Olympic Committee Alerted to Sex Abuse in Gymnastics Years Ago, Court Filing Says
By Juliet Macur, NYTimes
The United States Olympic Committee was made aware of sexual abuse in gymnastics more than two decades before the Lawrence G. Nassar molestation scandal shook the sport to its core, according to court documents filed Wednesday in a California federal court.
Kathy Scanlan, the president of U.S.A. Gymnastics from 1994 to 1998, said in a sworn statement last month that she had notified the U.S.O.C. of the sexual abuse problem soon after she took charge of the organization. The U.S.O.C.’s response, she said, was to discourage her from using the federation’s established protocol for investigating and disciplining its professional members who were accused of sexual abuse. She said that she had gone ahead and pursued cases the accused anyway.
“U.S.O.C.’s challenge to U.S.A.G. disciplining professional members in this fashion (specifically impeding the ability to ban, suspend or investigate a member) would have inhibited me from adequately protecting minor members,” Scanlan said in her statement, which was part of hundreds of pages of documents filed Wednesday in a lawsuit that Aly Raisman, the two-time Olympian, has filed. Raisman is suing Nassar, who was the national team doctor; the U.S.O.C.; U.S.A. Gymnastics; and other defendants.
Scanlan’s testimony highlighted the fact that the federation and the U.S.O.C. had battled for years over how to handle sexual abuse cases. That conflict appears to have lasted until at least 1999, when Scanlan’s successor, Bob Colarossi, confronted the U.S.O.C. in a letter that was unsealed in 2017 as part of another sex abuse case in the sport.
Colarossi wrote that the Olympic committee had demonstrated an “apparent indifference to the welfare of young children” and that committee members had repeatedly advised responding to reports of abuse by conducting “bare-bones telephonic hearings immediately upon receipt of a sexual abuse complaint.” Colarossi said that was not enough to protect young athletes.
On Wednesday, Patrick Sandusky, a spokesman for the U.S.O.C., declined to comment until he had had more time to look into the matter.
Steve Penny, who took over as president and chief executive of the federation after Colarossi left, has also been accused of not doing enough to protect young athletes. He waited five weeks to contact the F.B.I. after learning that gymnasts had complained of Nassar’s inappropriate touching.
Penny, who resigned in March 2017, also worried about the federation’s image as the Nassar case ensued and went out of his way to become close with investigators. Among other things The New York Times reported last month, he had discussed the possibility of a top security job at the U.S.O.C. with an F.B.I. agent who investigated the Nassar case. Nassar is now serving decades in prison on charges of criminal sexual misconduct and possession of child pornography.
An email included in Wednesday’s court filings elaborated on Penny’s efforts on behalf of the agent. In the email to Larry Buendorf, who was then the chief security officer for the U.S.O.C., Penny wrote, “I found a great guy who might be the perfect fit for your role when you decide to leave.”
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| Steve Penney |
Buendorf was planning to retire in 2018, and the email was sent in July 2016. That “great guy,” Penny wrote, was Jay Abbott, the special agent in charge of the F.B.I.’s field office in Indianapolis.
When asked about the email, Penny’s lawyer, Edith R. Matthai, said that Penny had done nothing wrong when he discussed the U.S.O.C. job in connection with Abbott and that there had been no conflict of interest.
“This whole idea that something was done to influence something is just insane,” Matthai said Wednesday in a telephone interview. “At the time of the email, Mr. Abbott’s office was no longer involved in the investigation of Nassar because it had been transferred to the U.S. attorney’s office and the F.B.I. in Detroit.”
She called Penny’s mention of the security job to Abbott, and his discussion with Buendorf about it, “ordinary networking that happens in ordinary businesses on a daily basis.”
Penny was arrested last month on a felony charge of evidence tampering in a Texas investigation into Nassar. He is accused of ordering the removal of documents from the national team training center north of Houston, where Nassar often worked and where many of his victims have said they were assaulted. At the time of Penny’s arrest, Texas prosecutors said they did not know where the documents were or if they had been destroyed.
