And the best part is, they aren't scout leaders

[OldGreyEagle]

Taken from a search of the last two weeks, Allentown, PA's daily newspaper, "the morning call"

 

 

Pottsville man accused of filming students was investigated before.

 

By Chris Parker

Of The Morning Call

 

A coach accused of secretly videotaping female students in various states of undress in a Pottsville Catholic high school was reported to police in February for allegedly touching a female student inappropriately.

Longtime Nativity BVM High School track and field coach Daniel M. Shields, 61, of 30 Bryn Mawr Ave., Pottsville, allegedly taped three Nativity students, two 17-year-olds and an 18-year-old, in April and May.

Schuylkill County District Attorney Frank R. Cori said the victims told authorities that Shields had been suspended in February for inappropriately touching a student.

Cori said he has yet to verify that with school officials.

However, Allentown Diocese spokesman Matt Kerr said Thursday that the ''matter was referred to local law enforcement, the Pottsville police. They made the determination that it was not a criminal matter.''

Calls to the Pottsville police were not immediately returned.

Cori said the tape was taken from Shields' home in June by two recent Nativity graduates.

Cori would not say how the two got into Shields' home, but said there were no plans at this time to charge them.

The two had the tape for two months. Cori said it took some time for them to watch it. ''It's a peculiar 8mm videotape that only fits into certain minicams,'' he said.

The two graduates ''watched it twice, then apparently the word got out,'' Cori said. ''The mother of one of the girls called [one of them, and he] and his mother brought the tape in to police.''

Cori said police have searched Shields' house, confiscating two 8mm tapes, a camcorder, Shields' driver's license, seven unmarked VHS tapes, a copy of a men's magazine, a computer and an 8mm camera, among other items.

They also searched his school office and storage space, according to a search warrant issued Thursday, seizing a cardboard box with a hole cut in one side.

According to an affidavit of probable cause, Shields, a boys track coach for 35 years and girls track coach for 11 years, taped the girls while they were in a sports training room close to his office.

Shields was charged with sexual abuse of children, corruption of minors and invasion of privacy, arraigned late Tuesday by District Judge James K. Reiley, Pottsville, and released on $50,000 bail.

-----------------------------------------------------

Judge finds North Whitehall man guilty of sexual assault

He faces prison sentence for attempted rape of girl in Montco.

 

By Pervaiz Shallwani

Of The Morning Call

 

A North Whitehall Township man who once taught parents and children about staying safe from sexual predators was found guilty Wednesday of sexually assaulting a girl over a five-year period in North Wales and Harleysville.

Kenneth Klett stood expressionless as Montgomery County Judge Thomas Rogers read his verdict in the nonjury trial. He found Klett guilty of all four charges: attempted rape, involuntary deviant sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault and corruption of a minor.

Klett, 60, of 5641 Wynnewood Drive, still faces charges in Connecticut, where there is an outstanding warrant in a similar case involving another teenage girl.

During the 1990s, Klett owned a franchise of a business called Safe-T-Child in Connecticut, where he visited school districts to teach parents and children how to avoid sexual abuse and abductions.

''This defendant was in a position where he was actually mentoring and teaching in schools and communities how children and how parents should stay safe from physical and sexual assaults,'' said Assistant District Attorney Barbara Ashcroft.

Klett, who tried to commit suicide last week while in county prison, was led out of the courtroom by guards. He had been free on $99,000 bail, but was sent to prison earlier this month after he failed to appear for a hearing.

The area girl, now 16, embraced her mother after the verdict.

''I think she had moved from victim to survivor,'' Ashcroft said. ''I think that road that she has traveled has been very difficult and emotional, but today I could see in her eyes that she is a survivor and will do just fine.''

Sentencing was deferred Wednesday, but because Klett faces a mandatory five to 10 years in prison and needs medical and mental health treatment, defense attorney Geoff Paine persuaded Rogers to send his client to state prison immediately.

''Go ahead and get him there now, because there is more help that he can get there as far as his medical condition,'' Paine said, referring to neck injuries Klett suffered in a fall from a ladder.

In an agreement with the Montgomery County district attorney's office that kept the girl from testifying, Klett consented to a trial where all evidence was taken from court documents instead of testimony and decided by Rogers instead of a jury.

In return, prosecutors will ask Rogers to cap Klett's prison sentence at the mandatory length.

If Rogers decides not to accept the plea, Klett could face up to 65 years in prison.

