I honestly thought I was going to jail … I was wrong for what I did. I wanted to bring attention to the cause.California resident William Lynch • Discussing the verdict reached in his assault case, which involved him punching Jerold Lindner, a former priest whom Lynch says abused him as a child, in a 2010 incident. Lynch was acquitted of felony assault and elder abuse in the case, but the jury deadlocked on a misdemeanor assault charge. Jurors, speaking anonymously, said that they could not convict Lynch based on his dramatic testimony in court. Lindner, now in his late 60s, denies abusing Lynch.
See this guy? His name is William Lynn, and he just became the first US church official to be convicted of mishandling child abuse claims levied at the church. Lynn was secretary of clergy of the Philadelphia archdiocese from 1992 to 2004, and is said to have protected priests accused of child molestation by transferring them to other ministries (according to prosecutors, he’d tell the parishes that the priests were leaving due to “health reasons”). He was charged with two counts of child endangerment and one count of conspiracy, but the jury found him guilty only on one of the child endangerment charges, so he’ll spend a maximum of seven years behind bars. (Photo: AP) source
So the situation with Sandusky’s son takes an ever sharper turn, as NBC News now reports that the Penn State coach did not testify under threat that the prosecution would use his adopted son, recently revealed as a potential victim, as a witness.
The Second Mile said it has been financially crippled by the child-sex abuse scandal involving its founder and onetime public face and concluded after a six-month internal review that it had no other option but to close.
The State College-based charity began the legal process of dissolving itself Friday, submitting a plan to Centre County Court that would transfer its programs and millions of dollars in assets to Arrow Child & Family Ministries Inc., a $36 million charity that operates in Texas, Pennsylvania, Maryland, California and Honduras.
Sandusky, a former Penn State coach, is accused of using his role with The Second Mile to target children for abuse.
EDIT: A statement from the founder of the charity taking over their assets.
Without the Internet and YouTube, [Joseph Kony’s] dastardly deeds would not resonate with politicians. When you get 100 million Americans looking at something, you will get our attention.Sen. Lindsey Graham • On the effect Kony 2012 has had on lawmakers. Yesterday, over a third of the Senate co-sponsored a bill condemning Kony’s actions; now, Graham and other members of Congress are working on a “bounty bill” to help encourage the capture (or “disappearing,” shall we say) of Kony, the now-infamous Ugandan warlord. Graham’s bosom buddy, John McCain, echoed his colleague’s sentiments, saying that “if not ending up dead, [Kony] could end up in the International Criminal Court, and it’d be a wonderful thing.” Now, there’s been a lot of controversy surrounding Kony 2012 and its creators; however, regardless of what you think of the organization behind the effort, it’s inspiring that something as simple as a YouTube video can actually spur Congress into action. It’s also nice to see Democrats and Republicans agree on something for once. source (via • follow)
They are purposefully depriving him of this opportunity (to shave) so he looks unkempt.Lawyer Victor Acevedo • Discussing the treatment of his client, teacher Mark Berndt, who stands accused of doing unspeakable things to his Miramonte Elementary School students. (Trigger warning on that link.) Berndt pleaded not guilty today in court, and his lawyer says that Berndt’s disheveled appearance prevented him from going in front of court with dignity. Acevedo also complained that his jailers identified Berndt as a child molester over the jail’s loudspeaker. “We cannot have the sheriff’s department deputies acting in such a way to essentially put a bull’s-eye on his head,” he told reporters after the hearing. The sheriff’s office took the claim seriously, investigating the complaint, which was denied by jail officials.
Today’s awful story of sexual predation: Did you know that sex offenders on probation, under California state law, can’t light their houses up on Halloween? Well, they can’t, and when authorities in Los Angeles conducted a four-day sweep of 251 houses occupied by sex offenders, they found five probationers in violation of this law. According to LA County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, one of them ”had a trap door in his bedroom leading to a basement where officers found a chair and rope.” There was also a married couple with a fully decorated home, on probation for molesting their own children and found to be in possession of child pornography. If anyone has any stories involving, say, a bunch of puppies who courageously drag their owner to safety from a burning house, now would be a great time to let us know, ‘cause we sure need an upper.
One father’s bold stand at Penn State: John Marko spent his time before Saturday’s Penn State game holding up signs protesting the school’s child abuse scandal. “Put abused kids first,” one said. “Don’t be fooled, they all knew. Tom Bradley, everyone must go.” It was a tough crowd. To give an idea of what he dealt with for holding it up, here’s one comment he got: “That is such bull–-! Who the f– do you think you are?” He got nailed by a beer and hit in the stomach. But he stayed out there anyway, holding up his signs. (Photo by Nathan Fenno of The Washington Times; story via Mark Wilson on Google+)
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godinezzz asks: I saw what you did there. Considering you have a high number of readers and do an awful lot of news coverage, I'm not too sure why it is you felt compelled to make a rape joke.
» SFB says: Wait a minute. We didn’t make a rape joke. Rather, we tried to phrase things carefully by using the term “child sexual abuse.” All we were trying to do was have a conversation. We were not trying to make any sort of joke on the topic, but rather discuss a serious topic. We felt uncomfortable about the way it was used in that piece. And we were just trying to make a point about finding a balance. We’re sorry if we disappointed you. We will do better. — Ernie @ SFB
We believe that there was a criminal offense involved and that there was substantial evidence to indicate that and under normal circumstances … a charge could have been made.Rockport, Texas Police Chief Tim Jayroe • Discussing the case of Hillary Adams, the 23-year-old who posted a video of her father — a Texas judge — brutally spanking her with a belt. The video, from 2004, would have been worthy of criminal charges against William Adams, according to Jayroe … if the statute of limitations had not run out. Considering the damage to William Adams’ reputation as a result of the release of the video, it may be enough to derail his career as a judge that focuses on child abuse cases. “I would think it would be very difficult,” noted Aransas, Texas, County Judge C.H. “Burt” Mills Jr. “Personally I don’t see how he can recover from this.” For William Adams’ part, he claims the situation looks worse than it is, and in a statement he released to the press, claimed the video was intended as blackmail: “Hillary warned her father if he reduced her financial support, and took away her Mercedes automobile, which her father had provided, he would live to regret it.” source (via • follow)
Yesterday, this brutal video made the rounds. In it, a then-16-year-old girl was brutally attacked by her father for downloading music illegally on the internet back in 2004. (Warning: it’s a tough watch.) The girl, Hillary Adams, now 23, released the video as her parents were in the midst of a custody battle. She secretly taped the incident and only told him about the video recently. ”I told him I had the video,” she said. “He didn’t seem to think anything of it, and basically dared me to post it.” On its own, it seems like a harsh overreaction, but it’s made all the worse when you consider that the father in the video is a county judge who specializes in child abuse cases. You’d imagine that this would be the kind of case he’d have to deal with at his job. Based on comments the Texas judge has made, he may not be very remorseful over the incident. Here are some reactions:
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