Tag: child abuse

‘They covered up child rape’: how the New Orleans archdiocese protected a priest who preyed on children

In the case of serial child molester and retired Catholic priest Lawrence Hecker, the cover-up failed.

But it wasn’t for lack of trying by a coalition of high-ranking church officials and sympathetic judges, who prioritized the predator’s comfort above justice for his innumerable victims until the evidence against him was so overwhelming that – rather than stand the humiliation of a public trial – he pleaded guilty last Tuesday.

The 93-year-old’s decision not only saddled him with an automatic life sentence. It also exposed how Catholic bureaucrats in Hecker’s home town of New Orleans, one of the church’s strongholds in the US, repeated the same sins that produced an eerily similar scandal in Boston two decades earlier – events later immortalized in the Oscar-winning film Spotlight.

This is the only conclusion to draw from years of reporting and studying the church files, court records, legal proceedings and and law enforcement documents outlining the campaign of terror to which Hecker subjected so many children raised in one of the most reliably Catholic regions remaining in the US.

Files held by New Orleans’s Catholic archdiocese establish that Hecker was molesting children virtually immediately upon his ordination in 1958. Chronologically speaking, one of Hecker’s earliest victims was a preteen altar boy who described attending nude swimming parties with the priest – gatherings that would culminate in sexual assaults by the attacker.

Hecker eventually instructed that boy to bring a box containing a feather to a particular fellow priest at another nearby Catholic school and church. In short order, the second priest sexually attacked the boy – and the victim said he came to realize Hecker had used the feather to mark him as vulnerable to molestation.

Unsurprisingly, Hecker’s superiors became more than aware of his crimes. Accusations against him piled up at each of the major milestones in the US church’s reckoning with Catholic clergy sexual abuse, which began in the 1980s when Louisiana priest Gilbert Gauthe pleaded guilty in criminal court to molesting several boys.

Around that time, then New Orleans archbishop Philip Hannan received a child molestation complaint against Hecker. Hannan’s response – carried out in private – was to fly Hecker to a sabbatical in New York City before letting him return to work once things back home cooled off.

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Biden DOJ Seeks To Gag Texas Doctor Who Blew Whistle On Child Trans Surgeries

Federal prosecutors seek to silence Eithan Haim and his attorneys after they exposed major problems in the Biden Administration’s criminal targeting of the Dallas surgeon who blew the whistle on the mutilation of minors.

Last week, federal prosecutors filed a Motion to Gag both Dr. Haim and the lawyers defending him against criminal charges the Department of Justice filed against the Texas physician in May 2024. The Biden Administration indicted Dr. Haim on spurious grounds after he leaked evidence a year earlier to journalist Christopher Rufo that the Texas Children’s Hospital was removing the healthy breasts and genitals of children. 

Currently, Dr. Haim faces five criminal counts of violating the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, brought by a Second Superseding Indictment. Federal prosecutors filed a Second Superseding Indictment after the first two indictments against Haim included glaring mistakes — ones Haim and his counsel pointed out in various X posts.

Those posts caught the ire of the Department of Justice, with the federal prosecutors arguing in their Motion to Gag  that the posts on X “could interfere with a fair trial or otherwise prejudice the Government or the administration of justice because they discuss and characterize the substance of pretrial proceedings that would ordinarily be excluded from consideration by the jury, and disparage the prosecutors and the case in inflammatory language.” 

To support the motion, government lawyers filed two exhibits, including various threads posted on X, but inexplicably filed the materials under seal even though the posts appeared on the social media platform. That prompted the should-be-satirical-but-isn’t news aggregator, Not the Bee, to file a Motion to Intervene and Motion to Unseal. In addition to the two sealed exhibits of X posts, Not the Bee also sought the unsealing of two other court filings, one providing notice of an intent to seek a Second Superseding Indictment and the second related to the withdrawal of an Assistant U.S. Attorney from the case.