In the documents reviewed by Rogers, Lower Salford Township police learned in February 2004 that Klett assaulted a girl from 1997 to 2000 in North Wales and in 2001 and 2002 in Harleysville.

Police learned of the incidents after the girl told her mother about Klett's abuse.

The complaint says Klett touched the girl, engaged in sexual acts, and warned her not to tell anyone or ''horrible things would happen.''

Klett also faces charges of sexual assault and two counts of risking injury to a minor in Southington, Conn.

Prosecutors there have been waiting for the Montgomery County case to end to extradite him on those charges, Ashcroft said.

''Montgomery County will hand him over to Connecticut,'' she said. ''Connecticut is going to prosecute him and certainly we're going to motivate them to run any sentences involving the Connecticut charges consecutively.''

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Men Charged With Having Child Porn On Computers Waive Hearings

 

MAXATAWNY TOWNSHIP

A Maxatawny Township man and his former partner waived their preliminary hearings Wednesday on charges stemming from the alleged discovery of child pornography on computers in their home.

The case against Donald D. Detsch, 58, of Maxatawny Township, and Daniel W. Schaffer, 56, who now lives in Upper Milord Township, will move to trial in Berks County Court, according to District Judge Gail Greth's office.

They were arrested last month after police traced a photograph of a nude child that was uploaded to America Online to the home that Detsch shared with Schaffer, according to county detectives. In the photo, the child is engaged in a sexual activity.

Police seized 500 computer discs, two computers and other items from the home, authorities said.

Detsch, who has taught psychology at Montgomery County Community College, Northampton Community College and DeSales University, and Schaffer, a tailor, were each charged with one felony count of sexual abuse of children by possessing child pornography. They are free on bail.

-----------------------------------------------------

Orefield man who had child porn is eligible for parole

Judge sentences him to up to 23 months. He's been in prison 7 months.

 

By Debbie Garlicki

Of The Morning Call

 

A 56-year-old Orefield man who was charged in a state police investigation into child pornography was given a sentence Tuesday that will make him immediately eligible for parole.

Nephatulli Stecker, of 3440 Cougar Circle, was sentenced to time served to 23 months in Lehigh County Prison, where he has been since January. He pleaded guilty in April to sexual abuse of children by possessing child pornography.

President Judge William H. Platt also sentenced Stecker to two years of probation. Stecker is prohibited from possessing, owning or using any computer during his probation.

''I got rid of every computer in our house,'' his wife of 37 years, Darlene Stecker, told the judge.

The state's Sexual Offender Assessment Board concluded that Stecker is not a sexually violent predator under Megan's Law, which would have required community notification of his whereabouts.

 

Stecker still will have to register his address with state police and be included on the state police Megan's Law Web site, where his name, age, details of his crime and hometown will be shown next to his photograph.

Stecker, a truck driver, asked the judge if he will have to register in other states through which he travels. The judge advised him to check laws in states where his job could take him and to register in those if laws require it. Otherwise, the judge said, Stecker runs the risk of violating other states' Megan's Laws.

Last November, a state trooper began an investigation into child pornography trafficking on the Internet. The investigation led to a computer address for Stecker, Deputy District Attorney David Ritter said.

Based on that information, a search warrant was obtained for Stecker's computer, and state police found more than a dozen sexually explicit images of pre-teen girls on the computer. Stecker admitted downloading the images.

Stecker's 33-year-old daughter and his wife testified that they never noticed any inappropriate contact between Stecker and other adults or children.

Public defender Kate Roberts said Stecker, whom she described as a ''computer addict,'' had no record of improprieties with anyone before this and was not charged with trading or selling child pornography.

Crying, Stecker's daughter said her father is a loving, supportive person who has always been there for her in times of need.

His wife said she never had reason to suspect that he was viewing child pornography.

''He tells me every day how sorry he is,'' she said. ''I love him, and I want him home.''

Stecker apologized and wept. Roberts said Stecker wants to get therapy to address his problems.

The important thing, the judge said, is to get help and not do it again.

''You've paid a pretty big price already,'' the judge told Stecker.

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Boyertown Area teacher faces court on child porn charges

Images were found on Fountain Hill man's computer at school.

 

By Dan Hartzell

Of The Morning Call

A computer file with a vulgar name drew a Boyertown Area School District administrator's attention to photos and videos of children engaged in sex acts on a math teacher's personal computer at school, according to testimony Monday.

Boyertown Area Senior High School teacher Peter J. Lamana, 38, of 500 Norway Place, Fountain Hill, was charged April 1 with sexual abuse of children and having obscene materials.