Penny pleaded not guilty, and U.S.A. Gymnastics subsequently said it had found documents at its Indianapolis headquarters that might be the ones removed from the ranch.
In a deposition that was among the documents filed Wednesday, Rhonda Faehn, the former vice president for the federation’s women’s program, said that Amy White, the former national teams manager, told her that she had removed medical records from the training center in November 2016, flown with them to Indianapolis and delivered them to Penny. A deposition from White was included in the documents; she repeatedly asserted her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
Illinois couple sexually abused kids
for 2 years in their home
for 2 years in their home
BY DANA RIECK
A Bethalto couple is accused of sexually assaulting three children over the course of two years.
Jeremy D. Leisgang, 29, and 36-year-old Andrea S. Leisgang are accused of sexually abusing the three children in their home beginning in 2016, Bethalto prosecutors wrote in a news release.
It's remarkable how many times I have posted reports on this blog on couples who have abused children, often in their care, and the woman is older than the man. It seems odd to me and I would like to know the reason for it.
“Due to the age of the victims and the State’s Attorney’s desire to maintain their privacy, additional information regarding the victims will not be released,” the news release stated.
Both Leisgangs were arrested and held on a $1 million bail.
Jeremy Leisgang was charged with 15 counts of criminal sexual assault and 11 counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child. Police wrote that if convicted of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child he faces mandatory life in prison because there were two children involved.
Andrea S. Leisgang was charged with eight counts of criminal sexual assault and four counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child. If convicted she faces up to 60 years in prison.
In the news release, Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Gibbons thanked his staff, the Pontoon Beach Police Department, Bethalto Police Department, Department of Children and Family Services, and the Madison County Child Advocacy center “for providing immediate assistance to ensure the safety of all the victims and excellent investigative work on the case.”
Ex-pastor charged with rape at gunpoint &
shooting woman in head
A former evangelical pastor known for his rants against gun control measures was charged with kidnapping, murder and sodomy after an attack at a Catholic supply store.
The horrific attack occurred in the middle of the day on Monday, resulting in a two-day manhunt that ended with Bruce’s arrest. Over 100 police also raided his residence, a trailer sporting a large ‘don’t tread on me’ flag, searching for evidence.
Aside from having worked as a pastor, Bruce’s LinkedIn page lists him as having been the manager of a Jewish community center as well as having studied the Bible and counseling at Calvary Chapel Bible College. He had no previous criminal record but had recently filed for bankruptcy.
Ironically, his social media presence also includes numerous rants against ‘criminals’ and gun control laws. On his twitter, Bruce describes himself as a “Decorated Navy Vet & Trusty Shellback” and employes a #MAGA hashtag. Just last week, he made a post that reads: “We should stop expecting criminals to follow the rules. I’m hoping we end gun-free zones and put the criminals on notice that they will be stopped.”
When asked if the state would pursue the death penalty, St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch responded that while “the aggravating circumstances are certainly there,” it will ultimately be the next prosecutor's decision, as McCulloch’s term ends at the end of the year. He described the attack as one of the worst he had seen in his career, saying the crime had "shocked the senses".
South Dakota man charged with aggravated
sexual abuse of a child
News Center1 StaffA Cherry Creek, South Dakota man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for aggravated sexual abuse of a child.
Angelo Ashley, age 20, was indicted on Sept. 11. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on Nov. 21 and pleaded not guilty to the indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to life in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, five years of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The indictment alleges that on March 26, 2016, Ashley did knowingly engage in, and attempt to engage in, a sexual act with a minor who had not yet attained the age of 12 years.
The charge is merely an accusation and Ashley is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron J. Cook is prosecuting the case.
