Friday, August 10, 2012
Sandusky being investigated for child pornography
Feds probe possible Sandusky child porn ring August 10, 2012
(CBS/AP) U.S. Postal inspectors are leading a federal investigation into whether former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky shared child pornography with other individuals, CBS News has learned.
Analyzing a computer seized from Sandusky, investigators are also looking into whether he sent "seductive letters" across state lines for sexual purposes. Some of these letters were said to be sent to some of his sexual abuse victims.
CBS News has learned that at the end of 2011, allegations were forward by the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. that Sandusky used the mails to seduce individuals to cross state lines for sexual purposes, with trips and gifts offered. Investigators are looking at 6-7 victims who might have gotten letters.
Also in March of this year, U.S. Postal inspectors were tasked to investigate The Second Mile charity, which was founded by Sandusky. That investigation is on hold, awaiting for documents to be released by the State Attorney.
A source has been told that child pornography was found in at least one of Sandusky's computers. According to the source, there is no evidence that the pornography was of his victims. There is also no mention of a ring or sharing of boys with others. CBS News investigative producer Pat Milton reports that a second source said that none of Sandusky's victims have indicated that there was shared sex with them, Sandusky and any other individual. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57491185/feds-probe-possible-sandusky-child-porn-ring/
CBS: Sandusky being investigated for child pornography
By Michael Winter, USA TODAY Aug 10, 2012
The Justice Department and U.S. Postal Service are investigating child pornography allegations against former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, who was convicted in June of sexually abusing several boys, CBS News is reporting.
One source said that child pornography was found on one of Sandusky's computers, but that there was no evidence the material involved any of Sandusky's victims.
CBS writes that authorities are also investigating whether he sent "seductive letters" across state lines to entice boys into sex, including some of his abuse victims.
Sandusky's lawyer, Joe Amendola, called the allegations "ridiculous" and said his client "continues to maintain his innocence."....
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2012/08/cbs-sandusky-being-investigated-for-child-pornography-/1#.UCXNNKCSk0l
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Etan Patz Case, Stop Child Abuse Now - Radio Show about Ritual Abuse
Etan Patz Case: NYPD Officials 'Absolutely Certain' Pedro Hernandez Is The Killer 08/08/2012
By Murray Weiss DNAinfo Columnist / Criminal Justice Editor
NEW YORK CITY — New details have cops "absolutely certain" Pedro Hernandez is guilty of killing six-year-old Etan Patz despite their failure to find any real proof.
The most startling new detail is that Hernandez supposedly kept a photo of the missing SoHo boy, who went missing on May 25, 1979, hidden among his personal belongings for years, law enforcement sources told “On The Inside.”....
Testimony that Hernandez kept a hidden photo of Etan would add to evidence against him that includes: Hernandez's confession to police back in May, similar admissions to others over the years and his writing “I killed him” on a picture of Etan that was shown to him by police on the day he was arrested.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/08/pedro-hernandez-absolutely-certain-etan-patz-killer-nypd_n_1755760.html
Stop Child Abuse Now - Radio Show
by Bill Murray
Tue, Aug 7, 2012
Tonight's special guest is Neil Brick, abuse survivor who has been working on the issues of ritual abuse and mind control for nearly 20 years. Mr Brick launched the SMART newsletter (Stop Mind Control and Ritual Abuse Today) in 1995 to help stop ritual abuse and to help those who have been ritually abused. The web site is at www.ritualabuse.us. They work toward this goal by disseminating information on the connections between secretive organizations, ritual abuse, and mind control, by encouraging healing from the damage done by ritual abuse and mind control, and by encouraging survivors to network. In 1988, they held the first Annual Ritual Abuse, Secretive Organizations and Mind Control Conference, which helps unite those who have suffered from and those working to stop ritual abuse. The 15th Annual Conference (a three day event) is Aug 10 to 12, in Windsor Locks, Connecticut.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/bill-murray/2012/08/08/stop-child-abuse-now-scan
By Murray Weiss DNAinfo Columnist / Criminal Justice Editor
NEW YORK CITY — New details have cops "absolutely certain" Pedro Hernandez is guilty of killing six-year-old Etan Patz despite their failure to find any real proof.