Berks County Assistant District Attorney Ellen R. West dropped the obscenity charge, leaving Lamana to face two counts of sexual abuse of children one count for 36 still photos allegedly found on his computer and one count for nine videos.

At the end of Lamana's hearing, Boyertown District Judge Michael G. Hartman sent the case to county court for trial.

West said prosecutors have no indication that Lamana, who taught at Saucon Valley High School in the 1990s, had inappropriate contact with any children. In Pennsylvania, just the possession of images of child porn is a felony.

 

Karla Volpi, information technology manager for the Boyertown district, testified she accessed Lamana's computer while investigating a virus that had struck the district's system. According to court papers, she had reason to believe the virus may have come from a personal computer, not a district computer.

Volpi saw a file titled ''s---'' and in it found photos depicting naked adults engaged in sex acts, along with some participants who appeared to be younger than 18. She called then-Principal Steven R. Kline, who viewed the material and called police.

Defense lawyer Marc Neff of Philadelphia established through cross-examination that access to Lamana's computer was not password-protected, at least not on Nov. 29 when Volpi searched it, and it was the defendant's own computer, not a district machine.

Volpi could not recall if the door to Lamana's classroom was locked when she entered that morning.

Kline, now a principal in the Lower Merion School District, testified Room 802 at Boyertown High was Lamana's exclusively, except for occasional study-hall periods.

Kline said Lamana approached him at school Nov. 30, asking, ''Where's the computer that's missing from my classroom?''

The principal said the pair went to an office where police officers waited, and Lamana was shown the search warrant and a description of what was found on his computer. He said Lamana's reaction was, ''This is true, but that was all old stuff,'' referring to the photos and videos.

Kline said he advised Lamana to say no more until a representative of the teachers union could be summoned. ''Why don't you wait till we get a union rep here?'' Kline said he told the teacher.

Reading pediatrician Mark S. Reuben testified developmental aspects of some of the people in the photos show they are under 18. ''Every photo has at least one person under 18 on it,'' he said.

Lamana declined to comment after the hearing. He is scheduled for arraignment Sept. 7 at the county courthouse in Reading.

Neff would not address defense strategy, including whether he was questioning the legitimacy of the search through his questions on password protection or whether Room 802 was locked when Volpi entered.

''Would you let people from your office go into your personal computer?'' he asked reporters. ''Would you be upset by that?''

Lamana's parents attended the hearing, and his mother, Doris Lamana, afterward declared his innocence. She said the photos were accessed in error when her son ''tried to call up something else'' on his computer.

Lamana's father, Peter A. Lamana, is a supervisor in Springfield Township, Bucks County.

-----------------------------------------------------

Priest sentenced for embezzlement

He gets 3-23 months, plus probation for having child porn.

 

By Chris Parker

Of The Morning Call

 

A Schuylkill County Catholic priest who admitted owning hundreds of child pornography movies and photos and embezzling more than $23,000 from a church has been sentenced to three to 23 months in prison and 10 years' probation.

As a sex offender, the Rev. Ronald J. Yarrosh, 57, will have to register his address with state police for 10 years after he is released from prison under Megan's Law. If he had been found to be a sexually violent predator he would have had to register with police for the rest of his life.

But Yarrosh can never have another church assignment, Allentown Diocese spokesman Matt Kerr said.

''He will never be in active ministry again,'' Kerr said.

Any action to remove Yarrosh from the priesthood would have to be made by the Vatican, Kerr said.

Yarrosh was sentenced Monday by Schuylkill County President Judge William Baldwin and immediately taken to county prison.

The prison term came on a theft charge for embezzling money from St. Ambrose Church in Schuylkill Haven, where he was an assistant pastor and served on the advisory board of the parish elementary school.

He also was ordered to pay restitution of $6,617 to the church and $17,012 to Catholic Mutual Group, a self-insurance fund of the Catholic Church.

In a plea deal with prosecutors, Yarrosh pleaded guilty April 27 to three counts of sexual abuse of children, theft, receiving stolen property and criminal use of a communication faility.

Yarrosh was charged with 110 counts of sexual abuse of children after state police at Schuylkill Haven investigating the embezzlement case found hundreds of photos, magazines, videotapes and DVDs in the church rectory, on the parish computer's hard drive and at a storage unit Yarrosh owned at U-Rent-It in Hazle Township, Luzerne County.

But Assistant District Attorney Karen Byrnes-Noone dropped the number of charges so the clerk of courts office would not have to deal with a flood of paperwork. The reduction did not affect the sentence, she said.

