Mark Berndt appeared in court today on charges that he committed lewd acts on 23 boys and girls, ages 6 to 10, between 2008 and 2010. The Miramonte third grade school teacher was arrested Monday at his home in Torrance and is being held on $23 million bail.

His alleged crimes include gagging students aged 7 to 10 with tape, putting 3-inch long Madagascar cockroaches on their faces and in their mouths and forcing them to taste semen.Some parents complained yesterday that officials at the South Los Angeles school should have notified them when photos depicting the abuse were found in 2010.

The L.A. Times has reported that the acts Berndt is being charged with happened between 2005 and 2010 but they also said that school officials weren’t notified until January of 2011. Berndt wasn’t removed from classroom soon after but not fired until the following month and the majority of parents were not notified until yesterday.

Gloria Polanco, the mother of two children at the school asks why, if the principal knew this in advance, he didn’t he inform parents. “How long has he been doing this?” asked Polanco. School district officials say they were forced by law enforcement investigators to keep the case quiet so as not to cross-contaminate any evidence.

The probe began after the film processor, who is required by state law to report suspicions of child abuse and molestation, turned over some 40 photographs to authorities in October 2010. About 400 photos were found at Berndt’s home and at the photo lab during subsequent searches. It’s not clear how many different children were pictured.

Source: KPCC

German news agency dapd reported that the state court in Braunschweig on Thursday convicted the priest, who was found guilty of abusing three boys aged 9 to 15 between 2004 and 2011.The 46-year-old priest, who wasn’t identified, was arrested in July after one victim told his mother what had happened. He admitted the abuse when he went on trial Jan. 13.

He also faces church disciplinary proceedings.

Germany, Pope Benedict XVI’s homeland, was shaken in 2010 by revelations of abuse by clergy going back decades.

Source: Boston

In its judgment on a writ petition, the First Bench comprising Chief Justice M.Y.Eqbal and Justice T.S.Sivagnanam, said the victim should not be subjected to any further medical test. Investigation should proceed based on the available medical opinion.The Bench observed, “The repeated insistence by the CB-CID to subject the child to further medical examination creates a serious doubt in the minds of this court as to whether the CB-CID is serious in prosecuting the matter or is it an attempt to shield the accused.

When sufficient medical records were available with the CB-CID, it defies logic as to why the CB-CID insists upon further medical tests to be conducted on the victim girl, which undoubtedly would not only amount to harassment, [but] may leave an indelible mark in the mind of the child which is not healthy for her growth and development.”

The matter relates to a writ petition by Ramalingam, Member, Human Rights Protection Centre. The allegation was that the girl, studying in UKG in a school at Kallakurichi, Villupuram district, was sexually abused by the school principal and an LKG class teacher.

A first information report was registered on August 3 last year.

The Bench said considering the gravity of the situation, it had ordered a CB-CID investigation. After more than three months, it appeared that the unit was “also dragging its feet and the final report submitted by them does not infuse confidence in the mind of this court that the investigation is proceeding in the right direction.”

The turn of events prima facie established that all was not well with the manner in which the probe was proceeding. The Bench observed that the manner and conduct of an investigating agency should infuse confidence in the court’s mind.

“If there is any lack of confidence, this court will not be a silent spectator to the turn of events, but would not hesitate to intervene and restore the rule of law.” The Judges said they were of the view that investigation should be handled by a different agency uninfluenced by the investigation done by the CB-CID and with the available medical records.

The Bench said this was a fit case where investigation should be transferred to the central agency. The CBI should commence investigation immediately and file the final report within 60 days.

Source: The Hindu

AN INTERNATIONAL karate champion from York has been jailed for five years for child abuse against a 13-year-old girl.

Liam O’Grady, was sentenced today at York Crown Court, after being convicted by a jury last month. O’Grady, 30, of Osbaldwick, has taught hundreds of children karate at after-school clubs and won gold at World and European level.

