this is the work of a disgruntled employee or an irate customer. However, they did say that they think there is a good chance the man will try again and asked the public to contact them if they recognize the man in the still photos (pictured above).
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Kane jail guard is fired after lying about drug use
Chicago - An unsolicited admission by a nine-year veteran of the Kane County Corrections Department that he had lied in the past--and had lied again recently--about using illegal drugs led to his firing Wednesday by a sheriff's disciplinary panel.
Guard Thomas Simmons, 42, said in Wednesday's hearing that he had felt anxiety at being wrongly implicated in an internal investigation into alleged cocaine use and other misconduct by Kane correctional officers, so he made a confession.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Family filing suit against Wal-Mart on sex offender cases
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- The family of a 12-year-old girl is filing a lawsuit to force Wal-Mart to review the backgrounds of its employees.
Attorneys David E. Massey and David Patton are discussing petitioning for a class action lawsuit on behalf of children molested in Wal-Mart stores nationwide.
The lawyers claim that in September 2000, a Wal-Mart employee who was a registered child sex offender molested a 10-year-old girl in a Columbia Supercenter. They add that on July 3, 2004, a 12-year-old girl was allegedly molested at the Orangeburg Wal-Mart Supercenter by a Wal-Mart employee who was also a registered sex offender.
It has been more than a year and the Orangeburg case has not been tried. The press release also claims that at least three other children were molested in June 2005 at a Wal-Mart Supercenter in Scottsdale, Ariz., by an employee who had been charged with a similar incident in Ohio.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Civil suit alleges Fairbanks pastor molested 10-year-old
Fairbanks, Alaska - A woman raised in Tununak, a village on Nelson Island, filed a civil lawsuit against a Jesuit priest Tuesday, saying he molested her several time over a yearlong period starting in 1978 when she was 10 years old.
The lawsuit, filed in Bethel Superior Court under the name June Doe, names the Rev. Richard L. McCaffrey as the molester.
McCaffrey, pastor of Immaculate Conception Church in Fairbanks, was named publicly and put on administrative leave more than two months ago by Bishop Donald Kettler, head of the Fairbanks Catholic Diocese, in response to a different allegation that McCaffrey sexually abused a minor about 25 years ago...
June Doe alleges that McCaffrey would invite minor parishioners into his room and sleeping quarters, and on several occasions she was invited and molested by him.
Roosa said Tuesday that June Doe reported to him that her friends were also molested by McCaffrey during the year he served as pastor at St. Joseph's Church in Tununak, a Central Yupik village on the west coast of Nelson Island.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
DuQuoin pastor accused of sexual assault in MC suit
DuQuoin, Wisc. - A choir member of St. John’s United Church of Christ in DuQuoin filed suit against the church and its pastor, Paul Schultz, accusing him of sexual assault and battery.
Grace Strenge is seeking at least $400,000 in damages which include "religious and spiritual confusion."
According to the complaint filed in Madison County Circuit Court Aug. 5, Schultz repeatedly made improper physical contact with Strenge at church functions.
She claims Schultz greeted her with “bear hugs,” and on several occasions Schultz allegedly placed his hands on her breasts acting like the contact was incidental.
During a meeting to explain why she and her husband were leaving the congregation on Aug. 9, 2003, Schultz allegedly blocked Strenge from leaving the room and pressed her up against the door.
Strenge claims as she tried to escape, Schultz tripped her and knocked her to the ground.
“Paul Schultz then restrained Strenge and attempted to sexually penetrate her,” the complaint states.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Former Pawleys youth pastor accused of raping 13-year-old
Georgetown, S.C. - A former Pawleys Island youth pastor and one-time Georgetown County reserve deputy has been accused of raping a 13-year-old girl. He is expected to turn himself in to authorities today.
Magistrate Barry McCall signed warrants Monday for the arrest of Kenneth A. Atkinson III, 31, also known as “Tripp,” one week after a report was filed by a now 17-year-old Horry County woman.
He is officially charged with criminal sexual conduct in the first degree.
