BSA Official in Seattle drew fire for role in Idaho scandal

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

 

More information about the sexual abuse that the Teton council covered up; according to this story, denials from a "local Mormon church leader" and a denial from the accused (who is also the son of a member of the BSA council) is sufficient for Brad Allen (then, director in the Grand Teton council) to dismiss allegations of molestation, and good enough for the National BSA to put his name on the list of recommendations for CEO of the Chief Seattle council.

 

(For background, here's the Post-Register's series on the Grand Teton council: http://www.postregister.com/scouts_honor/part1.php )

 

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003849264_boyscoutside23m.html

 

As chief executive officer for the state's largest Boy Scouts of America council, Brad Allen is the Puget Sound region's main enforcer of the organization's zero-tolerance policy on sex abuse.

 

But years before he was hired in 2006 to head the Chief Seattle Council in Seattle, Allen was at the center of a sex-abuse scandal in Idaho involving a serial molester named Bradley Stowell, a Scout-camp swimming instructor who has admitted molesting as many as two dozen boys.

 

The case has resulted in a series of lawsuits that have cost the Boy Scouts hundreds of thousands of dollars, and prompted changes in Idaho law. It has become a cause clbre in Idaho for critics who accuse the Boy Scouts of failing to police sexual abusers in their ranks.

 

The Chief Seattle Council's board of directors said it has complete confidence in Allen's leadership, though its president conceded he was unaware when they hired him that Allen was involved in lawsuits over the Idaho case. Allen has repeatedly declined interview requests.

 

Paul Steed, the father of two of the molested Idaho boys, says the case makes Allen unfit to lead a council with 47,500 youth members in King County and four other counties around Puget Sound about half of all the Boy Scouts in Washington.

 

"He had the prime chance to catch Stowell one-third of the way into his career abusing boys," said Steed, of Pocatello, Idaho. "What absolute shortsightedness to put Stowell in charge of the waterfront."

 

Allen, a 53-year-old Utah native, is an Eagle Scout, as are all six of his sons. He has spent all but one year of his professional life working for the Boy Scouts.

 

Before moving to Seattle, Allen, who is Mormon, spent six years as the national Boy Scouts' chief liaison to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the largest sponsor of Scout troops in the U.S.

 

Criticism of Allen has focused on his response to a tip he received in 1995, when he was director of a Scout council in eastern Idaho, that Stowell had molested a 6-year-old boy seven years earlier.

 

The Boy Scouts' operating manual at the time called for Allen to immediately remove Stowell from the camp, add his name to a national file of ineligible volunteers and call the police if he found the allegation credible.

 

In what he later described as a "judgment call" in testimony for a lawsuit, Allen didn't check with police, child-welfare officials or the tipster himself. Instead, he accepted the word of a local Mormon church leader, who vouched for Stowell's fitness for the Boy Scouts.

 

Allen also relied on Stowell himself, whose mother was on the board of the local Boy Scout council: "I told him there was no problem," Stowell testified years later. "It was an isolated incident and that I was over that."

 

Stowell had never been charged with molesting the 6-year-old. He had cut a deal with Idaho child-welfare authorities to get counseling and write the boy an apology, according to court records.

 

Allen let Stowell keep his job on the waterfront of Camp Little Lemhi, and told a fellow Scout official that there was "no basis to the allegations," according to sworn testimony.

 

Stowell then molested at least four more young Scouts before his arrest in 1997. Now serving 14 years in prison, he has admitted to at least 24 victims in all.

 

The Boy Scouts have settled three lawsuits by Stowell victims all with confidential terms. A fourth suit, by Paul Steed's sons, is pending.

 

During one of the suits, a judge in Idaho singled out Allen's "cursory investigation" as "reckless." The judge said a "cultural atmosphere of ignorance and naivet exists to such an extent that the very purposes of the organization are ignored for personal reasons, resulting in circumstances where youths who should be protected are preyed upon."

 

Del Bishop, president of the Chief Seattle Council board of directors, said they chose Allen from a short list provided by the national Boy Scout office. In a statement, Bishop said Allen "has devoted his life to Scouting and to serving youth and families."