A jury had heard earlier that he sent sexual texts and pictures of himself to the girl and sexually abused her in his house, his car and men’s toilets.O’Grady was found guilty of four charges of sexual activity with a child and one of meeting a child after sexually grooming her. He was acquitted of one of the sexual activity charges and convicted of all other charges.

A spokeswoman for the executive of the Karate Union of Great Britain said that as a result of O’Grady’s conviction and sentencing, he had been expelled from the organisation by its executive committee.

O’Grady wept in the dock as the Recorder of York Judge Stephen Ashurst spelt out the consequences of his prolonged grooming and exploitation of the girl, starting when she was 12. His sentence includes a lifetime ban on working with children again.

“You have brought this upon yourself,” he told O’Grady.

His barrister Jason Macadam said: “He has lost his livelihood, he has lost his position in the sporting world. It is right to say he is a public disgrace following these convictions.”

Outside court, Joe Cocker, manager of City of York Safeguarding Children Board, praised the “incredible courage” of the girl and her friends who all gave evidence at O’Grady’s trial. The girl’s friends went to the authorities because they were alarmed at what she had told them. “What he did was not only abusive in terms of the acts he was found guilty of, but also abusive in his cynical manipulation of this 12-year-old young girl,” said Mr Cocker.

“Her courage stands in stark contrast to his reprehensible pursuit of self-interest and cowardice.”

Det Insp Shaun Page of North Yorkshire Police said: “O’Grady’s arrogance and repeated denials of the offences he committed meant that rather than pleading guilty when he had the chance, he has subjected his victim and her family to the further turmoil of a lengthy court process.

“I hope this sentence makes O’Grady face up to the fact that what he has done is sick and completely unacceptable. I also hope that the end of this case can bring some comfort to the victim and her family and helps them move on with their lives.”

O’Grady, who moved from Osbaldwick to Flintshire in Wales after he was charged, denied one charge of grooming a child for sex and three of sexual activity with a child, but was convicted by a York jury last month..

Mr Macadam said he continues to protest his innocence. In addition to the jail term, O’Grady was put on the sex offenders’ register, made subject to a sexual offences prevention order and banned from working with children, all for life.

The judge said he was a high achieving sportsman. “But success in sport and the adulation it brings doesn’t of course provide immunity from the consequences of criminal behaviour, very serious criminal behaviour as I judge this to be. “It may be your sporting prowess had given you a degree of confidence. It was possible you believed you could get away with it because of your position.”

O’Grady had betrayed the trust the girl’s parents had placed in him to look after their child while training her and “played” his wife and the girl off against each other.

Mr Cocker praised the police for their “determination and tenacity”, the child’s school for supporting the girl and her friends and acting on their information, York social care and the team work between the agencies. O’Grady’s wife Lisa gave evidence for the defence but was not in court to see her husband sentenced. Mr Macadam said the future of his family was “extremely uncertain”. The defence team handed in testimonials from family, friends and work colleagues.

Source: York Press

John Smart, 48, preyed on three youngsters he met at the Edinburgh City Mission.

He began abusing one of his victims when the boy was just three years old. Judge Lady Dorrian put Smart on the sex offenders’ register and ordered him to be monitored in the community for three years after his release.

At the High Court in Glasgow, she told Smart: “The social enquiry report points out that these offences were planned, intrusive and involved a significant degree of planning.

“Your victims were vulnerable. “You pose a sufficiently significant risk to children to merit a lengthy sentence.”

Solicitor advocate John Keenan, defending, said that Smart, a first offender, continued to protest his innocence.

Mr Keenan added: “He denies responsibility for these offences.”
Devout Christian

Smart, who stood as a candidate at the 2003 Scottish Parliament elections, persuaded the parents of his victims to let him take the two boys and a girl on trips and also attacked them during overnight visits to his home.

During his trial last year he denied the offences and claimed he could not have carried out the assaults because of a medical problem which meant he was a virgin.

However, a jury at the High Court in Perth found him guilty of five charges of abuse between 1987 and 2002 in Edinburgh, Leith, Peebles and Perth.

The parents of his victims believed he was a devout Christian and let him take the youngsters to play parks and swimming pools.