Ashley was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Maine man charged with felony sexual assault
against 10-year-old
A horrifying story that just keeps going
BY DOUG HARLOW A horrifying story that just keeps going
Bobbi Frappier stands outside the Waterville apartment building known as the "Beehive" on June 25, 2013. Frappier was 12 years old when he found his grandmother Martha Daigle murdered in 1989 in the building. Alan Powell was convicted for the murder and died at the Maine State Prison after an altercation with convicted murderer Guy Hunnewell lll. Staff file photo by David Leaming
A Fairfield man who was convicted on child sexual assault charges more than 20 years ago and was on the Maine Sex Offender Registry is back in jail this weekend, charged again with felony sexual assault against a child.
Bobbi Ray Frappier, 41, was arrested Wednesday night in Fairfield on a warrant after a two-week investigation, Fairfield police Chief Tom Gould said Friday. He is charged with one count of unlawful sexual contact.
Gould said the sexual assault is alleged to have taken place on Norridgewock Road in Fairfield. “It involved a 10-year-old female friend of the suspect,” he said. “He was charged with inappropriately touching her.”
The charge is a class B felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Fairfield police Office Shanna Blodgett made the arrest and had conducted the investigation, Gould said. Gould said he was uncertain of the date of the alleged assault but said that it was something within the past year.
Frappier had been a 10-year registrant on the Sex Offender Registry for crimes he committed in 1997. He is no longer listed on the registry. According to Gould, Frappier was convicted of gross sexual assault, or rape; two counts of unlawful sexual contact; and sexual abuse of a minor in April 1997 and was sent to prison.
Frappier was 12 years old in June 1989 when his grandmother Martha Daigle was murdered in a Waterville apartment house that residents referred to as the Bee Hive, at the corner of Elm Street and Western Avenue. Frappier had been living with his grandmother but had stayed at a friend’s house the night she was killed.
He found her body when he got back to the apartment.
Daigle, who was 64 when she was murdered, was the mother of 17 grown children and several grandchildren, according to Morning Sentinel archives.
She had been stabbed repeatedly in the groin, raped and strangled to death.
Alan D. Powell Jr. 57, originally from Oakland, was serving a life sentence for Daigle’s murder when he was killed in prison in June 2013. He was attacked by 42-year-old Guy Hunnewell III, originally from Fairfield, who later was sentenced to life for the murder.
Hunnewell had been serving a 40-year sentence for fatally stabbing Stephanie Gilliland, 20, of Benton, on Dec. 30, 1997. Gilliland, a former girlfriend, was killed in a jealous rage, according to Sentinel reports. The two had dated and worked together at Sonny’s Pizza on Main Street in Fairfield.
Gilliland’s body was found inside Hunnewell’s apartment at 50 High St. in Fairfield. She had been stabbed several times, police said.
Frappier remained at the Somerset County Jail in East Madison on Friday. He is being held without bail pending a court hearing, probably next week. The courts were closed on Friday and no information about whether Frappier has a lawyer was available.
New Mexico man convicted of child sex abuse charges
in federal court
Joshua Kellogg, Farmington Daily TimesFARMINGTON — A Newcomb man was found guilty of four child sex charges during a jury trial in Albuquerque federal court and could get 30 years to life in a federal prison.
Brian Sloan, 33, was convicted of four aggravated child sex abuse charges following a five-day trial, according to a U.S. Department of Justice press release.
Sloan was arrested on Aug. 31, 2016, by the FBI on an indictment filed on Aug. 23, 2016.
A Jan. 24, 2017, indictment charged Sloan with two counts of sexually abusing a child under the age of 12 between May 1, 2007, and Dec. 14, 2007, and also between May 1, 2008, and August 31, 2008, according to the indictment.
Court documents also alleged Sloan sexually abused a second child under the age of 12 between June 1, 2003, and Aug. 31, 2003. The crimes that led to the four charges were committed on the Navajo Nation within McKinley County.
Sloan had entered a plea of not guilty during his arraignments, according to court documents.
During the five-day trial, which started on Nov. 13 and ended Monday morning, the two victims testified about the sexual abuse that led to Sloan's conviction.
The victim in three of the charges testified they were 11 when the sexual abuse started, and the abuse occurred repeatedly.
The victim told the court Sloan would threaten and then commit physical abuse while the victim was being sexually abused.
