Boy Scouts ‘perversion files’ list 7,800 suspected pedophiles

Quote:
Confidential files on suspected pedophiles maintained by the Boy Scouts of America contain the names of 7,800 individuals, an attorney for child sex abuse victims said Tuesday.

The organization’s so-called “perversion files” have been previously disclosed through litigation but the number of alleged abusers had not been known, attorney Jeff Anderson, who represents former scouts who say they were sexually abused, said Tuesday.

Anderson said a child abuse expert hired by the Scouts revealed the staggering number during testimony in a lawsuit in January.

“The alarming thing about this is not just the number but the fact is that the Boy Scouts of America has never actually released these names in any form that can be known to the public,” he said at a Manhattan news conference.

Quote:
In a statement to Fox News on Tuesday, the Boy Scouts of America said: “We care deeply about all victims of child abuse and sincerely apologize to anyone who was harmed during their time in Scouting.”

@white_swan53 Said

link


While this whole topic makes me angry because there was a time when kids were not listened to .If a kid pointed at an adult and used any words defining abuse or touching or sex , if that adult was considered ' an upstanding ,tax paying, leader in the community , if the kid told someone be it parents, teachers, preacher ,cops, a priest ... 9 times out of 10 it was the kid who was punished for lying. I guess what really makes me angry is how the BSA organization kept these files from 1959 to 1985 involving more then 12,000 victims and close to 8,000 pedophiles quiet, never giving the authorities the names of the suspected pedophiles

This is the best the organization has to offer

@Eaglebauer Said

From what I'm reading, the files were compiled from '59 to '85 and the current policy of the scouts is that anyone within scouting who is aware of abuse is mandated to report it to law enforcement.

What it sounds like is that 34 years ago they weren't dealing with the information correctly but they currently are...maybe I'm reading that wrong? If I'm right, I'm guessing few if any people involved in BSA today had anything to do with how wrong things were when the list was kept.

@Leon Said

Pedophiles who wish to be near children seek avenues to do just that. So it makes sense that the Boy Scouts would be one of the first they would look into, with their practice of taking in volunteers who don’t have to be dads themselves, nor have to have extensive certification training (such as teachers, doctors, even priests for that matter).

The 7,800 perpetrators and 12,000 victims is just those that have been reported of course. And knowing what we have learned about the nature of such crimes (see the recent Michael Jackson HBO documentary), you can probably multiply that to estimate the total number of victims when including those that go unreported.

I am not sure what measures have been taken in recent years, but I would think that much more stringent background checks need to be in place for anyone who wishes to volunteer, and perhaps the requirement that they have active sons in the Scouts may not be a bad idea.

My son will not be joining this organization.

@white_swan53 Said

I agree that there aren't if any one still involved in the organization today that was during the time the files were being filed away and the list kept secret.
Even though it's 'history' , it still pisses me off when I think of all those kids not being listened to . I suppose it could be because I grew up during that time and remember how it was when a kid tried to 'speak up ' for themselves.

@Electric_Banana Said

Boyscouts, Preachers, Michael Jackson

Faaaaar too many pedos cropping up over the past twenty years to be believable

Unless we're existing in pedophile hell...in which case I'ma be really pissed off and want my money back

@white_swan53 Said

Shoot if there's a lot of it, I want your money too....
I'm gonna ask ,, why are you pissed off , at whom is your anger directed and what money ?