The most startling new detail is that Hernandez supposedly kept a photo of the missing SoHo boy, who went missing on May 25, 1979, hidden among his personal belongings for years, law enforcement sources told “On The Inside.”....
Testimony that Hernandez kept a hidden photo of Etan would add to evidence against him that includes: Hernandez's confession to police back in May, similar admissions to others over the years and his writing “I killed him” on a picture of Etan that was shown to him by police on the day he was arrested.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/08/pedro-hernandez-absolutely-certain-etan-patz-killer-nypd_n_1755760.html
Stop Child Abuse Now - Radio Show
by Bill Murray
Tue, Aug 7, 2012
Tonight's special guest is Neil Brick, abuse survivor who has been working on the issues of ritual abuse and mind control for nearly 20 years. Mr Brick launched the SMART newsletter (Stop Mind Control and Ritual Abuse Today) in 1995 to help stop ritual abuse and to help those who have been ritually abused. The web site is at www.ritualabuse.us. They work toward this goal by disseminating information on the connections between secretive organizations, ritual abuse, and mind control, by encouraging healing from the damage done by ritual abuse and mind control, and by encouraging survivors to network. In 1988, they held the first Annual Ritual Abuse, Secretive Organizations and Mind Control Conference, which helps unite those who have suffered from and those working to stop ritual abuse. The 15th Annual Conference (a three day event) is Aug 10 to 12, in Windsor Locks, Connecticut.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/bill-murray/2012/08/08/stop-child-abuse-now-scan
Monday, August 6, 2012
Boy Scout files reveal repeat child abuse by sexual predators
Report: Boy Scout files reveal repeat child abuse
Associated Press – Sun, Aug 5, 2012
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Internal documents from the Boy Scouts of America reveal more than 125 cases in which men suspected of molestation allegedly continued to abuse Scouts, despite a blacklist meant to protect boys from sexual predators.
A Los Angeles Times review....of more than 1,200 files from 1970 to 1991 found suspected abusers regularly remained in the organization after officials were first presented with sexual misconduct allegations.
Predators moved from troop to troop because of clerical errors, computer glitches or the Scouts' failure to check the blacklist, known as the "perversion files," the newspaper said.
In at least 50 cases, the Scouts expelled suspected abusers, only to discover they had re-entered the organization and were accused of molesting again.
In other cases, officials failed to document reports of abuse in the first place, letting offenders stay in the program until new allegations came to light, the Times reported.
One scoutmaster was expelled in 1970 for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy in Indiana. After being convicted of the crime, he went on to join two troops in Illinois between 1971 and 1988. He later admitted to molesting more than 100 boys, was convicted of the sexual assault of a Scout in 1989 and was sentenced to 100 years in prison, according to his file and court records.
In 1991, a Scout leader convicted of abusing a boy in Minnesota returned to his old troop shortly after getting out of jail.
http://news.yahoo.com/report-boy-scout-files-reveal-repeat-child-abuse-181201518.html
Boy Scout files reveal repeat child abuse by sexual predators
Los Angeles Times review of Boy Scout documents shows that a blacklist meant to protect boys from sexual predators too often failed in its mission.
By Jason Felch and Kim Christensen, Los Angeles Times
August 5, 2012
For nearly a century, the Boy Scouts of America has relied on a confidential blacklist known as the "perversion files" as a crucial line of defense against sexual predators.
Scouting officials say they've used the files to prevent hundreds of men who had been expelled for alleged sexual abuse from returning to the ranks. They've fought hard in court to keep the records from public view, saying confidentiality was needed to protect victims, witnesses and anyone falsely accused....
A Los Angeles Times review of more than 1,200 files dating from 1970 to 1991 found more than 125 cases across the country in which men allegedly continued to molest Scouts after the organization was first presented with detailed allegations of abusive behavior.