The victim in the fourth charge testified Sloan sexually molested them during a game of "night hide and seek" while the victim stayed at a relative's residence during the summer of 2003, according to the press release.
A guilty verdict was rendered by the jury after about three hours of deliberations. A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled in this case.
Sloan could face a mandatory minimum penalty of 30 years to a maximum of life in a federal prison at the sentencing hearing, along with being required to register as a sex offender and pay a $250,000 fine.
The Gallup office of the FBI handled the investigation.
NY state couple indicted in 'predatory'
sex assault against three children
Anthony Borrelli, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin Three children were allegedly sexually assaulted by a Binghamton couple over the span of two years.
Cervini and Kasmarcik, who listed an address on the 200 block of Robinson Street, are accused of acting together. The indictment lists two boys who are now 13 and 18, as well as one girl who is now 16, as victims.
Cervini was indicted on felony counts of predatory sexual assault against a child, first-degree criminal sexual act, first-degree rape, use of a child in a sexual performance, second-degree course of sexual conduct against a child, first-degree sexual abuse and second-degree assault. He's also been indicted on five misdemeanor charges of endangering the welfare of a child.
Both defendants were arrested in October by New York State Police, and initially, they faced criminal sexual act charges.
As the investigation continued, the Broome County District Attorney's Office presented the case to the grand jury, which added more charges.
Since late October, both defendants have been held at the Broome County jail. Arraignments will be held in Broome County Court as a result of Friday's indictment. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
What the indictment says
Cervini and Kasmarcik are accused of crimes against the children at locations in Endicott and in Johnson City. The indictment does not specify a relationship between the defendants and the victims.
One of the sex abuse charges alleges forcible sexual contact by Cervini against the female victim in June 2016 when the girl was 14 years old.
Another of the charges, first-degree rape, accuses Cervini and Kasmarcik of acting in concert with one another to engage in sexual intercourse with one of the male victims in 2015, when he was 16 years old.
One of the victims was seriously injured with a fan sometime between Nov. 21, 2015, and Jan. 1, 2016, in Endicott, the indictment said in the assault charge against Cervini.
If Cervini and Kasmarcik are convicted of the indictment's most severe charge, predatory sexual assault against a child, they could face 10 years to life behind bars.
NY State woman admits to child sexual abuse;
two others face charges
A Hartland woman pleaded guilty in Niagara County Court Monday to taking part in the sexual abuse of a girl during a period of almost two years.
Melinda Rich, 56, of Carmen Road, admitted to first-degree course of sexual conduct against a child in exchange for a promise from Judge Sara Sheldon that her sentence will be no more than 15 years in prison and 20 years of postrelease supervision. Sheldon ordered Rich held without bail to await sentencing Jan. 9.
Charges remain pending against Rich's daughter and son-in-law, Elizabeth Wood, 28, and Robert C. Wood II, 55, of Drum Road, Hartland.
The victim, a girl under age 11, was abused between June 2015 and March 2017, First Assistant District Attorney Holly E. Sloma said.
Alabama family has been arrested for rape, sodomy,
sexual abuse and distributing porn to a minor
Posted By: Ashley Thusius, WAAY
Lauderdale County investigators have arrested a man for rape, sodomy, sexual abuse and distributing porn to a minor. Officials say Wesley Dempsey sexually abused the victim from the time she was 9 until she was 11.
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| Wesley |
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| Jesse |
Wesley Dempsey is being held in the Lauderdale County Detention Center on a $160,000 bond.
Lauderdale Co., AL
Former Texas teacher arrested in on new
child sex abuse charges
By Jon Wilcox | jwilcox@vicad.com A former Victoria teacher who was accused of sexually abusing children but acquitted years ago has been arrested on new child sex abuse charges.
In Texas, first-degree felonies carry a possible sentence of 5-99 years or life in prison with up to a $10,000 fine. Second-degree felonies are punishable with a sentence of 2-20 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.