The woman told Georgetown County investigators that in 2002, when she was 13 years old, she was a member of the Youth Praise Team at Pawleys Island Community Church, where Atkinson was a youth pastor.
He is currently youth pastor at First Baptist Church in Columbia.
According to the woman’s account to investigators, one day in March 2002, after practicing with the Praise Team, Atkinson asked her if she wanted to ride with him to the grocery store and she agreed. She said she was comfortable being with Atkinson alone because he had dated her sister for three years.
The victim said after she and Atkinson left the Pawleys Island Food Lion, he said he needed to go to his apartment on Egret Run to put the milk he purchased in his refrigerator.
She said when they arrived at the apartment she went inside and sat on a couch and started watching TV and Atkinson went into his bedroom “for a good while.” When he walked out he sat on the couch next to her.
She said when he sat down she noticed his pants were unbuttoned. She said he then climbed on top of her, removed her clothing and raped her.
She said while the act was taking place she repeatedly asked him, “What are you doing?”
The victim said when Atkinson finished, she jumped up and ran into a bathroom while Atkinson stood by the door telling her “I’m sorry I did that to you. You can’t tell anyone about this because no one will believe you. If you do tell, I will hurt your sister,” the incident report states.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Local priest charged with public indecency
Henderson, Ind. - A 47-year-old Henderson priest was one of eight men recently arrested as part of an undercover investigation into sexual misconduct at a park in Warrick County, Ind.
Ralph E. Patterson, associate pastor at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church, has been charged with public indecency, a misdemeanor offense, after allegedly exposing himself to an undercover officer, officials said.
According to Warrick County Sheriff Marvin Heilman, the two-day investigation was prompted by complaints of "blatant sexual conduct occurring at Newburgh's Overlook Park."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Minister facing three trials on sexual assault charges
North Little Rock, AR - Jurors in the sexual assault trial of a North Little Rock minister on Tuesday heard him tell police he had never been to the home of one of his accusers.
Prosecutors, however, promised the three-man, nine-woman jury that DNA evidence from the Rev. J.T. Talbert was found on a bedspread at the woman’s home in April 2004.
Talbert, 54, is charged with four counts of third-degree sexual assault against women who came to him looking for work. His North Little Rock church, New Birth Ministry, operated a temporary-job service...
The jury also heard from his accuser, who testified she was shocked when Talbert suddenly kissed her, then forced her to the floor to perform oral sex. She said he then took her to her bedroom and raped her.
"I told him that he’s a married man," the woman said. "I told him, you’re a preacher and it’s not right."
Talbert had counseled her over the phone about her drinking problems and her homosexuality, the woman testified during her 50 minutes on the stand.
"He let me know we’re all children of God and we’ve all got shortcomings," she told jurors, her voice barely more than a whisper. "He didn’t condemn me for my preference."
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Molester Says Church Shifted Him to Other Parishes
San Diego - A former Roman Catholic priest said San Diego church officials transferred him to other parishes after parishioners complained that he had molested altar boys and other youth in the 1970s, according to newly filed court documents.
Edward Anthony Rodrigue was convicted in 1979 of sexually assaulting two boys in Ontario. Rodrigue made the statements in a court declaration at Corcoran state prison, where he is serving 10 years on a second molestation conviction.
The declaration, which was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in San Diego, supports one of the main allegations in the clergy sexual abuse scandal: that bishops knew priests were molesting children, but covered up by shifting them elsewhere.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Emotions high as archdiocese, 68 plaintiffs begin crucial talks
Jan sends along this lengthy article in the Oregonian, giving great detail to the church abuse scandal, Portland division:
James Devereaux, then a 13-year-old altar boy in Oakridge, says the late Rev. Maurice Grammond coerced him 40 years ago into engaging in various sexual acts, including oral sex. Devereaux is suing for $25.8 million.
Kenneth Nail, then a 16-year-old inmate at what was then known as the MacLaren School for Boys, says the late Rev. Remy Rudin forced him to have anal intercourse. Nail is suing for $10.8 million.