Predators slipped back into the program by falsifying personal information or skirting the registration process. Others were able to jump from troop to troop around the country thanks to clerical errors, computer glitches or the Scouts' failure to check the blacklist.
In some cases, officials failed to document reports of abuse in the first place, letting offenders stay in the organization until new allegations surfaced. In others, officials documented abuse but merely suspended the accused leader or allowed him to continue working with boys while on "probation."
In at least 50 cases, the Boy Scouts expelled suspected abusers, only to discover later that they had reentered the program and were accused of molesting again.
One scoutmaster was expelled in 1970 for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy in Indiana. Even after being convicted of the crime, he went on to join two troops in Illinois between 1971 and 1988. He later admitted to molesting more than 100 boys, was convicted of the sexual assault of a Scout in 1989 and was sentenced to 100 years in prison, according to his file and court records.
In 1991, a Scout leader convicted of abusing a boy in Minnesota returned to his old troop — right after getting out of jail....
Richard Stenger, the head of a unit of the Sea Scouts — part of the Boy Scouts — was charged in 1971 with tying up and fondling three boys. Police found bondage equipment and books on pedophilia in his house.
He was convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and a judge sentenced him to four years' probation, his file shows. The Scouts decided to suspend him during that period. But when the court-ordered probation ended, a local Scout executive and several parents successfully requested that the national office lift the suspension.
"I feel quite confident that no further problems will arise," wrote the local Scout executive, whose name is blacked out in the heavily redacted file.
Fourteen years later, in 1989, a parent notified the Boy Scouts that the 320-pound Stenger had padlocked her 11-year-old Scout in a harness and watched him dangle for 15 minutes during a boating trip, according to Stenger's file. Scouts notified police, who recovered from Stenger's home dozens of restraints and hundreds of images of children in bondage, including one of a blindfolded 6-year-old tied to a bed.
Two dozen former and current Scouts came forward to say they had been abused by Stenger as long ago as 1958.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-boyscouts-20120805-m,0,5822319.story
Associated Press – Sun, Aug 5, 2012
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Internal documents from the Boy Scouts of America reveal more than 125 cases in which men suspected of molestation allegedly continued to abuse Scouts, despite a blacklist meant to protect boys from sexual predators.
A Los Angeles Times review....of more than 1,200 files from 1970 to 1991 found suspected abusers regularly remained in the organization after officials were first presented with sexual misconduct allegations.
Predators moved from troop to troop because of clerical errors, computer glitches or the Scouts' failure to check the blacklist, known as the "perversion files," the newspaper said.
In at least 50 cases, the Scouts expelled suspected abusers, only to discover they had re-entered the organization and were accused of molesting again.
In other cases, officials failed to document reports of abuse in the first place, letting offenders stay in the program until new allegations came to light, the Times reported.
One scoutmaster was expelled in 1970 for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy in Indiana. After being convicted of the crime, he went on to join two troops in Illinois between 1971 and 1988. He later admitted to molesting more than 100 boys, was convicted of the sexual assault of a Scout in 1989 and was sentenced to 100 years in prison, according to his file and court records.
In 1991, a Scout leader convicted of abusing a boy in Minnesota returned to his old troop shortly after getting out of jail.
http://news.yahoo.com/report-boy-scout-files-reveal-repeat-child-abuse-181201518.html
Boy Scout files reveal repeat child abuse by sexual predators
Los Angeles Times review of Boy Scout documents shows that a blacklist meant to protect boys from sexual predators too often failed in its mission.
By Jason Felch and Kim Christensen, Los Angeles Times
August 5, 2012
For nearly a century, the Boy Scouts of America has relied on a confidential blacklist known as the "perversion files" as a crucial line of defense against sexual predators.
Scouting officials say they've used the files to prevent hundreds of men who had been expelled for alleged sexual abuse from returning to the ranks. They've fought hard in court to keep the records from public view, saying confidentiality was needed to protect victims, witnesses and anyone falsely accused....