San Marcos police investigators obtained a third warrant for first-degree aggravated sexual assault of a child after a woman claimed in September that her 11-year-old daughter had been sexually abused by Vuillemin. A San Marcos spokesman said Vuillemin was dating the mother.
Dating the mother to get access to the daughter. That's what pedophiles often do.
According to the warrant affidavit, the daughter made an outcry to her mother, stating the abuse occurred at her San Marcos home and his New Braunfels home. The abuse, the daughter said, occurred about two weeks before her 11th birthday.
Vuillemin is no stranger to such accusations.
In 2013, Vuillemin, then a graphic design teacher at Liberty Academy in Victoria, was arrested at the school on charges of continuous sexual abuse of a child and indecency with a child.
During the ensuing trial, prosecutors said Vuillemin had abused two girls who were 5 and 7 years old at the time. That abuse occurred several nights a week at the girls’ homes after they had gone to bed, according to testimony.
Another girlfriend with little girls?
A Victoria Independent School District spokeswoman said in 2013 that the allegations against Vuillemin did not involve the district.
But prosecutors dismissed two charges against Vuillemin, and jurors deadlocked on a third after about eight hours of deliberation.
After a mistrial was declared in 2014, prosecutors dismissed the remaining charge the next year.
Nice work. You let a monster go free! And a little girl got to pay the price.
Colorado man facing child sex-abuse charges
SENTINEL STAFF 
A 35-year-old Mesa County man was arrested Tuesday on multiple charges of sexual assault on a child.James Henson was arrested on a warrant alleging four counts of sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust, four counts of sexual assault on a child in a pattern of abuse and other related counts, the Mesa County Sheriff's Office announced in a news release this morning.
The charges stem from four separate alleged incidents that occurred between May 2015 and September 2018.
Henson is being held without bond pending his first court appearance, which should occur this afternoon.
Mesa Co., CO
Idaho man arrested, accused of multiple felonies
for sexual abuse of 2 children
BY RUTH BROWNrbrown@idahostatesman.com
Boise Police arrested a Nampa man Tuesday on a warrant for multiple charges connected to the alleged sexual abuse of two children.
Jensen was charged after one of the victims reported the abuse to police on Oct. 11. The alleged abuse, involving two children, spanned over several years, and it first started in 2008, according to Nampa Police Sgt. Tim Riha. The warrant for his arrest was issued Nov. 16.
His bond is set at $400,000. If convicted, Jensen faces up to life in prison.
Fugitive Sex Offender Nabbed By U.S. Marshals in Illinois
He was convicted of sexually abusing a 16-year-old in Will County when he was 53. Now he faces charges in two more counties.
PLAINFIELD, IL — A convicted sex offender from Plainfield was apprehended by U.S. Marshals last week on new child sexual abuse charges. Stephen M. Adams, 55, was arrested Nov. 21 by members of the U.S. Marshals Service Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force in the 6900 block of Clearwater Drive, which is also the address listed for Adams on the Illinois Sex Offender Registry.
Adams is already a registered child sex offender after he was convicted of criminal sexual abuse by force in 2016 in Will County. According to the sex offender registry, Adams was 53 at the time of the offense and the victim was 16.
No! Please tell me this is a joke!
In September 2017, he was sentenced to four days in jail while being given credit for two days already served, 18 months' probation and ordered to pay fees including a DNA analysis fee and a sex offender investigation fee.
According to the Beacon News, Adams worked as a network specialist for the City of Aurora prior to his October 2016 arrest. He was originally charged with two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse and one count of indecent solicitation of a child. After his conviction, Adams was first required to register as a sex offender in 2017.
Adams' bond in the Kendall County case was set at $100,000. In the Kane County case, it was set at $250,000. He is due in Kendall County court on Dec. 26, according to court records.
West Virginia man sentenced for molesting 3 children
“I want to thank the victims for their courage in coming forth to testify, as well as Detective Steven Sommers with the Mercer County Sheriff’s Department for his skillful handling of this unfortunate situation,” said Prosecuting Attorney George Stiller. “I would also like to thank Sgt. Melissa Clemons of the West Virginia State Police, Crimes Against Children Unit for her additional assistance in this case.”