She said one count of sexual abuse of children is for pornographic books, another for photos and the third for videos.

Yarrosh was sentenced to the probation on the child sex abuse charges.

Schuylkill District Attorney Frank R. Cori said he could not release details of the state Sexual Offenders Assessment Board's report on Yarrosh, but said his ''conduct fell short of actual improper contact with children.''

''It did not surprise me that he was not labeled a sexually violent predator,'' Cori said. ''It doesn't minimize the seriousness, but it does explain why they ruled as they did.''

While not actually committing the sexual abuse, collectors such as Yarrosh drive the demand for child pornography, Cori said.

''Child pornography does victimize children,'' he said. ''That's the evil of child pornography: In order to generate it, you are subjecting children to sexual abuse.''

Cori said he distanced himself from the case and assigned it to Byrnes-Noone because he attended St. Ambrose.

The diocese relieved Yarrosh of his duties April 23, 2004, when he was charged.

Before being assigned to St. Ambrose, Yarrosh served short stints at churches in Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Wilson, Reading and in other Schuylkill communities.

____________________________________________________

 

[jkhny]

just don't Google Boy Scout AND abuse under NEWS - it gets depressing

though at least we're seeing heterosexual abuse now.....

[Eamonn]

OGE,

While I think I understand what your point is!!

I'm sure that you like myself believe that anyone that harms or hurts a child is wrong and needs to pay the consequences.

Harming or hurting a child is a terrible thing to do and is made worse when the person who does it is a person that is someone who is trusted with looking after children.

I don't care if he or she is a teacher, priest, youth group leader or a scout leader.

I was upset when the church that I belong too had what seemed a flock of people world wide caught hurting children and I'm upset when someone from Scouting does the same thing.

Sad to say I heard only tonight that something like this has to come to light in our Council

http://www.wpxi.com/news/4882091/detail.html

The guy is fairly new to our council, only joining us last November and he has always seemed like a nice enough fellow. I don't know any more details than what I seen on the web and I'm willing to let him have his day in court before I pass judgment.

Life would be so much easier if all the people who have a tendency to do this sort of thing wore dirty rain coats and had hairy palms, sadly they don't. Just like we are told when we attend YP training, people who abuse children come in all shapes, sizes and from every walk of life, some wear dog collars and sadly some wear scout uniforms.

As parents we do our best to teach and train our children, as Scout Leaders we try to do much the same thing. Still there comes a time when we entrust our children to the care of others, when this trust is betrayed we along with the child feel hurt.

At the end of the day we can keep on training our children, both our own kids and the children we look after, we can keep trying to put obstacles in the path of people who want to abuse children and then we can pray.

Pray that it never happens again, pray for the people who have been hurt and who have had their trust violated and pray for the abuser. The Good Lord knows that they need all the help they can get; many of these people have families who feel every bit as betrayed and violated as we do when this happens.

[jkhny]

I was actually surprised to see a report of heterosexual abuse - of an older assistant Scoutmaster (female?) by another leader

 

Not meaning to be flippant but as posted elsewhere;

 

Pedophilia is the gorilla in the room nobody wants to talk about

 

It has not been addressed adequately and Idaho makes that clear. THAT made it to the light of day. I have heard too many cases where the same old "Leave Quietly" approach has been used and abuse NOT reported by volunteer and professionals in Scouting (in violation of YP and the law).

 

There are many places to lay blame - including parents who do not seem to pay attention but this is a recurring problem that has causes one major scandal in the past but remains an issue. Many cases can be prevented. The single male, one without a kid in the unit (not all are as noted elsewhere) but it is a red flag. Boyle's book should be read by any Scout Leader just to know what to look for.

[morainemom]

Eammon,

I saw that report last night. Very, very sad. I was quite shocked to learn that he had been charged, I would not have guessed that one in a million years.

 

I thought the news report was very slanted - more focus on the Scout emblem, the statue of the Boy Scout, even the doors of the Scout office - and just a mention that this had happened at his house.

[ehcalum]

Well this type of discussion always stinks, but I have a question. Jknhy you said that single male in a troop is a red flag. I myself am a bachelor scouter and have been an adult leader since my college years. Some of the parents were wary at first but soon warmed up when they see that the boys have someone they can look up to, and talk to as almost all of them have a mom or pop in the troop as committe or sm or and asm. In fact I've become a mentor to several of the boys. We have another bachelor scouter, also an eagle whos kids have long grown up and he has returned to scouting to help the youth grow and learn. I see the single male, and the single female scouter as a tool and advantage to the program rather than a red flag.