And Peter Carlich, then a 16-year-old altar boy in Tillamook, says the late Rev. Gerald Dezurick molested him in about 1960, then fabricated a story that persuaded his parents to commit the boy to a mental institution to cure homosexuality. Carlich is suing for $10.2 million...
These and 63 other child sexual-abuse claims against the Archdiocese of Portland are scheduled to enter much-anticipated settlement talks starting today and continuing through mid-September. Two additional cases in mediation allege intentional infliction of emotional distress rather than child sex abuse, although the allegations contain sexual elements.
The 68 claimants entering mediation seek more than $200 million in compensatory damages.
Claims total 249
Mounting sex-abuse claims forced the Portland archdiocese into bankruptcy in July 2004. The bankruptcy froze pending lawsuits, but the claims nevertheless continued to pile up to a total of 249.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Defrocked priest still saying mass
Detroit - Wayne County prosecutors began investigating Monday how a former Detroit Catholic priest, convicted in 2003 of sexually abusing a minor in the 1980s, wound up celebrating mass recently for a gay-rights group in Virginia.
Prosecutors are concerned that Harry Benjamin might have come into unsupervised contact with minors, a potential violation of the terms of his probation in Michigan.
Benjamin's return to the altar, though not sanctioned by the Catholic Church, underscores the difficulty of monitoring hundreds of men accused of sexual misconduct and removed from the ministry, including more than 40 in Michigan since 2002.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Pastor arrested in theft investigation
SCOTTSDALE, Arizona - Police on Monday arrested a Scottsdale pastor under investigation for allegedly using about $60,000 in church funds for personal expenses.
Police arrested Rev. Patrick A. Shetler at his Scottsdale home and booked him into jail on suspicion of felony theft and fraud. Shelter was later released.
Shetler, who owed $174,000 to creditors, filed for bankruptcy in September, four months before evidence surfaced that he had allegedly been stealing from his congregation.
Shetler, pastor of the Glass and Garden Community Church, 86th Street and McDonald Drive, was fired in July.Evidence of Shetler's alleged misappropriation of church funds surfaced in January, police say.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Former Prison Guard Pleads Guilty to Assault
Orem, UT(KSL News) -- A former guard at the State Prison pleaded guilty to assaulting a woman he met on the internet.
Sean Register admitted to contacting a 19-year old woman in an online singles website last September. The woman agreed to meet him in Orem, where he sexually assaulted her.
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors will not recommened Register serve time in prison.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
New allegation against Florida priest accused of molestation
ORLANDO, Florida (AP) -- Officials say a Catholic priest accused of molesting a boy in Orlando more than a decade ago has been named in a second credible allegation of sexual misconduct.
Authorities wouldn't say whether the second alleged incident involving Reverend Richard Emerson happened in Florida or Indiana.
A spokesman for the Diocese of Gary, Indiana, says it notified Emerson's former Indiana parishes and law enforcement authorities last week.
Emerson was suspended and is no longer allowed to practice priestly duties.
He is accused of repeatedly molesting a boy in Orlando between 1986 and 1991.
In March, the Orlando Police Department and F-B-I Tampa Division decided not to file criminal charges against him because the statute of limitations had expired.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Answers sought in death outside Wal-Mart
Atascocita, Texas - A man suspected of shoplifting goods from an Atascocita Wal-Mart — including diapers and a BB gun — had begged employees to let him up from the blistering pavement in the store's parking lot where he was held, shirtless, before he died Sunday, a witness said.
An autopsy for the man, identified as Stacy Clay Driver, 30, of Cleveland, was scheduled for Monday, but officials said results probably would be delayed by a wait for toxicology tests.
Driver's family, as well as one emergency worker, are questioning company procedure, including whether Wal-Mart workers administered CPR after they realized he needed medical attention.
When Atascocita Volunteer Fire Department paramedics arrived, Driver was in cardiac arrest, said Royce Worrell, EMS director. Worrell said Monday he heard from investigators that Wal-Mart employees administered CPR to Driver, but he was not sure that happened.
"When we got there, the man was facedown (in cardiac arrest) with handcuffs behind his back," Worrell said. "That's not indicative of someone given CPR."