A Los Angeles Times review of more than 1,200 files dating from 1970 to 1991 found more than 125 cases across the country in which men allegedly continued to molest Scouts after the organization was first presented with detailed allegations of abusive behavior.
Predators slipped back into the program by falsifying personal information or skirting the registration process. Others were able to jump from troop to troop around the country thanks to clerical errors, computer glitches or the Scouts' failure to check the blacklist.
In some cases, officials failed to document reports of abuse in the first place, letting offenders stay in the organization until new allegations surfaced. In others, officials documented abuse but merely suspended the accused leader or allowed him to continue working with boys while on "probation."
In at least 50 cases, the Boy Scouts expelled suspected abusers, only to discover later that they had reentered the program and were accused of molesting again.
One scoutmaster was expelled in 1970 for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy in Indiana. Even after being convicted of the crime, he went on to join two troops in Illinois between 1971 and 1988. He later admitted to molesting more than 100 boys, was convicted of the sexual assault of a Scout in 1989 and was sentenced to 100 years in prison, according to his file and court records.
In 1991, a Scout leader convicted of abusing a boy in Minnesota returned to his old troop — right after getting out of jail....
Richard Stenger, the head of a unit of the Sea Scouts — part of the Boy Scouts — was charged in 1971 with tying up and fondling three boys. Police found bondage equipment and books on pedophilia in his house.
He was convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and a judge sentenced him to four years' probation, his file shows. The Scouts decided to suspend him during that period. But when the court-ordered probation ended, a local Scout executive and several parents successfully requested that the national office lift the suspension.
"I feel quite confident that no further problems will arise," wrote the local Scout executive, whose name is blacked out in the heavily redacted file.
Fourteen years later, in 1989, a parent notified the Boy Scouts that the 320-pound Stenger had padlocked her 11-year-old Scout in a harness and watched him dangle for 15 minutes during a boating trip, according to Stenger's file. Scouts notified police, who recovered from Stenger's home dozens of restraints and hundreds of images of children in bondage, including one of a blindfolded 6-year-old tied to a bed.
Two dozen former and current Scouts came forward to say they had been abused by Stenger as long ago as 1958.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-boyscouts-20120805-m,0,5822319.story
Survivorship Webinar - The Spirit of Healing - Janet Thomas - September 8
Survivorship Webinar - The Spirit of Healing - Janet Thomas -
September 8
Upcoming Webinar:
Saturday, September 8
12:00 noon Pacific Time
Presenter: Janet Thomas
"The Spirit of Healing"
Janet Thomas will discuss her book, "Day Breaks Over Dharamsala — A Memoir of Life Lost and Found," a journey through spiritual healing from mind control/ritual/sexual abuse. The deep dilemma for survivors of extreme abuse is the fundamental estrangement from the sacred self. How do we reclaim it? Integrate it? Restore the sense of a spirited and nurturing self? How do we connect to the place inside us — beyond and beneath our brilliant minds — that that nurtures and sustains us in our daily lives and in our relationships? These questions, and their answers, will be shared and explored.
Janet Thomas has been in active and conscious healing from ritual abuse/mind control experimentation for 25 years. Her parallel lives include many years as a poet, playwright, activist, magazine editor and author of non-fiction books, including "The Battle in Seattle — The Story Behind and Beyond the WTO Demonstrations." She lives and teaches in India and on an island in the Pacific Northwest.
REGISTRATION
Registration closes Thursday evening September 6, 2012
To reserve a space in the webinar, e-mail Shamai at shamai@survivorship.org and give her this information:
1. Your name
2. The webinar you wish to attend: "The Spirit of Healing"
3. Amount and method of payment (check, PayPal, money order)
4. Your preferred e-mail address (so we can send you instructions)
5. The name you will be using for the webinar. (This does not have to be your real name or your message board screen name.)