Instead Smart, of Christian Crescent, Edinburgh, used the time alone with them to carry out the abuse.

He had denied attacking the three children and claimed that he had “no sex drive whatsoever” and was impotent.

He insisted he had suffered from the problem for a long time and he had been forced to break off his engagement to a woman because of the condition.

Source: BBC

Susan Wilkey and Barbara Probert are former colleagues of David Griffiths, 50, who is facing child sex abuse charges at Wood Green Crown Court.

Speaking about Mr Griffiths as a teacher, Mrs Wilkey told the court: “I wouldn’t say he was very strict. He was fun loving and enjoyed a joke with the children. It was quite a happy and relaxed atmosphere in David’s classroom.”Mr Griffiths has denied all charges brought by three men who were pupils at a school where he used to teach. He has taught at four junior schools in Barnet and Harrow.

Recalling one of the complainants as a child, Mrs Wilkey said: “He struck me as an angry child – somewhat disturbed. The first time I came across him when I was took into a classroom, he barked at me and growled like a dog, which I did find very strange.”

Speaking about another complainant, Mrs Probert said: “He would take a punishment and then his mother would come back and defend him and give a different story to what happened.”

Describing Mr Griffiths at work, she said: “He was friendly. He was helpful. He was fun in the staffroom.”

When asked if he was tactile, she replied: “All junior school teachers are going to touch children at some time – pat them on the shoulder and get them along. He was no more tactile than other teachers.”

Mr Griffiths, of Thistlecroft Gardens, Stanmore, was suspended as deputy head of a school in Harrow Weald in April 2010 following allegations made the previous month and was arrested the following June. The alleged offences do not relate to his time in Harrow Weald.

Mr Griffiths is a scout leader and is involved in the Greater London and Middlesex West (GLMW) Scouts. He also told the court he is a rock-climbing instructor, a canoeing instructor and is learning to play the guitar.

The trial continues.

Source: Times

He is the son of Shelby County Commissioner Daniel Acker, Sr. Acker, Jr, was a fourth grade teacher for 25 years, he drove a school bus for 15 years and had been a substitute bus driver since he retired in 2009.

Alabaster police say a former student, who is now roughly around the age of 13, filed a complaint against Acker, Jr. In that complaint she said Acker, Jr. molested her.

Police say Acker, Jr. admitted to molesting her and, more than 20 other children in his 25 year career.

The former student says Acker, Jr. molested her in the classroom. The Alabaster Police Department reports it happened in the presence of other students, but, they aren’t sure, if any other students saw the acts.

All three of the counts Acker, Jr. is charged with are related to the victim who filed the complaint. The Alabaster Police Department reports other victims are out there, and they hope those victims will come forward.

Curtis Rigney, chief deputy of police, said parents are encouraged to ask their children question regarding this case.

“Were in his classroom? Do you remember anything like this happening? If you get a sense from your child that they withdraw then you need to contact the police department, or if they say ’, yes, I remember and he did this. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know what to do he was my teacher.’ Call us.”

People who have any information are asked to contact the Alabaster Police Department at 205-663-7401 .

The Shelby County Board of Education reports in 1992 Acker, Jr., was placed on leave and relieved of his teaching duties while allegations of child abuse were under investigation.

The board reports in October of 1992 Acker, Jr. was placed on leave and relieved form his teaching duties while allegations of child abuse were under investigation. The board of education also stated in November of 1992, those allegations were presented to a grand jury but Acker, Jr. was not indicted.

In February of 1993, the Shelby County Board of Education had a termination hearing against Acker, Jr. The board voted unanimously not to terminate him. Then, Acker, Jr. was reinstated as a fourth grade teacher at Creek View Elementary School.

The Alabaster Police Department anticipates future charges against Acker, Jr. and says the investigation will continue until every child who wants to come forward has a chance to tell their story.

Source: Alabama’s 13

House Bill 200, filed Wednesday, would create an external panel that would include the attorney general, doctors, prosecutors and judges.

