Trial scheduled for Jehovah's Witnesses elders accused of failing to report sexual abuse

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

https://www.dailyherald.com/news/20210527/trial-scheduled-for-jehovahs-witnesses-elders-accused-of-failing-to-report-sexual-abuse

Two Jehovah's Witnesses elders accused of failing to notify police that a congregant was sexually abusing a child are scheduled for a joint trial in July.

Jehovah's Witnesses elder Michael Penkava, 72, of Crystal Lake, and Colin Scott, 87, of Cary, were charged in November with violating reporting provisions. Both men are accused of failing to notify police about a church member who later was convicted of sexually abusing a child.

The abuse continued for more than a decade after the church elders became aware of the accusations, prosecutors have said.

A judge on Wednesday denied a request to exclude testimony regarding potentially "confidential" meetings between church leaders and the now-convicted man.

The charges against Scott and Penkava are rooted in another man's sexual assault conviction. Accusations against that man, 43-year-old church member Arturo Hernandez-Pedraza, surfaced during a confessional or spiritual guidance setting, according to Prossnitz and attorney Terry Ekl, who represents Scott.

In 2019, a jury convicted Hernandez-Pedraza of all counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, predatory criminal sexual assault, criminal sexual assault, criminal sexual abuse, sexual relations within families and domestic battery charges filed against him.

He is serving a 45-year prison sentence at Pontiac Correctional Center.

Penkava invoked his right as a religious leader to not testify at Hernandez-Pedraza's trial, but he still was required to answer questions about actions the congregation took after learning of the sexual abuse more than 10 years before it was reported.

Because the accusations surfaced during a confessional, Penkava and Scott's attorneys now argue the disclosure should be considered privileged communication between faith leaders and congregants.

Assistant McHenry County State's Attorney Ashur Youash, however, said that privilege doesn't extend to situations involving abused or neglected children and isn't grounds for failure to report.

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They are still hiding behind the clergy privilege thing, so no lessons have been learnt. The GB and others in control, and the Elders are still more interested in the 'face of the Org' and in saving money, than they are in the congregation. 

Does God and Jesus really approve of this ? No of course not.

 

[ApostaBabe Linda James]

On 5/31/2021 at 11:29 AM, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

Penkava invoked his right as a religious leader to not testify at Hernandez-Pedraza's trial ,

I have somewhat been following this one. From what I recall, Penkava was a school teacher and wrote a column in his local news paper. Being a school teacher also put him a position of being a mandatory reporter if he comes across any awareness of what may appear to be a form of child abuse. Once this suspicion or awareness is reported to those within the law enforcement, they have been trained handle it from there.

Penkava and Scott were made aware of what Arturo Hernandez-Pedreza, a JW member had done to his daughter. So if they did an in-house investigation by asking him if he did what the wife and child of this man claim that he had done. ( Which puts them both in great Danger! ) If the elders then receive an admission from him, then in that receiving of that one's admission, that is not considered, nor does it fall under the clergy tenant privilege confession. But the elders are not aware that this the case. But when the elders have received a confession when asked, the Org claims in the Court of law, that this is the setting with which the Org is able to claim "clergy tenant privilege." But its not. "Clergy tenant privilege" is when a person seeks out a spiritual leader (singular) to speak with them regarding a confession that that person, (who is considered the tenant) of a particular religious belief system, or not, would like "a one on one session" with a member of the clergy from their own particular belief system, or sometimes not, if the confessor is not all that particular. These are often deathbed confessions made by those whom are on their death beds.

When people are at the point of dying with in hospitals, they are often asked by their Dr.'s or the nursing staff if there is any form of clergy that they would like called upon for spiritual help and or support.

There are a list of numbers for different denominational clergy that have volunteered to be on call for the patients of hospitals so that they can meet the patients and their families clergy needs, including Jehovah's Witness clergy.

Believe it or not, the clergy that are full time on staff for hospitals here in the U.S. are often quite knowledgeable and equipped in several traditions and practices of several different belief systems. So they can not only be their for those patients within the hospitals who find great comfort in being able to experience the tradition and practices of their belief system, but they can also give the comfort one need from ( the Catholic inspired ) clergy pennant privilege deathbed confessions. 

I have come to hate the fact that the secular government has their hands tied because they're not supposed to enter into the government of religious organizations and change up the dangerous religious disciplinary practices when it comes to CSA. Something needs to shift soon. 

When It comes to the point where believers of several different religious hi control authoritative organizations have been led to believe that following the instructions of their spiritual leader's is on par with following god himself, I'm afraid we are just going to see more and more CSA case's where a mother and child who reported the crime that the male head of the household of their family has committed, will be encourage that forgiving him is the godly thing to do. Perpetrators will be continually be sent home to remain living with their victims at the spiritual directions of these elders, whom are the spiritual leader's of the congregation. They will yet again be wrongly informed by those elders who are taking the lead ( as they have unknowingly been directed with really dangerous guidance by the headquarters lawyers Department on so many occasions beforehand ) by the Lawyers at the headquarters of the Watchtower were Victims will continually be made silent with the accusations that they have infact brought these crimes upon themselves as they often find themselves being deemed by those taking the spiritual leed that what happened to them is viewed by these elders as these victims were not victims because the elders declared them as being willing participants to sinful acts in spit of the obvious pain that these victims are experiencing. Parents of these victims are threatened with disfellowshipping if they tell anyone as to what was said during these meetings. The perpetrators are given some spiritual guidance and a few suggestions that amount to, "don't do it again." Then when they are all sent back to the home. The perpetrator is still the head of the house and the mother and daughter still have to do as he instructs them to do. The way things are handled within this so-called Theocratic organization is a crying shame. There is nothing godly within the arrangement of how CSA is handled. Between "we don't take our Brother's to court," ·|· "this will drag Jehovah's name through the mud," ·|· "people can change," ·|· victim-blaming" along with a continual stall so that 95% of these CSA cases never ends up in court.

Something has to shift. I only hope that the shift of Justice will happen sooner than later.