You will receive a confirmation email immediately and an invitation link and instructions after the registration closes
Complete details on all our webinars are at http://www.survivorship.org/webinars.html
September 8
Upcoming Webinar:
Saturday, September 8
12:00 noon Pacific Time
Presenter: Janet Thomas
"The Spirit of Healing"
Janet Thomas will discuss her book, "Day Breaks Over Dharamsala — A Memoir of Life Lost and Found," a journey through spiritual healing from mind control/ritual/sexual abuse. The deep dilemma for survivors of extreme abuse is the fundamental estrangement from the sacred self. How do we reclaim it? Integrate it? Restore the sense of a spirited and nurturing self? How do we connect to the place inside us — beyond and beneath our brilliant minds — that that nurtures and sustains us in our daily lives and in our relationships? These questions, and their answers, will be shared and explored.
Janet Thomas has been in active and conscious healing from ritual abuse/mind control experimentation for 25 years. Her parallel lives include many years as a poet, playwright, activist, magazine editor and author of non-fiction books, including "The Battle in Seattle — The Story Behind and Beyond the WTO Demonstrations." She lives and teaches in India and on an island in the Pacific Northwest.
REGISTRATION
Registration closes Thursday evening September 6, 2012
To reserve a space in the webinar, e-mail Shamai at shamai@survivorship.org and give her this information:
1. Your name
2. The webinar you wish to attend: "The Spirit of Healing"
3. Amount and method of payment (check, PayPal, money order)
4. Your preferred e-mail address (so we can send you instructions)
5. The name you will be using for the webinar. (This does not have to be your real name or your message board screen name.)
You will receive a confirmation email immediately and an invitation link and instructions after the registration closes
Complete details on all our webinars are at http://www.survivorship.org/webinars.html
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Vast international child-p_rn network uncovered
Vast international child-porn network uncovered
By DENISE LAVOIE AP Legal Affairs Writer Aug 4, 2012
BOSTON (AP) -- The men came from different walks of life on two continents: a children's puppeteer in Florida, a hotel manager in Massachusetts, an emergency medical technician in Kansas, a day care worker in the Netherlands. In all, 43 men have been arrested over the past two years in a horrific, far-flung child porn network that unraveled like a sweater with a single loose thread....
Authorities have identified more than 140 young victims so far and say there is no end in sight as they pore through hundreds of thousands of images found on the suspects' computers. They are also trying to determine whether the men who talked about murder and cannibalism actually committed such acts or were just sharing twisted fantasies....
Robert Mikelsons, a 27-year-old day care worker who baby-sat the boy, was arrested. On his computer were thousands and thousands of images of children being molested and raped, including the boy holding the stuffed bunny.
Photos and online chats found on computers owned by Diduca and Mikelsons led to more than three dozen other suspects in seven countries, including Canada, Britain, Germany, Sweden and Mexico. The oldest victim in the Netherlands was 4, the youngest just 19 days old....
Mikelsons also received an 18-year sentence, followed by indefinite psychiatric commitment, after confessing to sexually abusing more than 80 children....
What they found on Arnett's computer was unlike anything some of the investigators had ever come across: long, graphic, online chats about his desire to abduct, kill and eat children. They said he had also made photos of a naked 2-year-old boy in a roasting pan inside his oven. The child and two other boys Arnett allegedly abused and photographed were later identified and found alive....
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CHILD_PORN_NETWORK?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-08-04-10-44-22
Arrests in major child porn investigation Aug 4,2012
Some of the men charged in an international child porn investigation that has led to 43 arrests and the identification of more than 140 child victims....
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CHILD_PORN_NETWORK_GLANCE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-08-04-10-28-26
By DENISE LAVOIE AP Legal Affairs Writer Aug 4, 2012
BOSTON (AP) -- The men came from different walks of life on two continents: a children's puppeteer in Florida, a hotel manager in Massachusetts, an emergency medical technician in Kansas, a day care worker in the Netherlands. In all, 43 men have been arrested over the past two years in a horrific, far-flung child porn network that unraveled like a sweater with a single loose thread....
