SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/249301_mormon22.html
Mormon church loses in sex-abuse verdict
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER STAFF AND NEWS SERVICES
The Mormon church and one of its former officers in King County have been slapped with a $4.2 million verdict for negligence and intentionally inflicting emotional distress on two sisters in a case of child sex abuse.
On Friday, a jury found that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had done nothing to prevent Peter Taylor, a lay officer in the Federal Way stake (a geographic unit of the church), from sexually molesting his stepdaughter despite knowing about the abuse. The girl's younger sister also was a victim, the jury found.
During the trial, police testified that the church had thwarted their attempts to investigate the charges by shielding clergy and maintaining that any information they might have was secret under a priest-penitent privilege.
"No jury likes people that use religion to cover up for the fact that they were protecting child molesters," said Tim Kosnoff, the plaintiffs' lawyer. "It was clear they wanted to send a message to the Mormon church with this verdict."
Seattle attorney Tom Fry, who represented the church, said he was "shocked and surprised" by the ruling.
"I think the jury got it dead wrong," he said, noting that the court had found that Taylor had not been acting as an officer of the church when he molested his stepdaughters.
"The church abhors any type of child abuse," Fry said.
Taylor was criminally prosecuted by King County in 2001 and served three years in prison.
Church officials have not yet decided whether to appeal.
© 1998-2005 Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Mormon Church Loses in Sex-abuse Verdict
by AndersonsInfo 20 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse
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AndersonsInfo
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jgnat
Yaaay! They won't be able to hide behind division of church and state much longer.. I ASSUME this will be appealed to a higher court. How much money you want to bet that both the Catholic church AND the WTBTS will be named as amicus curai?
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Jourles
That jury kicked ass.
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Gretchen956
I saw this article this morning and was intending on posting it during my lunch break but I see that you got it on here, this is great!! They say this will have enormous repercussions for all churches.
Last year the legislature removed the part of a bill that was going through the legislature here that would have mandated that clergy report abuse. They have a HUGE lobby, so of course they were heard. If that comes up again I hope that people will write in about why this type of reform is so necessary.
Sherry
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AndersonsInfo
bttt
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Will Power
Hire that lawyer???
can't help but wonder what the differences are?
hope this means the door has been opened
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under74
They're saying on the news I read and watched that this could change everything. A chuch is being held accountable not because their ministers commited the act but because one of their people didn't report it. It's a good step
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vitty
Im really happy about this, but sick to the stomach that it didnt happen for the victims of the TOWER
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Mulan
sick to the stomach that it didnt happen for the victims of the TOWER
This is a precedent, so it could change a lot of things.
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Elsewhere
"The church abhors any type of child abuse," Fry said.
Sounds like they've been talking to people at the WTS. "Abhors" is a JW buzz word.