Collins’ jury trial took place back in September. During the proceedings, two of the three victims shared their testimony detailing the horrors they suffered. The prosecution also played recorded statements from Collins during which he confessed to molesting the children. Collins said he had been molested as a child.
The sentencing hearing was held in front of Circuit Court Judge Mark Wills.
Mercer Co., WVA
Iowa man pleads not guilty to sexually abusing 5 y/o
Posted By: Mike Bunge KIMT3
CHARLES CITY, Iowa – A Nora Springs man is pleading not guilty to three counts of 2nd degree sexual abuse.
Olson is also charged with possession of marijuana-1st offense.
He entered not guilty pleas to all charges Monday in Floyd County District Court. No trial date has been set.
Illinois man tries to stop sex in driveway
and gets punched in the head
TONY REID tony.reid@lee.net DECATUR — Police said a Decatur man who tried to stop two men from having sex in a car parked in a driveway was repeatedly punched in the face early Saturday.
A sworn affidavit from Decatur Police officer Jeremy Williams said the incident happened in Hyde Park Court on the south edge of Decatur off of U.S. 51 just before 3:30 a.m. Williams said the 26-year-old victim, who was described as a friend of the alleged assailant, had been asked to intervene and stop the sexual activity by the owner of the driveway where the car was parked.
“...The homeowner of the residence did not like the fact that this was occurring in his driveway and advised (the victim) to notify his (friend, and the friend’s partner) to leave the property,” Williams said.
Williams said the 21-year-old assailant then “became irate” before punching the victim in the head four times, leaving him with redness, swelling and bruising injuries police recorded with photographs.
The man was booked on a preliminary charge of battery and is free after posting $1,000 bond.
Oregon man center of child pornography investigation
By Chelsea Deffenbacher, Register Guard
A registered sex offender living near the University of Oregon is the subject of a child porn investigation after Eugene police received three separate tips about his online activity.
Gregory Donald Hessel, 31, was charged with five counts of second-degree encouraging child sex abuse last week. The tips came in to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and were forwarded to local authorities by the Oregon Department of Justice.
According to a search warrant affidavit filed in Lane County Circuit Court Nov. 13 and made publicly available following Hessel’s Nov. 19 arrest, Google provided information to the national organization about Hessel’s Google photo account, where inappropriate photos were allegedly stored.
The information included a phone number and recent logins linked to Hessel’s account, which was under the fictitious name of “Taz Lockwood.” The IP address linked back to a female Comcast internet subscriber at an apartment in Eugene, which eventually led police to Hessel, according to the affidavit.
Hessel, the affidavit states, was convicted in 2011 of second-degree encouraging child sex abuse and in 2015 of third-degree rape and sodomy.
During the Eugene police investigation, 77 photos of suspected child pornography were found in Hessel’s online photo account and were of female children, ages 4 to 10 years old, according to the affidavit.
Hessel’s next court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 26. He remains incarcerated at the Lane County Jail.
PA man accused of filming sexual assault of girl, using concealed camera to take sexual photos
By Becky Metrick | pennlive.com
A Lebanon County man is in custody this week after police accused him of filming himself sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl and taking semi-nude photos of her with a concealed camera.
Police obtained a search warrant for Livering’s residnce in the first block of North Fifth Street on Nov. 4, and seized mobile devices, various storage devices, a computer and pinhole cameras they said were designed to discreetly capture digital images.
Forensic analysis of the storage devices recovered several photos and videos of the relative in various stages of undress, police said, and appeared to be captured by a concealed camera.
There were also videos depicting Livering sexually assaulting the girl while she was asleep, police said.
Livering was charged with four counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, six counts of indecent assault, 60 counts of sexual abuse of a. child - possession and manufacture of child pornography and 30 counts of invasion of privacy.
Livering was arrested on Nov. 21 and arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Maria Dissinger. Livering was placed in Lebanon County Correctional Facility on $300,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 29, according to online court documents.
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