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Monday, August 08, 2005
Firm ordered abortion, ex-employee says
Via Atrios, as usual...
Atlanta - Because of various health issues, April Thompson said she had reason to believe she might never have a child.
When she got pregnant, the joy she wanted to share with her employer quickly turned sour when, she said, her boss demanded that she get an abortion or risk losing her job.
Thompson's attorney, Ed Buckley, said the woman eventually was fired by Piedmont Management Associates, a homeowners association management firm, for refusing to get the abortion.
Thompson recently filed a lawsuit in Fulton County Superior Court against the company and its president, Celia Ebert, on grounds of discrimination and emotional duress. "We believe that the conduct of forcing a women to get an abortion falls into intentional infliction of emotional distress," Buckley said.
Faithful Furious Over Tactic
I'm really not piling on the Catholics (all religions are welcome to join the hall of shame at Bobo's World), but they have been very much in the news lately...
Jan sent me this article over the weekend, but somehow it took a while for it to register with me. I'm not sure why, it's straight-forward enough. But beyond the rank hypocrisy of the situation, there is a court angle, so it gets filed here under church-related crime:
Portland, Oregon - In 1994, then-Archbishop of Portland William Levada offered a simple answer for why the archdiocese shouldn't have been ordered to pay the costs of raising a child fathered by a church worker at a Portland, Ore., parish.
In her relationship with Arturo Uribe, then a seminarian and now a Whittier priest, the child's mother had engaged "in unprotected intercourse … when [she] should have known that could result in pregnancy," the church maintained in its answer to the lawsuit.
The legal proceeding got little attention at the time. And the fact that the church — which considers birth control a sin — seemed to be arguing that the woman should have protected herself from pregnancy provoked no comment. Until last month.
That's when Stephanie Collopy went back into court asking for additional child support. A Times article reported the church's earlier response. Now liberal and conservative Catholics around the country are decrying the archdiocese's legal strategy, saying it was counter to church teaching.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Protests and Praise Mark Archbishop's Departure
Aaron points us to this morning's LA Times article:
SAN FRANCISCO — Archbishop William Levada said goodbye Sunday to 3,500 enthusiastic supporters who filled St. Mary's Cathedral while more than 100 clergy sexual-abuse protesters stood vigil in front of the church.
Levada, 68, is heading off this month to become the chief guardian of Catholic doctrine for Pope Benedict XVI, the highest post to be held by an American at the Vatican.
Although this was supposed to be a day of celebration, a drama quietly played itself out behind the scenes before Levada celebrated his farewell Mass in the archdiocese.
Levada was served with a subpoena ordering him to be deposed on behalf of about 250 plaintiffs in sexual-abuse lawsuits against the Portland Archdiocese in Oregon.
When Levada balked at accepting the subpoena, Cookie Gambucci, who runs a court support services company in nearby Martinez, said she told him he could receive it then or that it would be served on him at the altar during the service.
She said Levada accepted the subpoena, but told her: "This is a disgrace to the church."
Portland attorney Erin Olson, who represents 15 of the Oregon plaintiffs, said Levada had been avoiding the subpoena since May.
She said attorneys wanted to ask Levada, who previously headed the Portland Archdiocese, about policies on sexual-abuse cases before he left for the Vatican, where it would have been difficult to reach him.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Priest-abuse allegations build
The Rev. Richard Emerson of Michigan City is facing further allegations of sexual misconduct.
New claims have been made against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gary priest who is already facing an investigation by the Catholic Church, the Rev. Brian Chadwick, the diocese’s spokesman, said.
The allegations have been found to be credible, Chadwick said, and therefore the parishes Emerson has served were notified this weekend, as have the police.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Shoplifting suspect dies after chase at Wal-Mart
Does Wal-Mart's aggressive anti-shoplifting policy result in, well, aggressiveness?
Harris County, Texas - Sheriff's deputies are investigating the death of a man who was detained by Wal-Mart employees Sunday on suspicion of shoplifting at a northeast Harris County store.