[scoutingagain]

Ehcalum,

 

Any adult that volunteers their time to support the youth members in scouting has my respect.

 

However, jkny is merely repeating something that has been mentioned by instructors in all three of the YPT classes I have attended. This is not meant to cast dispersions on you, but in most cases of adult to youth abuse, it has not been leaders who are also parents. So, it should not be unexpected that someone like yourself would be scrutinzed a little more. I suspect when you do have children of your own, and a single adult chooses to spend time with them, you will make a point of getting to know that person well.

 

The individual in our unit who is the most strict when it comes to following YP requirements, and enforcing them, is our Scoutmaster, who also happens to be a single male with no children, and has my admiration for the time he devotes to scouting.

 

SA

 

 

[jkhny]

"Well this type of discussion always stinks, but I have a question. Jknhy you said that single male in a troop is a red flag. I myself am a bachelor scouter and have been an adult leader since my college years. Some of the parents were wary at first but soon warmed up when they see that the boys have someone they can look up to, and talk to as almost all of them have a mom or pop in the troop as committe or sm or and asm. In fact I've become a mentor to several of the boys. We have another bachelor scouter, also an eagle whos kids have long grown up and he has returned to scouting to help the youth grow and learn. I see the single male, and the single female scouter as a tool and advantage to the program rather than a red flag."

 

I did not saw this was a given, I said it was a red flag. A situation where there elsewhere was proven past cause for caution. Having caught flak for being too verbose, I did not repeat my detailed qualifying comments posted previously on related threads.

 

Elsewhere I have detailed those who were clearly NOT problems but quite the opposite - local legends in Scouting.....my old sixth grade taecher, my own Scoutmaster as a kid, and our community's long serving Assistant Scoutmaster. Kudos if you are among those ranks.

 

HOWEVER, the most egregious serial abusers in Scouting - detailed by Boyle in his book DID fit that profile. "Scout's Honor" is worth reading - again if only to recognize signs and avoid repeating past mistakes.

 

And a word of warning, as an adult without kids, you'd better be meticulous in NEVER getting in a position where you can be unjustly accused of something by a boy. Too many leaders trying to help a troubled kid have had one turn on them and unjustly accuse them of something inappropriate as "payback."

 

Even if innocent, don't count on BSA vindicating you. One detailed case is in the Scouter Forum archives here. A removed scout - proved innocent by a law enforcement investigation was STILL refused reinstatement by BSA. He didn't even know what he was accused of for the first 6 months after his removal. Do NOT expect anything like "Due Process" or fairness. That's why these procedures are routinely abused to remove critics (a separate and substantiated issue).

 

Our Scoutmaster had a kid cause problems for him. The kid WAS guilty of a pretty egregious racial slur at camp. The SM went to bat for him but the kid continued to be a problem and later falsely accused the SM of wrongdoing - luckily not anything sexual. The Scoutmaster was vindicated - this guy is the closest thing to a Saint I've seen on Earth.....but if abuse was falsely reported....he'd be out (or should be according to the rules - accusation is enough, proof not required, anonymous is allowable).

 

Read "Procedures for Maintaining Standards of Membership" - if you can find a copy. It's top secret - restricted to top Council leadership.....and why? Some might think after reading that it is more concerned with BSA's image and liability than protecting boys.

 

I know another long time single guy - from Brooklyn, poor background who's done well in life. He was "paying back" Scouts for what it did for him but got to the point where it wasn't worth the risk and hassle. He couldn't have a private one-on -one talk with a kid who needed it (like he'd been able to have with his Scoutmaster), he felt that procedures were more designed for show and avoidance of liability than helping kids.... Loaded issue. I can see his point but woulld NOT let myself be alone with a kid anywhere (though try to make sure THAT happens ...you can end up alone on a trail in the woods or at a campsite with a kid...no others around). But at the same time a kid may simply NOT feel comfortable discussing some things if visible (but out of earshot) to others. HIS point.

 

This is a complex and loaded problem (and it is NOT only childless adults that are a problem) but it is one that seems to haunt BSA. One of the reasons I became a leader is because I wanted to know (well) the adults involved. I did NOT blindly trust others simply because they were already leaders.

 

If you Google "Boy Scout" and "abuse" a horrifying number of cases pop up - and continue to pop up (literally a week or two cannot go by without a report somewhere). Yes, BSA is a large organization. BUT you do NOT see the same number with any other similar youth organization. As noted in another post, I saw NO child abuse cases in a limited web search for some other youth orgainzations while BSA was full of them.