Long-time federal judge David Hittner, a Ronald Reagan appointee, denied Not the Bee’s Motion to Intervene, but granted its motion to unseal the filings, revealing the supposedly disparaging and inflammatory language prosecutors claim supports a gag order. 

A review of the various posts, however, shows Dr. Haim and his lawyer merely reiterating the same legal points made in briefing and argument before the court.

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Ex-Maryland teacher sentenced to 30 years for having sex with student — but will only spend one year behind bars

A disgraced Maryland teacher who had sex with a teenage student nearly two dozen times was slapped with a 30-year prison sentence — but will only serve one year behind bars for the crime. 

Melissa Marie Curtis, 32, was handed the three-decade sentence with all but 12 months suspended for engaging in sexual acts with the 14-year-old while she was a teacher at Montgomery Village Middle School in 2015, Fox 5 DC reported.

Curtis — who was 22 at the time — had sexual intercourse with the minor more than 20 times between January and May 2015 — with illicit trysts occurring within the school, her car and several residences, including her mother’s home in Montgomery County, according to court documents obtained by the outlet.

The convicted perv also gave the eighth-grader alcohol and marijuana, the Montgomery County Police Department said.

Prosecutors said the pair were often left alone together after the young teen volunteered for an after-school program Curtis headed, according to court docs.

Police launched their investigation in October 2023 when the victim came forward with the abuse allegations.

Curtis, of Upper Marlboro, was a teacher for approximately two years and had also taught at Lakelands Park Middle School, cops said.

The sicko teacher turned herself in to police on Nov. 7, 2023, and was charged with sexual abuse of a minor and multiple counts of third- and fourth-degree sexual offenses. 

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State’s Audit Reveals Rampant Abuse of Psychotropic Drugs on Children in State Care

A recent audit conducted by the Massachusetts Office of the State Auditor reveals that the Department of Children and Families (DCF) apparently is really bad at doing its job and the fact that the well-being of children is at stake makes the incompetence incomprehensible.

The DCF is tasked with providing services to children who are at risk and victims of abuse or neglect. The services the state is responsible for providing include adoption, guardianship, foster care, housing stabilization, and family support.

Specifically, AbleChild is interested in the section of the audit that reviews the oversight of the drugging of children with serious psychiatric mind-altering drugs. The audit reviewed the period from July of 2019 to December of 2023.

During the audit period, 3,899 (22%) of the 17,891 children in DCF’s protective custody were prescribed at least one psychotropic medication. During the audit period, the number of prescriptions filled for each drug category included 1,065 prescriptions for anti-anxiety meds, 21,585 Antidepressants, 10,564 Antipsychotics, 10,776 Mood Stabilizers, and 48,453 Stimulants. Clearly, chemical behavior modification is a common practice, and the state’s DCF social workers are required to participate in, follow, and document the medication history of each child under their care.

To help caseworkers provide the required services, a child is provided a physical Medical Passport that records its healthcare services while in state custody. Social Workers are required to review these physical passports every six months to keep the children’s related medical records in iFN (electronic information system) updated with their most recent healthcare information.

In Massachusetts, it is required that the Courts approve antipsychotic medication use in children in the state’s protective custody. The audit revealed that “the Department of Children and Families did not always obtain or renew court approval before children in its protective custody were administered antipsychotic medications.” This is a problem because the court needs to know that the drug regimen is safe and effective. Furthermore, the courts have oversight of children who are too young to consent to the drug treatment and act as a neutral party.

The audit also found that “the Department of Children and Families did not properly maintain healthcare records in iFamilyNet (iFN) for children in its protective custody who received psychotropic medications.” Keeping up-to-date records is essential to ensure that the child is not being overprescribed with toxic mind-altering drugs. There is no oversight, leaving the children in custody at risk.

