Local, national boy scouts sued over ex-leader's alleged sexual abuse
Monroe Trombly, Mansfield News Journal
A lawsuit accuses the organizations of failing to provide a safe environment and negligence, (Jake May, AP)
MANSFIELD - A lawsuit has been filed against Boy Scouts of America and Heart of Ohio Council in Richland County Common Pleas Court, accusing the organizations of failing to provide a safe environment and negligence, attorneys said in a news release.
Although the complaint does not yet appear in online court records, attorneys say the lawsuit was filed Friday on behalf of an Ohio boy who says he was sexually exploited by Thomas Close, a former scout leader who was sentenced last month to 30 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting children, as well as receiving and distributing child pornography.
Close, 39, was a swim instructor known as "Aqua Joe" who set up cameras in tents and restrooms, filming boys while they changed.
Close, of Shelby, was scout leader for Troop 406, according to the lawsuit.
The boy, identified as "John Doe" in the lawsuit, joined scouting in 2007 as a cub scout. When he was 11, he joined Boy Scouts.
Thomas Close (Photo: File)
When the boy joined Close's troop around Aug. 2017, the lawsuit alleges Close began grooming him to sexually abuse him.
Close, who is also a former teacher with the Ashland County-West Holmes Career Center, befriended the boy's parents to gain their trust, the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit alleges that Close recorded the boy removing his clothes at Seven Ranges Scout Reservation in Columbiana County and East Harbor State Park in Ottawa County.
The boy suffers from severe emotional distress, confusion, humiliation, fright and anxiety, the lawsuit says, and a jury trial has been demanded, in addition to compensatory damages in excess of $25,000 and punitive damages.
The lawsuit claims Boy Scouts of America (BSA) failed to adequately supervise Close, and that BSA has a "longstanding" problem with scout leaders sexually abusing children, producing and possessing child pornography.
BSA and Heart of Ohio Council knew or should have known the danger that sexual abusers presented to scouts before the boy was abused by Close, the lawsuit argues, saying that the groups failed to implement policies to prevent and identify child sexual abuse and exploitation in scouting programs.
Heart of Ohio Council consolidated in 2017 with the Buckeye Council and Greater Cleveland Council, the News Journal reported at the time. The councils are service centers overseeing all things scouting, such as customer service, insurance and camp operations, maintenance and upkeep. The Buckeye Council did not return a request for comment in time for publication.
Friday's lawsuit is the latest in a string against BSA, which is one of the largest youth organizations in the country, with more than 2.4 million youth participants and nearly 1 million adult volunteers, according to its website. BSA did not respond to a request for comment for this article.
Eight men who say that they were sexually abused as children by BSA leaders sued the organization in Washington D.C. last month, leveling charges similar to those in the local lawsuit.
The organization, which is considering bankruptcy, faces allegations of sexual abuse from about 800 men across the country.
In Richland County, the boy is being represented by Lebanon attorney Konrad Kircher, with assistance from Paul Mones, of California, and James R. Marsh, of New York. "My client and his family will hold the Boy Scouts of America accountable for the injuries he suffered," Kircher said in a statement. "The safety of young innocent boys must be a priority for the Boy Scouts of America."
Mones' firm, according to a news release, won a $19.9 million verdict in 2010 against BSA, resulting in the release of the organization's "perversion files."
The files, according to the lawsuit, are a subset of the organization's "ineligible volunteer files" (I.V. Files), which are described in the lawsuit as an internal system that kept track of scout leaders who had been accused of sexual abuse and exploitation of minors.
The lawsuit alleges BSA wanted to keep the "perversion file" system secret, instructing local councils not to keep file materials at their offices and instead send them to BSA's national office in Washington D.C. and destroy any copies.
BSA executives reviewed and destroyed thousands of "I.V. Files," in the 1970s, the lawsuit says, and about 6,000 files remain, with 1,900 in the public domain.
The lawsuit argues the existence of the files illustrates that BSA had evidence that "scouting was continuously attracting pedophiles across time and geography and of scouting's distinctive characteristics that make it attractive to pedophiles."
Where there is honey, there will be flies!
Anyone with information about the activities of Close is urged to contact Kircher at 513-932-2115, or konrad@rittgers.com
Niagara Falls, NY, School District named in
2 more Child Victims Act lawsuits
Both involve allegations against former music teachers
Author: Dave McKinley, WGRZ
BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Niagara Falls City School District is named in two separate, recently filed lawsuits under New York State’s Child Victims Act. Both claim abuse by former music teachers.