Authorities have identified more than 140 young victims so far and say there is no end in sight as they pore through hundreds of thousands of images found on the suspects' computers. They are also trying to determine whether the men who talked about murder and cannibalism actually committed such acts or were just sharing twisted fantasies....
Robert Mikelsons, a 27-year-old day care worker who baby-sat the boy, was arrested. On his computer were thousands and thousands of images of children being molested and raped, including the boy holding the stuffed bunny.
Photos and online chats found on computers owned by Diduca and Mikelsons led to more than three dozen other suspects in seven countries, including Canada, Britain, Germany, Sweden and Mexico. The oldest victim in the Netherlands was 4, the youngest just 19 days old....
Mikelsons also received an 18-year sentence, followed by indefinite psychiatric commitment, after confessing to sexually abusing more than 80 children....
What they found on Arnett's computer was unlike anything some of the investigators had ever come across: long, graphic, online chats about his desire to abduct, kill and eat children. They said he had also made photos of a naked 2-year-old boy in a roasting pan inside his oven. The child and two other boys Arnett allegedly abused and photographed were later identified and found alive....
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CHILD_PORN_NETWORK?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-08-04-10-44-22
Arrests in major child porn investigation Aug 4,2012
Some of the men charged in an international child porn investigation that has led to 43 arrests and the identification of more than 140 child victims....
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CHILD_PORN_NETWORK_GLANCE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-08-04-10-28-26
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Rabbi’s sentence angers victims
Rabbi’s sentence angers victims
August 03, 2012 By Wesley Lowery, Globe Correspondent
Despite tearful pleas from victims, a judge sentenced a one-time religious instructor for a prominent Brookline school to 10 years probation Thursday for sexually abusing three of his students in Boston during the 1975-1976 school year.
The sentence for Rabbi Stanley Z. Levitt, who pleaded guilty Wednesday to four counts of indecent assault and battery on a child, stunned and angered the victims, who gathered in the Suffolk Superior courtroom to face their abuser and witness the sentencing. Levitt was also ordered to stay away from children, register as a sex offender, and wear a GPS monitor....
“He should have served jail time,” said Michael Brecher, who along with the two other former students at the Maimonides School, an Orthodox Jewish school, said that Levitt touched him sexually when he was a sixth-grader.
Delivering a victim-impact statement before the sentencing, Brecher said Levitt groped him while Brecher was recovering at Boston Children’s Hospital after part of his finger was sliced off in a classroom door....
The Globe has reported that after leaving Massachusetts in 1980, Levitt was charged with molesting three boys in Philadelphia. In the first of those cases, Levitt was found not guilty. In the second case, he pleaded no contest to accusations that he had showered with a young boy and received five years’ probation. The third allegation was withdrawn.
http://bostonglobe.com/metro/2012/08/02/rabbi-stanley-levitt-gets-years-probation-for-abusing-three-boys/5iygfQPcpYpvPcJ8SPI0cK/story.html
August 03, 2012 By Wesley Lowery, Globe Correspondent
Despite tearful pleas from victims, a judge sentenced a one-time religious instructor for a prominent Brookline school to 10 years probation Thursday for sexually abusing three of his students in Boston during the 1975-1976 school year.
The sentence for Rabbi Stanley Z. Levitt, who pleaded guilty Wednesday to four counts of indecent assault and battery on a child, stunned and angered the victims, who gathered in the Suffolk Superior courtroom to face their abuser and witness the sentencing. Levitt was also ordered to stay away from children, register as a sex offender, and wear a GPS monitor....
“He should have served jail time,” said Michael Brecher, who along with the two other former students at the Maimonides School, an Orthodox Jewish school, said that Levitt touched him sexually when he was a sixth-grader.
Delivering a victim-impact statement before the sentencing, Brecher said Levitt groped him while Brecher was recovering at Boston Children’s Hospital after part of his finger was sliced off in a classroom door....