 

Keep in mind These reports are seen by parents see all over the country. A parent wondering how "safe" BSA was for boys would be horrified by such a Google Search - and many will have enough sense to do such a check. Bad publicity on this issue has almost killed Councils if not BSA. (New Orleans I believe, a while back)

 

Even now some Scouters in the know will tell you (privately and quietly) that some Councils have simply told people to "go away" and NOT reported abusers (as required by law) to local authorities. Idaho is appalling - with willful disregard of clear policies, rules and the law at all leels of BSA.

 

 

And let's be real. Smith was a horriffic embarrassment BUT he didn't get fired. BSA let him retire. Criminal behavior should clearly be grounds for termination. Yet BSA FIRED another "respected" long time paid staffer (30+ years) because he was gay.

 

The message some got was "BSA treats men sexually interested in boys better than men sexually interested in other men" (one is not going to meet underage boys at a gay resort - the incident that allegedly sparked that staffer's removal). And if you feel that both are equally bad around boys, why the disparity in treatment? Why is the gay staffer suing for his accrrued benefits?

 

But then that may be why nobody wants to discuss this issue.

NOBODY wants to believe their son an be abused in Boy Scouts.

 

BSA's pedophile scandal in the 80s and 90's faded faster than the Catholic Church's because BSA stonewalled and refused to talk about it. ABSOLUTELY refused. Lawyerly statements were issued - nobody ever had to answer questions face to face with a reporter or anyone else.

 

BSA drew up "youth Protection" guidelines and such and declared the problem solved. Leave what happened buried. Thousands of cases of abuse were NEVER reported to authorities. You will see little about this issue because settlements are sealed with non-disclosure clauses and court cases are sealed "to protect the boys" - though Idaho has showed otherwise.

 

Thankfully the majority of cases of abuse do seem to be handled properly now but the larger issue is still ignored. Why is this happening in Boy Scouts?

 

And again, to answer the "it happens everywhere" "it's a small number" arguments - a simple Google search shows otherwise. BSA clearly has a problem - still.

 

I will not post further on this issue. I made my points. Honestly, it makes me ill. I want to throw up.

 

 

 

 

[CA_Scouter]

And the best part is.....

 

I don't see any 'best part' here at all. I don't think the victims see a 'best part' either.

 

I can see that the author is trying to point out that this occurs outside of our organization, but it came across to me that 'thank goodness it didn't happen to us', rather than 'oh my gosh, those poor children'. Catch my drift? We are more concerned about how the scouting organization is perceived, rather than being concerned about the welfare of the victims.

 

And this statement? "though at least we're seeing heterosexual abuse now..... " Woo Hoo, Now THAT'S great news, right?

 

Sorry, its a sore point with me - my wife had a bad experience with a family member when she was a child and the repurcussions still echo 40 years later...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[FScouter]

Gee, all that Googling proves that Scouting is the most pedophile-ridden organization on the planet. I guess the best thing to do to protect kids is to fold our troops and go home. Unless of course the entire staff in Texas quits. That would surely fix this "problem".

[jkhny]

regarding my reference above

 

The original story did NOT give ages. The girl was described as an "Assistant Scoutmaster" - I thought "Venturing?" older kids.... I was hoping this was NOT what you'd expect....The thought crossed my mind that this could have been two older teens involved in consenual behavior - until caught.

 

Additional facts reported below are more disturbing. What was a PAID Field Director - 24 years older than the 14 year old - doing with the girl at his house? Youth Protection rules???? There seems to be a real failure here.....

 

Even if a family friend, this seems to be something that should NOT have happened.....any other reports with more info?

 

I would hope that there is some explanation for this violation of YP. This is NOT a junior paid professional.

 

 

 

from

 

http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/news/4884790/detail.html

 

 

 

Scouts Director Accused Of Fondling Girl In Penn Hills

 

POSTED: 9:04 am EDT August 23, 2005

 

PENN HILLS, Pa. -- A Boy Scouts employee has been charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in his home, police said.

 

Timothy B. Colcombe, 38, is accused of fondling the teenager under her clothing on July 24 at his Penn Hills home while the girl was under his care, police said.

 

Colcombe is the field director for the Westmoreland-Fayette Council of the Boy Scouts of America in Greensburg.

 

Colcombe was charged with indecent assault, endangering the welfare of children and corruption of a minor.

 

He did not immediately return a phone call left by The Associated Press Tuesday morning.

Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.