 

But Patrick Boyle, the author of "Scout's Honor," about sex abuse in Scouting, notes that "in the Stowell case, you had a Scout executive in the 1990s doing what the [boy Scouts] said it wasn't doing anymore: doing a superficial investigation and concluding on his own there's nothing to it."

 

"This guy [Allen] appears to do exactly what BSA said was not happening anymore," he said.

 

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

There's another story on how the BSA is secretive about abuse it knows about:

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/local/state/story/9245157p-9160470c.html

[Beavah]

Yah, the incidents of child abuse within the BSA are appalling, as are the incidents in other organizations like the Catholic church.

 

The incidents of administrative malfeasance in each which allowed abuse to continue in some cases are simply infuriatin', no question.

 

But they make news because the organizations as a whole are large, popular, and effective. The good each organization does makes the contrast from a few bad apples and wicked or lazy leaders especially stark. It's that good that they do, and the norm of being good, that makes failures newsworthy.

 

Yeh won't get that kind of media coverage for the many atheist child molesters, eh? That's because the atheists haven't built many large, popular, and effective organizations that are known for their good works which would merit such coverage.

 

Or maybe it's because child molesters bein' atheists is more the norm than the exception, eh? Nuthin' newsworthy there.

 

Beavah

 

[le Voyageur]

Quoting Beavah...."Or maybe it's because child molesters bein' atheists is more the norm than the exception, eh?"

 

hmmmm (befuddled)...FBI stats says otherwise. So, do I draw the conclusion that Catholic priests who molest are atheists? Or,that child molestation turns Christians into atheists?

 

 

 

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

This particular series of incidents show how the Grand Teton council *knew* about child abuse, and instead of stopping it, covered it up. They tried to keep the court records hushed up. And currently, one of the principle people involved in covering up child abuse in Idaho is now the CEO of the Chief Seattle council. Don't you think that ought to be changed? Or are people who cover up for child molesters OK as council execs?

[evmori]

No a child molester shouldn't be involved with youth at any level. Neither should those who cover it up.

 

Point made. Next!

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10

[GernBlansten]

Ed,

Do you think an organized letter writing campaign to national by concerned volunteers is in order? Do you think that might get nationals attention that this type of shenanigans is unacceptable?

[OldGreyEagle]

why do I get the feeling that somewhere Satan is saying " is it cooler in here?"

[evmori]

Write away, Gern!

 

Musta been a slow news day!

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

Ed, why is reporting about a sitting BSA exec covering up child abuse due to a "slow news day"? I suppose you don't consider this a problem.

[skeptic]

There is no doubt that there has been poor decisions made in this Idaho situation, assuming the details given are moderately accurate. But, it appears that at least some afterthought has focussed on this not happening again, if possible.

 

Personally, I would hope that perhaps National might consider keeping a very close eye on the Seatle area professional oversight; but hopefully the man has learned a valuable lesson and will be much more vigilent and err on the side of caution and youth protection.

 

Of course, what sort of confuses me here is that this seems to be something Merlyn finds indicative of BSA being generally negligent. Yet, all the reports indicate that, though slower than probably should have occurred, the procedures did work; and the consensus appears to come down on the side of BSA as still having one of the best protection programs possible for such a large organization.

 

What do you want Merlyn? Do you want BSA to filter out as many suspicious leader applicants as possible or only those that meet PC definitions? This individual had a propensity toward abuse, but had been deemed to have grown out of it and was not a threat. Obviously, that determination was inaccurate. Yet, you would have other individuals with possibly dangerous inclinations be allowed as leaders. Should not the erring on the side of safety extend to this as well?

 

Just wonder.

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

skeptic writes:

There is no doubt that there has been poor decisions made in this Idaho situation, assuming the details given are moderately accurate. But, it appears that at least some afterthought has focussed on this not happening again, if possible.

 

I don't see that at all; the Grand Teton council, the Chief Seattle council, and the national BSA itself don't appear to be at all concerned about Brad Allen as the CEO of the Chief Seattle council, even though his "investigation" of allegations of abuse seem to have been almost nonexistent.