Additionally, the DCF did not list and/or update the psychotropic medications prescribed to children in their medical passports, which clearly can lead to overprescribing of dangerous mind-altering drugs and serious, if not deadly, adverse events. And with the lack of documentation, the DCF also did not document follow-up doctor appointments and recommended psychosocial services. How can these deficits possibly help children in the state’s care?

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Grand Jury Witness Reportedly Hands Over to the Feds Sex Tapes Featuring Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs and Eight Celebrity ‘Victims’ — Including Two Underage Male Stars

There are main pipelines of stories involving the Sean Diddy Combs prosecution saga.

One is leaks from people inside the DOJ who are leaking like mad. A second is the alleged victims who are filing new suits against Diddy like there’s no tomorrow.

There are also people who are witnesses to the goings-on or who have evidence pertinent to this prosecution.

And now, one such witness has apparently come forward.

A producer from New Jersey says he saw – and was in possession of – a number of sex tapes featuring eight different celebrity victims — including two or three underage male stars.

New York Post reported:

“Courtney Burgess, who testified before a grand jury in Manhattan on Thursday, claimed in an interview with NewsNation’s ‘Banfield’ that he saw six males and two female celebs engaging in sex acts with the disgraced music mogul. Asked how many of the stars appeared to be under the influence or inebriated on the tapes, Burgess alleged, ‘All of them.’”

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WAS THIS THE PLAN? Child Sex Trafficking Has TRIPLED in Last Three Years Under Biden-Harris Open Border Policies

In August 2024, President Trump shocked a crowd of supporters in Glendale, Arizona, with a ghastly statistic.

Trump told the crowd, “325,000 migrant children have gone missing in America today. They’re gone. They’re missing.”

Kamala Harris, the Biden Border Czar, allowed them to be trafficked into our country. Trump added, “Many of them are in sex slavery, or they’re dead.”

President Trump was quoting figures from an August 2024 Department of Homeland Security report.

NewsNation reported:

On Aug. 19, the DHS published a 14-page report revealing more than 32,000 unaccompanied children did not attend their immigration hearings between the fiscal years of 2019 and 2023.

What’s more, nearly 300,000 of these kids that came across the southern border alone never even got a court date whatsoever.

Essentially, Border Patrol doesn’t have anything to do with these young children.

That’s 300,000 unaccounted for children in the US today — in the last four years!

As Drew Hernandez says, “The Open Border Massacre under the failed leadership of Kamala Harris has led to the largest human and child trafficking operation in world history.”

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Database Reveals Worst Hospitals for Inflicting Transgender Injuries on Children

A new database has revealed the “Dirty Dozen,” the 12 “worst-offending” hospitals in America for inflicting transgender agenda injuries on children.

And Mat Staver, the chief of Liberty Counsel, which has battled the leftist, and unscientific, ideology that males can be turned into females and vice versa, said, “Mutilating children for profit is criminal. It is biologically impossible to change one’s gender.

“The insanity of gender ideology and greed has made a mockery of the medical profession’s duty to ‘do no harm.’ There are only two genders, and the medical profession needs to return to sound science to treat mental health issues with proven psychiatric therapies to heal rather than harm.”

Under the science, being male or female is embedded in the human body down to the DNA level, and it cannot change.

Not surprising, many of the offending hospitals are located in far-left states, where the social agenda has taken over.

So it would be expected that Children’s Hospital Colorado, in the leftist Rocky Mountain state, and Children’s Minnesota, in that state now run by leftist Gov. Tim Walz, and Seattle Children’s, in the leftist Pacific region state, are included.

The full list of those hospitals:

  • The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
  • Connecticut Children’s Medical Center
  • Children’s Minnesota
  • Seattle Children’s
  • Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
  • Boston Children’s Hospital
  • Rady Children’s Hospital
  • Children’s National Medical Center
  • UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland
  • Children’s Hospital Colorado
  • UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
  • Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center

The listing is from a database compiled by Stop the Harm.