The Globe has reported that after leaving Massachusetts in 1980, Levitt was charged with molesting three boys in Philadelphia. In the first of those cases, Levitt was found not guilty. In the second case, he pleaded no contest to accusations that he had showered with a young boy and received five years’ probation. The third allegation was withdrawn.
http://bostonglobe.com/metro/2012/08/02/rabbi-stanley-levitt-gets-years-probation-for-abusing-three-boys/5iygfQPcpYpvPcJ8SPI0cK/story.html
Friday, August 3, 2012
Carlson sexually abused several children, victims tell state police, Harrison grabs first U.S. Olympic judo gold - was sexually abused
Carlson sexually abused several children, victims tell state police
By Nok-Noi Ricker, BDN Staff
Aug. 01, 2012
BANGOR, Maine — The Rev. Robert Carlson sexually abused several children over the last four decades and groomed them to be his victims, according to people interviewed by the Maine State Police during a now concluded investigation into allegations leveled against the late community leader.
“There clearly were victims of sexual abuse that indicated that Bob Carlson was their abuser,” Lt. Christopher Coleman, commander of the Maine State Police’s Major Crimes Unit for the northern part of the state, said Wednesday. “It appears that it occurred over many years and it caused a lot of trauma to many people.”....
Carlson was a longtime religious and civic leader who committed suicide by jumping from the Penobscot Narrows Bridge on Nov. 13, 2011, shortly after learning detectives were looking into allegations of sex abuse involving him and a boy....
The state police report includes interviews with at least 18 people, including Carlson’s victims. Also interviewed were the former president of Husson University, a Penobscot County sheriff’s deputy and detective, a Bangor police officer and a therapist who treated some of Carlson’s victims. They said they had either received information about or witnessed Carlson engage in criminal or inappropriate sexual behavior over the last four decades....
Carlson helped found and was president of Penobscot Community Health Care, leading the charge to provide those less fortunate with health care and dental services. He also was a founder of Hope House, a Bangor shelter for those with drug and alcohol addiction.
He “had full access” at the therapist’s treatment center, and after Carlson took part in a staff meeting one day, “administration told Bob that he was no longer welcome at the facility,” the report said. No dates are given to indicate when this happened.
The therapist “advised that monetary control or influence was part of Bob’s control over some of the victims” and “that there was a grooming process [that] occurred with the victims.”
Carlson was a longtime church leader in Orrington who had served as chaplain for the Bangor and Brewer police and fire departments, the Penobscot County Jail and Husson College, now Husson University....
The first person to report concerns about Carlson’s behavior said he was ignored by his superiors. Former Penobscot County Sheriff Timothy Richardson has said he questioned Carlson’s actions in the 1970s after seeing Carlson in the control room at the Penobscot County Jail in the middle of the night with young boys, sometimes rubbing them all over, including their buttocks.
Richardson, who was a young part-time deputy, said he reported his concerns to two superiors, both of whom are now deceased. He said they were concerned but didn’t take it anywhere.
“They didn’t want to take it anywhere,” the former sheriff told the Bangor Daily News in November. “Back then they [religious leaders] were above suspicion of child abuse.”
http://bangordailynews.com/2012/08/01/news/bangor/carlson-investigation-reveals-many-witnesses-of-sexual-abuse-other-victims/
Harrison grabs first U.S. Olympic judo gold August 2nd, 2012
Kayla Harrison says she almost quit judo because of sexual abuse by a coach. Instead, she’s now the first American to win Olympic gold in the sport....
She started judo at roughly age 7. But to get to this point, she has said, she needed to overcome sexual abuse – starting at age 13 – by the person who was then coaching her.
“When I was 16, I told a close friend of mine, who immediately told my mother, and she immediately went to the police and pressed charges. The FBI got involved, and he’s actually serving 10 years … in prison,” Harrison told CNN’s Ashleigh Banfield on July 9, weeks before the Olympics began.
“Every day was a lie. Inside, I was in constant turmoil, but on the outside I was supposed to be this golden girl and so happy,” Harrison said.
Harrison said she almost dropped judo because of the abuse. She said that it was not only “hard to deal with to be normal, but also to compete in the sport.”