The incident occurred in the store in the 6600 block of FM 1960 East, said Lt. John Martin of the Harris County Sheriff's Department.
Store employees told investigators that the 30-year-old man entered the store with an item and a sticker indicating he had already purchased it. "This person (allegedly) took the sticker and put it on an item of much greater value and walked out the store with it," Martin said.
Wal-Mart employees followed him to the parking lot, where he tried to run away. Employees caught up with him and detained him in handcuffs.
"At some point they noticed he wasn't breathing," Martin said. "I was told they administered CPR on him until paramedics came."
The man was taken to Houston Northeast Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
See also our collection of cultural-defining Wal-Mart moments.
Sunday, August 07, 2005
Weekly church-related crime update, July 31- August 6, 2005
|Saturday, August 06, 2005
More cite sex abuse by priest
DENVER - Over a 10-year period, a Roman Catholic priest who had been welcomed into the life of a Loveland family repeatedly molested two of its sons, crawling into the boys' beds while their parents slept and enticing them with motorcycles, fast cars and a cabin in the woods, the brothers allege in interviews, complaints to the church and police reports.
The allegations of Tom and John Kolde way bring to 12 the number of men who have told The Denver Post they were sexually abused as minors by Harold Robert White, who served in 11 parishes across Colorado during three decades as a priest.
Another new claim, from an Aspen man, extends the timeline of allegations against White to the late 1970s or early 1980s, meaning White now stands accused of molesting boys in Colorado over a 20-year period.
He apparently has never faced criminal or civil charges.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
Former church child care provider accused of having child porn
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — A Tuscaloosa man being held without bail on charges of possessing child pornography once directed the child care center at the University of Alabama.
Joseph Ruben Dickey, 37, pleaded not guilty last week to FBI claims that he had graphic pictures of children between the ages of 2 and 4 and that he transported other pictures of children engaged in sexual acts over state lines.
The Tuscaloosa News reported Friday that, according to court documents, the FBI also alleges that he raped a child that he baby-sat for about a decade ago. It was not clear if any additional charges might be filed involving that claim.
During a six-year stint at the University of Alabama, Dickey was employed by — and at one point directed — the school's child care center.
Cathy Andreen, a spokeswoman for the university, said that she was not aware of any complaints against Dickey during that time and that he had not been employed there since 2000.
He was also employed at a Tuscaloosa YMCA, and for a week he worked at the child care services of the First Presbyterian Church, The Tuscaloosa News reported.
See also, the never-ending chronicle of church-related crime.
State prison guard charged with drug possession
EBENSBURG, Pa. (AP) — A state prison guard has been suspended without pay because state police say they found drugs hidden in his car after a traffic stop last month.
State police said Clarence Johnson Jr., 30, of Alverda, had a plastic bag containing cocaine in his pocket when he was stopped July 28. Johnson, a guard at the State Correctional Institution-Cresson, told police the cocaine was for his own use, police said.
Investigators later found two cylinders containing 42 packets of heroin, 125 Xanax painkiller tablets and two plastic bags of marijuana in the car. Police said the total street value of the drugs, including the cocaine, was about $2,000.
See our complete collection of bad behavior at the hands of prison and jail guards: Where did they learn that?
Henry officer held on child sex charges
Henry County, Georgia - A Henry County police officer was arrested Friday evening on child sex charges after allegedly having an "inappropriate relationship" with a 16-year-old girl.
Henry Public Safety Director Mike Turner said Randolph Cobian, 28, met the girl about a year ago when he volunteered as a swimming coach at her school. Turner declined to name the school.
Oakland diocese settles all abuse cases
SAN FRANCISCO - The Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland agreed Friday to pay $56.3 million to settle 56 cases of sexual abuse of children by priests from 1962 to 1985, lawyers and the church said.
Plaintiffs' lawyer Rick Simons said the settlement represented all abuse cases against the Oakland diocese, with the amounts per victim ranging from a few hundred thousand dollars to $2 million.
"This news is a great relief to those Catholic children who silently suffered for years with the pain and harm of sexual abuse by their priest," he said.