The Christian Post: Lawsuit Awards Man $13.5 Million In Jehovah's Witness Sex Abuse Case

by AndersonsInfo 4 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse

  • AndersonsInfo
    AndersonsInfo

    The Christian Post

    http://www.christiantimes.com/article/lawsuit.awards.man.13.5.million.in.jehovahs.witness.sex.abuse.case/49231.htm

    Lawsuit Awards Man $13.5 Million In Jehovah's Witness Sex Abuse Case

    Sarah Adams 31 October, 2014

    A recent lawsuit settlement in San Diego, California awarded a man $13.5 million after he claimed he was severely abused by the teacher of a Bible study when he was a youth.

    35-year-old Jose Lopez alleged in the lawsuit that Gonzalo Campos, a teacher and leader at Linda Vista Spanish Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses and Playa Pacifica Spanish Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, sexually abused him and other children in the 1980's and 1990's.

    According to NBC San Diego, most of the money awarded to Lopez through the court ruling comes from the entities that oversee the Jehovah Witness denomination. The judge said in his ruling that these were the responsible parties in Lopez's abuse because of how they failed to handle the incident.

    "Damages that reflect the reprehensible conduct of the Watchtower in how they covered this up for years and allowed multiple children to be injured," Lopez's attorney Irwin Zalkin told NBC 7, referencing the umbrella group Watchtower Bible that oversees the Jehovah's Witnesses. "They protected and harbored a criminal."

    Another bombshell lawsuit was filed against the Jehovah's Witness in Plano, Texas recently, where lawyers filed a civil lawsuit against Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York Inc. for sexual abuse that occurred in Plano, Greenville and Dallas.

    "[WBTS is] the top of the chain of command; they oversee and are involved in the decision-making ... daily function – everything has to be approved," Steven Schulte, a lawyer with the Turley Law Firm in Plano, Texas, said of the lawsuit. "They are intimately involved […] have absolute authority over the congregation and had every reason to know [of the abuse]."

  • Jeannette
    Jeannette

    Oh, good. The Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses is a pedophile sanctuary.

  • Band on the Run
    Band on the Run

    When reporting court cases repeatedly, it is good to learn some basic terms. Settlements are usually agreements between parties to settle out of court. Most states encourage settlements because both parties gain from the agreed bargain. The courts are swamped with a heavy case load. It is a good way to resolve conflict. Defendants almost always want secrecy. When a case is brought to trial before a jury or judge and the defendant is found liable, the defendant usually pays damages as the judgment. There are exceptions to the rule in equity cases.

    It is highly unlikely that the WTBTS paid $13 million to reach a secret agreement. I suspect the Christian Post's reporter does not understand the process.The Conti appeal should set precedent in California. The facts in this case, however, might be different. Of course, this is a mere fraction of what the Roman Catholic Church has paid in damages and settlements. The WTBTS has a multigenerational history of making judges angry. We owe the Roman Catholic victims/survivors so much.

    The question I posed in an earlier post remains: What is the context of this award? The WTBTS needs to be contrasted with other religions/churches to see if there is a truly aberrant pattern.

  • the girl next door
    the girl next door

    The 13.5 mil was a default judgement. Watchtower pissed off the Judge by refusing to engage.

  • Balaamsass2
    Balaamsass2

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