After the review, the panel would develop recommendations to address systemic issues and child-welfare practices. Any problems the panel identified in the actions of state and local agencies would be referred to authorities for review.However, the panel’s review would be kept secret, as would the records it analyzed.

But the bill further clarifies the state statute to say that state records involving children who have been killed or nearly killed as a result of abuse and neglect can be released to the public by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which oversees child protection.

The Herald-Leader and The (Louisville) Courier-Journal have sued the state twice during the past two years to get access to case files of children who have died as a result of abuse and neglect. A Franklin Circuit Court judge has ruled twice that child-protection records are public in the case of a death or near-death.

Rep. Susan Westrom, D-Lexington, one of the bill’s sponsors, said many legislators are frustrated with the cabinet and think an external review panel would add a level of accountability to a cabinet that is mostly shrouded in secrecy.

“In government, you have to have checks and balances,” Westrom said. “If we don’t have these checks and balances, how do we know if we are protecting our children?”

A similar bill was filed last year. It was approved by a House committee but did not make it to the House floor for a vote because of several amendments that were added to the bill at the last minute.

The media have complained that the bill went too far by keeping most of the meetings of the external panel secret and its records exempt from the state’s Open Records Act.

But Westrom said the panel could not do a thorough investigation into what went wrong unless there was some promise of privacy.

“It’s just one step in the direction of transparency,” Wes trom said.

The bill also says that the cabinet does not have to release the names of people who report abuse and neglect or the names of those who have nearly died as a result of abuse.

Cabinet officials said late Tuesday that they support the measure and are working with the sponsors to further clarify language in the bill.

“The cabinet supports the concepts included in the bill, which reflect language that the cabinet developed in collaboration with Rep. (Tom) Burch during the last legislative session,” said Jill Midkiff, a spokeswoman for the cabinet. “In fact, the cabinet is working with Rep. Burch and Rep. Westrom to update HB 200 to reflect the cabinet’s new policy on providing information related to child fatalities.”

Burch is a Louisville Democrat.

Westrom, who is a social worker, also plans to file a bill this session that would create pilot programs to open juvenile courts, which are now closed. Similar bills have been filed in the past but have not been passed.

Westrom said she also would file a bill — possibly as soon as this week — that would clarify child abuse statutes to make it clear that sibling-on-sibling abuse is considered child abuse. That was an issue in the case of Amy Dye, 9, of Todd County who was beaten to death by her adopted brother in February. According to Dye’s case file, which was released by a judge, the cabinet had received reports of abuse, but social workers did not consider it abuse because the abuse was inflicted by a sibling.

Westrom said Dye’s case and other news stories about child-abuse deaths and near-deaths have galvanized support for more transparency at the cabinet.

“I think we’re going to get a great deal of support,” she said.

Source: Kentucky

Fan dressed in provocative outfit at Penn State’s 30-14 defeat in Ticketcity Bowl, Dallas
Student carried sign saying: ‘Keep quiet and don’t tell anyone’
Former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky denies more than 50 charges of alleged abuse of young boys
Two college authorities face charges over cover-up of alleged abuse

There was double humiliation at Penn State’s final football game of the season, after one student dressed up as anti-paedophile mascot ‘Paedobear’ to protest at the sex scandal cover up at the college.The unknown fan dressed in the provocative outfit during Penn State’s 30-14 defeat in the Ticketcity Bowl in Dallas, Texas, and carried a sign that read: ‘Keep quiet and don’t tell anyone.’

The game between the Nittany Lions and Houston Cougars at the Cotton Bowl stadium was taking place without Penn State’s long-serving coach, Joe Paterno, who was sacked in November over the Jerry Sandusky sex scandal.

Sandusky, assistant coach to Paterno for 30 years, faces more than 50 child sex-abuse charges over decades of alleged abuse of young boys.

Wearing the costume was apparently the idea of a University of Texas fan, furious at the apparent cover up of Sandusky’s alleged abuse.

A user on the university’s sports message board, Ghost of LL, wrote: ‘The conspiracy undertaken by the staff and administrators of the Pennsylvania State University to cover up the rape of children so as not to damage its precious football program is shameful.