In one case, a 37-year-old Erie County woman alleges that while attending Gaskill Middle School her band teacher, Philip R. Sims, sexually abused her during instructional periods within the school.
The lawsuit further alleges the plaintiff’s mother notified the school district of the alleged abuse, but that it failed to report the allegations to police or complete a written report as required whenever allegations of abuse in an educational setting are alleged.
In court papers, it is stated that prior to teaching at Gaskill, Sims also taught at Hyde Park Elementary school and LaSalle High School.
The suit filed on the woman’s behalf also names the Niagara Wheatfield School District as a defendant.
It alleges that Sims taught band there until he was fired in 1987 amid “awareness and/or strong suspicion” that he had engaged with an inappropriate relationship with a student there, including “non-consensual sexual contact with a minor”.
Sims, according to the lawsuit, was then hired to teach in Niagara Falls.
The lawsuit contends that despite having “credible allegations of sexual abuse by Sims prior to his application for employment with the Niagara Falls City School District”, Niagara Wheatfield failed to disclose this “in violation of statutory and common law obligations.” It further alleges that Niagara Falls failed to conduct adequate background checks before hiring Sims
Several years after the plaintiff alleges that Sims sexually abused her, Sims was charged criminally in a 2004 case where he pleaded guilty to Sodomy in the Second Degree admitting that in 2001 he engaged in sexual contact with someone he knew to be under the age of 15. He served several months in jail and was subsequently listed on the sex offender registry. The victim in that case has also filed a suit under the Child Victim’s Act.
In another lawsuit naming the Niagara Falls City School District, the plaintiff accuses Patrick Kuciewski, a former band teacher at Niagara Falls High School, of sexually abusing her when she was a young teen. Here again, the lawsuit accuses the district of ignoring warning signs that Kuciewski posed a risk to children.
The plaintiff alleges the abuse occurred in the late 1990s. She is the second plaintiff to file a suit against the school district which names Kuciewski as the perpetrator.
Kuciewski went on to work in the district for 31 years until 2013, when he became the subject of a highly publicized criminal probe regarding allegations against him. Kuciewski, however, was never criminally charged due to the statute of limitations having run out. He left the district a short time later.
The Child Victims Act, passed by the state legislature and signed by the governor last year, gives adult victims of child sex abuse until next September to bring civil suits against their alleged abusers, although there has been talk of extending the window.
During the time frame set forth in the legislation, plaintiffs can file suit against their alleged abusers and the institutions they worked for no matter how old they are or how long ago the abuse happened.
Franklin County, Pa, man gets 16-40 years in
child sex abuse case
By Amber South, Chambersburg
CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. — A Fayetteville man will spend at least 15 years behind bars after his communication with an undercover agent on an anonymous messaging app revealed he had raped a child and was in possession of child pornography.
Stewart William Hake, 36, was sentenced Wednesday to 16 to 40 years in prison, with credit for 319 days he already served, according to online court records.
Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Todd Sponseller issued the sentence in connection with Hake's guilty plea for rape of a child. It runs concurrently to a sentence of two to four years imprisonment for each of the 30 counts of child porn to which he also pleaded guilty.
He will be required to serve one year of probation following his release from prison.
Hake was involved with an online chat group where members documented the sexual abuse of children, according to court documents.
He was first charged with rape of a child and related counts in July 2018 after an undercover agent from the Kentucky Attorney General's Office contacted him under the guise of joining the group, which was on the free messaging app Kik.
Hake told the agent he had been sexually assaulting a girl for more than six months, according to court documents. He encouraged the agent to have a sexual relationship with a child and gave instructions on how to make it happen. The agent reported in court documents that he had been immediately asked to share sexually explicit images of a child in order to join the group.
A forensic exam later confirmed that the girl had been sexually assaulted. The girl said she had told no one about the abuse.
After receiving notification from authorities in Kentucky, Pennsylvania State Police executed a search warrant at Hake's home on Cedarbrook Court, Greene Township. Hake admitted to taking a photo of a nude Franklin County girl with his phone and sharing it in the "lovegroup" on Kik, according to court documents. The group required members to share “live” proof of child abuse.
In an outside trash can, police found a duffel bag containing a laptop that Hake smashed before police arrived.
Police seized the computer's hard drive and a Samsung cell phone. Hake was charged in November 2018 with 151 counts of child pornography after a forensic analysis turned up 12 child-porn images on the hard drive and 47 images and 92 videos on the cell phone.
