by exwhyzee 9 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
I was listening to the Candace Conti interview on Youtube and they mentioned out of court settlements the society has made to pedophile victims using funds donated for the world wide work.
Does anyone know of a list showing how many cases there has been and who the society settled out of court with ? Is that kind of thing something you can find on record somewhere ?
Barbera Anderson, an ex bethel worker has documented around 16 cases which I believe were settled out of court. Have a look at the link and see if it is what you are looking for. http://www.watchtowerdocuments.com/docs/jw-secrets.html
^^ the above link is where you want to go, well researched and documented.
Thanks guys...that's just what I was looking for.
We have a very close and long time JW friend who lives in California but never heard about the Conti Case or any of the pedophile settlements.
She is about to shun us for telling her about this....she's totally blown away and denies it could be true.
16 doesn't seem like a huge number of cases at first glance, considering the size of the Org. I wish there was a way to know how many instances of abuse were reported that NEVER made it past the Elders. That has to be a shocker. I pray that the superior authorities demand those records..
EXWHYZEE, why would they shun you for mentioning a news story? Also, court records are a reality and could not be labled as " apostate " reading. We had a recent talk by an Elder who was raised Catholic and knew of abuse firsthand. He said " We don't have those things in God's Organization ".
I looked at my wife and she got all pissy and said " I KNEW that you would catch that"... Damn straight... It is not my fault that some people do not want to know the real truth about what is going on. All of us who are being kicked around now will have our day. I just feel sorry for those who bury thier heads in the sand..
There may be more but of course these settlements come with a gag order. I talked to a lawyer shortly after settling a class action with the WTS. She explained that many of these victims suffer from long-term effects from the abuse, and would suffer more to get through a trial. At least with an out of court settlement they can get on with their lives.
Candace Conti is truly one in a thousand.
If you goggle the subject there are LOTS of news stories. I try to post what comes up on goggle alerts..sometimes it is MORE than my allowed 4 dailey posts!!
Barbra has great links. Silent Lambs site is a little disorganized but with digging you can find what you need.
We can't know the exact number. Some cases could be settled before a formal complaint. The problem is that in cases such as this a non-disclosure requirement is part of the settlement. You only get the money if you keep your mouth shut forever. Sometimes details leak out but there must be extreme sanctions for disclosing the details of the agreement.
I am certain there have been many more cases. Perhaps hundreds or thousands. The Conti jury award was so publicized that it will move some who feel shame to sue. Now they know that they are not alone. Furthermore, a jury of worldly people found such conduct worthy of heavy punitive damages.
I expect this is a cost of doing business. You also need facts that hold the WT liable in addition to the pedophile.
I read the book of Victim No. 1 with the Sandusky case. No one had any clue that hundreds were involved. One victim's courage usually leads to hundreds of cases being disclosed. The WT has no shame.
The Roman Catholic Church has modified its policies. The WT appears to be even more entrenched.
EXWHYZEE: Why would they shun you for mentioning a news story?
When you tell a JW something they didn't know about the organization they have built thier lives around, it often blows them away. Thier faith is so flimsy that they would rather kill the messenger than acknowledge there could possibly be any truth to what he has told them. They must feel that Jehovah's spirit is no match against the influence of someone who has left the organization. She has been like a Sister to me for 30 years but she has indicated she isn't sure if she wants to see us when we arrive. Her loyalty to Jehovah has been challenged.
I don't think we'll ever truly know how many, any more than we'll never truly know how many transfusion-related deaths there are.