But she decided to stick with judo, going on to win gold at the 2008 Junior World Championships and the 2010 World Championships.
“You get to the point where you decide that you don’t want to be a victim anymore and that you’re not going to live your life like that,” she said.
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/08/02/harrison-grabs-first-u-s-olympic-judo-gold/
Aug. 01, 2012
BANGOR, Maine — The Rev. Robert Carlson sexually abused several children over the last four decades and groomed them to be his victims, according to people interviewed by the Maine State Police during a now concluded investigation into allegations leveled against the late community leader.
“There clearly were victims of sexual abuse that indicated that Bob Carlson was their abuser,” Lt. Christopher Coleman, commander of the Maine State Police’s Major Crimes Unit for the northern part of the state, said Wednesday. “It appears that it occurred over many years and it caused a lot of trauma to many people.”....
Carlson was a longtime religious and civic leader who committed suicide by jumping from the Penobscot Narrows Bridge on Nov. 13, 2011, shortly after learning detectives were looking into allegations of sex abuse involving him and a boy....
The state police report includes interviews with at least 18 people, including Carlson’s victims. Also interviewed were the former president of Husson University, a Penobscot County sheriff’s deputy and detective, a Bangor police officer and a therapist who treated some of Carlson’s victims. They said they had either received information about or witnessed Carlson engage in criminal or inappropriate sexual behavior over the last four decades....
Carlson helped found and was president of Penobscot Community Health Care, leading the charge to provide those less fortunate with health care and dental services. He also was a founder of Hope House, a Bangor shelter for those with drug and alcohol addiction.
He “had full access” at the therapist’s treatment center, and after Carlson took part in a staff meeting one day, “administration told Bob that he was no longer welcome at the facility,” the report said. No dates are given to indicate when this happened.
The therapist “advised that monetary control or influence was part of Bob’s control over some of the victims” and “that there was a grooming process [that] occurred with the victims.”
Carlson was a longtime church leader in Orrington who had served as chaplain for the Bangor and Brewer police and fire departments, the Penobscot County Jail and Husson College, now Husson University....
The first person to report concerns about Carlson’s behavior said he was ignored by his superiors. Former Penobscot County Sheriff Timothy Richardson has said he questioned Carlson’s actions in the 1970s after seeing Carlson in the control room at the Penobscot County Jail in the middle of the night with young boys, sometimes rubbing them all over, including their buttocks.
Richardson, who was a young part-time deputy, said he reported his concerns to two superiors, both of whom are now deceased. He said they were concerned but didn’t take it anywhere.
“They didn’t want to take it anywhere,” the former sheriff told the Bangor Daily News in November. “Back then they [religious leaders] were above suspicion of child abuse.”
http://bangordailynews.com/2012/08/01/news/bangor/carlson-investigation-reveals-many-witnesses-of-sexual-abuse-other-victims/
Harrison grabs first U.S. Olympic judo gold August 2nd, 2012
Kayla Harrison says she almost quit judo because of sexual abuse by a coach. Instead, she’s now the first American to win Olympic gold in the sport....
She started judo at roughly age 7. But to get to this point, she has said, she needed to overcome sexual abuse – starting at age 13 – by the person who was then coaching her.
“When I was 16, I told a close friend of mine, who immediately told my mother, and she immediately went to the police and pressed charges. The FBI got involved, and he’s actually serving 10 years … in prison,” Harrison told CNN’s Ashleigh Banfield on July 9, weeks before the Olympics began.
“Every day was a lie. Inside, I was in constant turmoil, but on the outside I was supposed to be this golden girl and so happy,” Harrison said.
Harrison said she almost dropped judo because of the abuse. She said that it was not only “hard to deal with to be normal, but also to compete in the sport.”
But she decided to stick with judo, going on to win gold at the 2008 Junior World Championships and the 2010 World Championships.
“You get to the point where you decide that you don’t want to be a victim anymore and that you’re not going to live your life like that,” she said.
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/08/02/harrison-grabs-first-u-s-olympic-judo-gold/
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