As part of Hake's plea agreement, 121 counts of child porn were dropped, as were 10 charges related to rape of a child, court records show.
NY man in jail for sex abuse sentenced on
child pornography charge
A Utica man already serving seven years in prison for sexually abusing two children in Rome has now been sentenced for possession of child pornography, according to law enforcement officials.
James Caruso, 57, was sentenced in Federal Court on Wednesday to five years in prison for receiving and possessing child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Caruso was also sentenced to 10-years of post-release supervision.
Authorities said Caruso purchased and received child pornography from a foreign website. When his computer was searched, authorities said they found 131 videos and 32 images.
According to state records, Caruso was previously convicted in Oneida County Court in 2017 of first-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.
Authorities said Caruso sexually abused two girls in Rome, ages 8 and 10. Caruso was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2018.
Victim of alleged sex assaults in Hawaii reveals his identity
By Chelsea Jensen West Hawaii Today
As a civil lawsuit alleging a Waimea businessman sexually abused a 12-year-old boy decades ago nears trial, the victim in the case is revealing his identity.
A court filing last week relinquished the fictitious identity of the man who alleges in the 2018 civil suit sexual abuse by David McCollough, owner and operator of RT’s Service and Tow Guys, sometime between 1997 and 1998.
“The plaintiff … has revealed his identity as Trel Mangarin, formerly of Waimea,” a statement prepared by Mangarin’s attorney Kris A. LaGuire reads. “Mangarin, who grew up in Waimea and is now 34 years old, has voluntarily relinquished the previously-Court approved confidentiality of his identity that was imposed at the outset of the case.”
“Mangarin wants the community to know his true identity as the victim of McCollough’s abuse, and by doing so, he hopes to support and empower other victims of child sexual abuse to speak out against their abusers,” the statement continued.
According to the civil lawsuit filed in September 2018, the incidents occurred in Waimea sometime between 1997 and 1998 when the now-identified Mangarin was 12 years old and in sixth grade. Court documents state the boy had visited the defendant’s home on several occasions, including overnight visits.
“McCollough is the step father of one of Mangarin’s childhood friends and was an assistant coach on their youth soccer team at the time of the incidents,” the statement reads, noting that the abuse is alleged to have occurred on several occasions when Mangarin, then a sixth-grader, stayed at the man’s home.
According to filings, the plaintiff developed various coping mechanisms and symptoms of psychological disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, repression and disassociation.
The case is being pursued in the civil realm because the abuse occurred 20 years ago. Hawaii law permits civil action in sexual abuse cases so long as a certificate of merit is filed with the court.
The plaintiff is seeking damages on three counts: gross negligence, negligent infliction of emotional distress and punitive damages.
Jury trial is set to commence March 24 with jury selection getting underway on March 17 in Kona Circuit Court Judge Robert D.S. Kim’s courtroom.
Woman charged with being an accomplice in
Guam child sex assault
By Steve Limtiaco, Pacific Daily News USA TODAY NETWORK
A 46-year-old woman is accused of being an accomplice in the sexual assault of a child, according to a magistrate’s complaint filed Monday in the Superior Court of Guam.
Natasha Renee Quitugua Peters induced or aided sexual assaults allegedly committed by Duayne Richard Peters, charging documents state.
The alleged assaults happened as early as March 2012, involving a child known to both Natasha Peters and Duayne Peters, documents state.
Combined mugshot of Duayne Peters and Natasha Peters (Photo: Courtesy of Department of Corrections)
A woman told police that as a child she was sexually assaulted by Duayne Peters several times between 2012 and 2019. She reported the assaults to police last June, documents state. She stated she was sexually assaulted while in middle school and in high school.
Natasha Peters told police that she was present during one of the reported sexual assaults and saw another sexual assault, charging documents state.
Duayne Peters, 45, who has been living on Saipan, was arrested at the Guam airport Saturday by detectives when he returned to Guam, police stated.
Police arrested Duayne Peters in connection with: first-degree criminal sexual conduct; second-degree criminal sexual conduct; child abuse; and family violence. Charging documents for Duayne Peters have not been filed, although his alleged criminal acts are cited in the charging documents for Natasha Peters.
Natasha Peters has been charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct via complicity and two counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct via complicity.
The charges include a special allegation of vulnerable victim because they involve violent felonies allegedly committed by two or more people against a child younger than 14. That special allegation carries an additional sentence of five years to 25 years if convicted.