‘For a decade, Penn State employees, agents, trustees and officers – from the janitor to the president of the university all the way up to the Lord High Football Coach – knew that Jerry Sandusky was raping children, and doing so on Penn State property.’

Sandusky has said he is innocent of more than 50 charges stemming from alleged sexual assaults over 15 years on 10 boys at his home, on Penn State property and elsewhere.

The scandal prompted the sacking of Hall of Fame football coach Paterno and the school’s long-time president, Graham Spanier.

Former athletic director Tim Curley and vice president Gary Schultz also face charges of perjury and failure to report a crime.

The appearance of the ‘Paedobear’ is the latest blow to the college since the scandal erupted last year.

Last month, Sandusky waived his right to a preliminary hearing just before the first witness was due to testify against him in a Pennsylvania courtroom.

The 67-year-old said: ‘We fully intend to put together the best possible defence and stay the course for four full quarters.’

His attorney, Joe Amendola, then told reporters if they believed claims against his client they should call 1-800-REALITY – the number of a gay-sex phone service.

And another of his lawyers, Karl Rominger, claimed he had showered with boys from his Second Mile charity to ‘teach them basic hygiene skills’.

The image of the ‘Paedobear’ is apparently used as a signal in online message boards that illegal pornographic images have been posted, although not necessarily paedophilia.

It has since been used to indicate the existence of child pornography or to mock paedophiles and draw attention to their actions.

Source: Daily Mail

A state Senate committee backed the bill Iate 2010, and the Assembly panel should follow suit. In fact, this is one of those proposals that seems so obvious that we can only wonder why it took so long for legislators to get around to acting on it.

But as so often happens, this is a case of lawmakers reacting to high-profile events rather than anticipating them. We can, however, at least appreciate the wisdom of the reaction.Sexual abuse of a child is an extraordinarily traumatic and sensitive crime. Because of its nature, and because the crime is typically committed by an adult in a position of authority and trust, the child victims often cannot even begin to comprehend what happened to them in the immediate aftermath. Many are plagued by feelings of guilt and confusion, sometimes to such an extreme that the events are either altered in their minds or completely suppressed.

The truth often doesn’t surface for many years , until a victim can reflect on the incident from the distance of adulthood, or after prolonged therapy. It may not happen until another event triggers the memories.

There are, in other words, myriad potential journeys for a victim to travel from awareness to accusation. Requiring all of that to happen within two years or the molester escapes justice simply doesn’t make sense, and does not represent a fair application of the concept behind a statute of limitations.

Such statutes exist in large part because the credibility of a case can weaken over time. Memories fade, evidence is corrupted, records are destroyed. While any victim of a crime should be able to seek justice, the accused also deserves to be treated fairly. And to be charged with a crime supposedly committed many years earlier jeopardizes chances for a proper defense.

The game changes, however, under certain circumstances; murders, for example, aren’t typically subject to any statute of limitations. Why should victims of child sexual abuse be subject to a two-year limit on civil lawsuits when many don’t even recall the incidents until much later?

All of these issues have been thrust into the spotlight because of several recent child-abuse scandals. The alleged ongoing abuse of youths by a former assistant coach at Penn State led to the firing of iconic head coach Joe Paterno and a housecleaning of top university officials. Locally, Patrick Lott, assistant principal at Bernardsville Middle School, has been accused of using a video camera to record boys showering at Immaculata High School, where he served as an assistant basketball coach and athletic volunteer.

State Sen. Joseph Vitale, D-Middlesex, deserves credit for leading the legislative fight on this issue. He is not only the primary sponsor of the statute bill, but also was a leading advocate of legislation signed into law in 2006 that stripped religious and charitable organizations of their immunity from child abuse lawsuits.

Concerns have been raised that some organizations might find end up fighting lawsuits against accused molesters who are already dead. But the organizations themselves often share some of the responsibility, in how they respond internally to allegations of abuse, or in fostering an environment that protects molesters. They deserve to pay a price as well.

We urge legislators to support Vitale’s bill.

Source: My Central Jersey