Attorneys Release Names Of 180 Area Boy Scout Leaders Accused Of Abuse
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – The names of 180 local Boy Scout leaders accused of sexually abusing minors were revealed Tuesday.
Two law firms released the names of 130 scout leaders from New York and 50 from New Jersey.
The leaders have allegedly been accused of sexual abuse in the Boy Scouts of America's so-called "perversion files."
"They may have removed them from scouting, they may have kept them in their perversion files, but they never alerted the community that this teacher, this coach, this scout leader who's also a priest or an electrician is known to them to be a child molester," attorney Jeff Anderson said.
The firms called on the organization to reveal the identities of all local scout leaders accused of misconduct with minors.
Web Extra: Read Statement From Boy Scouts Of America
Boy Scouts of America sent CBS2 the following statement,
"We care deeply about all victims of child abuse and sincerely apologize to anyone who was harmed during their time in Scouting. We believe victims, we support them, and we have paid for unlimited counseling by a provider of their choice. Nothing is more important than the safety and protection of children in Scouting and we are outraged that there have been times when individuals took advantage of our programs to abuse innocent children.
Throughout our history, we have enacted strong youth protection policies to prevent future abuse, including mandatory youth protection trainings and a formal leader-selection process that includes criminal background checks. Since the 1920s, we have maintained a Volunteer Screening Database to prevent individuals accused of abuse or inappropriate conduct from joining or re-entering our programs, a practice recommended in 2007 by the Centers for Disease Control for all youth-serving organizations.
At no time have we ever knowingly allowed a perpetrator to work with youth, and we mandate that all leaders, volunteers and staff members nationwide immediately report any abuse allegation to law enforcement."
To read the complete statement, click here.