Federal child sexual exploitation charges filed
against N. Dakota couple
ANDREA JOHNSON
ajohnson@minotdailynews.com
Six counts of sexual exploitation of a child have been filed against Katie Heidinger, 31, of Velva, and Derrick Stephen Walker, 43, of Minot, in U.S. District Court. In addition, Heidinger has been charged in U.S. District Court with distribution of images depicting the sexual exploitation of children and Walker has been charged with receipt of images depicting the sexual exploitation of children.
Both Heidinger and Walker had previously been charged in district court. According to court affidavits, the McHenry County Sheriff’s Department tipped off the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation after they received a report that Heidinger had sexually abused the three young boys in McHenry County, taken video recordings and still images of the abuse with her cell phone, and shared them with Walker via Snap Chat. Heidinger admitted abusing the boys and sending the images to Walker between August 2019 and Monday, Jan. 6.
Heidinger was charged in district court in McHenry County with three counts of Class AA felony gross sexual imposition for allegedly sexually abusing three boys ranging in age from 1 to 6, Class A felony promoting an obscene performance by a minor child for allegedly recording herself sexually abusing a small boy, and Class C felony possession of child pornography for the images found on her cell phone.
Walker was charged in district court in Ward County with three counts of Class C felony possession of child pornography.
Court records show that a jury trial has been set for March 31 in U.S. District Court for Heidinger and Walker.
Deltona, Fla, man charged with child sex abuse
following burglary investigation
Anthony DeFeo
WVBeacon
A Deltona man who reported his gun stolen after an anonymous sex party at his home last July has been arrested on multiple counts of sexual abuse of a child, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office.
Randall C. Allen, 63, a retired corrections officer from Illinois, was arrested Thursday night after an investigation and sting operation that stemmed from an investigation into another burglary at his home, according to Sheriff’s Office spokesman Andrew Gant.
Deputies responded to Allen’s home on Giovanni Street on the evening of Jan. 14 after he reported his home was burglarized. Allen told deputies it all started when he had gotten a message from someone he met on Grindr, a dating and meetup app geared toward the LGBT+ community. The person asked to meet at a Walmart store.
“Allen went to Walmart, and while he was there, he got an alert from his home security system that someone was at his front door, and he watched the burglary unfold,” Gant said in a news release. “Through the course of that investigation, it was learned that Allen was having sexual contact with a juvenile.”
As the investigation continued, detectives learned the boy had been to Allen’s home at least a dozen times dating back to when he was 14 years old, that he had been sexually abused by Allen on multiple occasions, and that Allen knew his age, according to Gant.
“The boy said Allen told him if he was ever caught, to lie to the police and say he’d told Allen he was 18,” Gant added.
Deputies charged Allen with six counts of lewd or lascivious battery. On Thursday, detectives conducted an undercover chat sting operation with Allen, during which, Gant said, he requested to meet up with the teenager for sex again.
“Allen traveled to meet the victim at a Burger King, where he was arrested on the six counts, along with additional charges of traveling to meet a minor, attempted lewd or lascivious battery, and unlawful use of a two-way communication device,” Gant said.
The teenage victim was also charged with various crimes he is accused of committing in four separate cases at Allen’s home.
“His charges are conspiracy, armed burglary and grand theft of a firearm in the burglary described above; grand theft of a motor vehicle in a second case; vehicle burglary and attempted grand theft of a motor vehicle in a third case; and grand theft of a firearm in a fourth case from July of last year,” Gant said.
There were initially no suspects in the theft of the firearm last July due to the large number of anonymous party guests at Allen’s home.
Gant said two others were arrested in connection with different aspects of these cases. A juvenile accomplice was charged with conspiracy, armed burglary, and grand theft of a firearm in the burglary of Allen's house while Allen was at Walmart.
A third suspect, 19 years old, was charged with conspiracy, armed burglary, grand theft of a motor vehicle, grand theft of a firearm, interference with custody, and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor for his role in the events.
Allen remained held at the Volusia County Branch Jail on $215,000 bail Friday morning.
Texarkana Police searching for child sexual abuse suspect
By Field Walsh
Texarkana, Texas Police are searching for Premium Clark on a charge of Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child under 14 years old.
According to police, Detective Tabitha Smith has been trying to track him down all week, but he keeps refusing to make contact with her.
Shortly after police posted on Facebook that they were looking for him Clark commented claiming he would turn himself in today.
If you know where he is, please give us a call at 903-798-3116 or Texarkana Area Crime Stoppers at 903-793-STOP.
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