 

Personally, I would hope that perhaps National might consider keeping a very close eye on the Seatle area professional oversight; but hopefully the man has learned a valuable lesson and will be much more vigilent and err on the side of caution and youth protection.

 

Why did the national BSA put Brad Allen's name on the short list of nominees? "Erring on the side of caution" to me would include NOT putting people who have demonstrated incompetence when it comes to child abuse in charge.

 

Of course, what sort of confuses me here is that this seems to be something Merlyn finds indicative of BSA being generally negligent. Yet, all the reports indicate that, though slower than probably should have occurred, the procedures did work; and the consensus appears to come down on the side of BSA as still having one of the best protection programs possible for such a large organization.

 

You have a strange definition of "work" when someone like Allen not only keeps his job, but gets recommended by BSA national.

 

What do you want Merlyn? Do you want BSA to filter out as many suspicious leader applicants as possible or only those that meet PC definitions?

 

First, don't reward incompetence. Brad Allen COULD have cut short Bradley Stowell's abuse of scouts, BUT HE DIDN'T.

 

This individual had a propensity toward abuse, but had been deemed to have grown out of it and was not a threat.

 

"Deemed" not by professionals who know something about child abusers, but by Bradley Stowell's Bishop and Bradley Stowell's mother, two people who have a strong psychological motive not to believe that Stowell was an abuser.

 

Obviously, that determination was inaccurate.

 

Not inaccurate, incompetent. There was no credible reason to think Stowell was no longer a threat.

 

Yet, you would have other individuals with possibly dangerous inclinations be allowed as leaders. Should not the erring on the side of safety extend to this as well?

 

Yes, I would allow black men as leaders, even though they are part of a demographic that is higher than average for violent crime. Or were you not referring to the "dangerous inclinations" of black men? Italians? Jews? Time to play name that stereotype.

[skeptic]

Double speak is a wonderful skill, but it still does not answer the simple question. Of course I realize that you will never actually face the fact that you speak out of both sides of your mouth; it just depends on whether or not it something you want to push.

 

Sorry, it is a bit cruel of me, especially since I suggested that others quit baiting you. No more on this from me.

[evmori]

The serial rapist was caught. The whole thing was covered-up & now the cover is off.

 

Sure this is a story. Would it be a story if this happened to a NAMBLA big shot? Nope! Why? He would already be a degenerate!

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

skeptic writes:

Double speak is a wonderful skill, but it still does not answer the simple question. Of course I realize that you will never actually face the fact that you speak out of both sides of your mouth; it just depends on whether or not it something you want to push.

 

Just seeing if you actually have enough spine to try and claim that gay men are child molesters, even though that's a lie.

 

It isn't useful to use stereotypes; I prefer real life.

 

Sorry, it is a bit cruel of me, especially since I suggested that others quit baiting you. No more on this from me.

 

Yes, because you obviously don't care that the BSA continues to endanger scouts by putting grossly incompetent people in charge, even after they've demonstrated their incompetence.

 

Ed writes:

The serial rapist was caught.

 

He should have been caught at least as far back as when Brad Allen was informed; thanks to his non-action, MORE scouts were molested. And now he's CEO of the Chief Seattle council because the national BSA recommended him.

 

The whole thing was covered-up & now the cover is off.

 

And the BSA fought attempts to expose it:

http://www.postregister.com/scouts_honor/part2.php

...

Court records, which the Boy Scouts' lawyers fought to hide from public view, show the warnings might have been sufficient to disqualify Stowell from Scouting six years before he was finally arrested.

...

 

Look, forget the 3Gs for a second, and just look at what some BSA execs have done (and in many cases failed to do) regarding this whole mess. Execs who waived off charges of molestation (which turned out to be true) are actually recommended by BSA national to head another council; the BSA tries harder to stop public exposure of molestation in the BSA than the molestation itself.

 

[evmori]

I am in no way condoning what the BSA execs did but I would bet this would happen in most organizations to try to prevent public embarrassment. Any organization!

 

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10