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Oregon Democratic Congressional Candidate Accused of Not Disclosing Child Sex Abuse Allegations: Report

A Democratic politician and candidate running for the House of Representatives in Oregon is accused of assisting in covering up child sex abuse allegations related to one of her former campaign staff members.

A complaint states that Janelle Bynum is accused of not disclosing allegations that a campaign field organizer reportedly sexually assaulted a volunteer, who was a minor while campaigning in 2022.

Bynum, who is running in Oregon’s most competitive district and is a Democratic representative, dismissed the claims when an unidentified individual informed her of their concerns. She also allegedly threatened them, according to the complaint, which was obtained by Fox News recently.

The new report disclosed that Bynum is not the only politician mentioned in the controversy. Democratic Speaker of the House Julie Fahey and Democratic Attorney General Dan Rayfield were also accused of not reporting the reported abuse to authorities.

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Vigilante Swiss teens use dating apps to lure paedophiles into violent ambushes – before being caught and charged over their retribution

A group of vigilante teenagers took the law into their own hands and used dating apps to lure paedophiles into violent ambushes after police ignored their complaints about a schoolgirl pal who was being groomed. 

The schoolchildren, aged between 13 and 18, from Lugano in Switzerland were themselves apprehended by police earlier this month.

They were held on charges including grievous bodily harm, assault, coercion, robbery, false imprisonment, and extortion.

The elaborate scheme was the brainchild of a 13-year-old boy who hatched a plan to use dating apps, such as Tinder, to track down adults who were trying to meet minors.

It was set up after local police allegedly ignored their complaints about the harassment of an underage girl by a man who was sending her nude pictures. 

Conversations between the two were even shared with no result, so the children came up with their own solution.

After chatting to the adults on dating apps, plans would be made over Whatsapp or Instagram to meet in-person at parks or even in flats across the Swiss city.

Once there, the unsuspecting targets walked straight into the group’s carefully laid trap.

The alleged paedophiles would first be greeted by an underage girl or boy, whose role was to persuade them to undress.

Once this was accomplished, the group of teens would converge on the scene, kicking and punching the individual while simultaneously urinating on them, spitting at them, or shaving off their hair.

The actions were reportedly recorded and sometimes shared with third parties. The group had even considered broadcasting the acts live on social media.

When interviewed by police, one of the teens said: ‘It all started when a 35-year-old man started harassing an underage friend of mine by sending her nude photos and asking her for sex.

‘We tried to file a complaint, but we were not taken seriously, we even showed the officials the chats.’

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South Shore cult ‘elder’ guilty of child rape to serve at least 30 years in prison

A leader of a South Shore religious sect will spend at least 30 years in prison after he was found guilty last month of raping and abusing two girls in the “tribe,” officials said.

Nehemyah Smith, 37, was convicted of all 25 charges last month, including 12 counts of aggravated child rape and multiple counts of indecent assault and battery. 

Smith was sentenced in Fall River Superior Court Wednesday to 13 to 18 years in prison for rape and child rape charges. He will then serve 17 to 22 years for aggravated child rape charges with a ten year age difference, according to the court clerk.

Smith, of Plymouth, was a “trusted elder” within the Twelve Tribes, an international religious organization led by men where families give up their possessions and live communally, according to court records. The known abuse took place between 2016 and 2020. 

The Twelve Tribes has communities in Milton, Raynham, Hyannis, and Plymouth, where members run a restaurant called the Yellow Deli. Smith’s victims were abused in all of those towns except Plymouth, according to court documents.

The group’s website describes it as “an emerging spiritual nation” whose members aim to live like the early disciples and follow the Old and New Testament. 

An investigation from the Denver Post in 2022 described the Twelve Tribes as a cult that exploits members, pushes racist, misogynistic, and homophobic teachings, and fails to protect children from sexual abuse.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, a nonprofit advocacy group, said Twelve Tribes is a white supremacist cult that extensively beats children who misbehave and believes that homosexuality should be punished by death.

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