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Understanding The Secret Jehovah’s Witness Sex Abuse Files

Posted in Sexual Abuse on Tuesday, February 11, 2020.

A recent documentary from Oxygen which included an interview with Soloff & Zervanos attorney Jeffrey Fritz has uncovered an alleged massive cover-up of child sexual abuse within the Jehovah’s Witnesses organization. The abuse has allegedly occurred for decades and throughout their organization across the country. Worse, we are learning that there is a secret archive of documents that details the names and locations of every abuser within the organization. At Soloff & Zervanos, P.C., our Philadelphia child sexual abuse attorneys are ready to help if you have been the victim of abuse and have helped survivors of sexual abuse within the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Let us work to secure the justice you deserve.

Is this the Jehovah’s Witness version of the perversion files?

We have reported before about the “perversion files” kept by the Boy Scouts of America that outlined a list of abuse allegations and known instances of youth sex abuse within their organization. It now turns out that the Jehovah’s Witnesses are another organization that maintains their own secret files of sexual abuse allegations.

An explosive documentary from Oxygen called The Witnesses shows us the culmination of five years of reporting from the Center for Investigative Reporting’s Trey Bundy. In this report, we have learned that the Jehovah’s Witnesses have likely been covering up allegations of child sexual abuse by members within their organization for more than 30 years.

Here we are again, with another major organization, committing the ultimate betrayal to youth. The nonprofit oversight wing of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, have allegedly been collecting precise data about instances of sexual abuse within their organization. They have done so with questionnaires sent to congregations. Among the information they gather is:

  • The type of abuse that occurs
  • The frequency of sexual abuse
  • Personal information of the perpetrators
  • How the victim and perpetrator were perceived by others in the congregation
  • What kind of reaction the community had to the allegations of sexual abuse
  • How many people knew about the abuse

What we have learned is that the Jehovah’s Witnesses have known exact details of what kind of sexual abuse and who perpetrated the abuse but have done nothing about it. Specifically, they have continually instructed congregations NOT to take the information to law enforcement authorities. Did they never expect this information to come out? Did they ever care about protecting youth?

Let us help you secure the compensation you deserve

If you or someone you care about has been the victim of child sexual abuse while participating in Jehovah’s Witness activities, either by an elder, ministerial servant, or other congregant, you need to seek legal assistance immediately. At Soloff & Zervanos, P.C., our knowledgeable and experienced team, who has represented survivors in numerous cases against the Jehovah’s Witnesses before is ready to help victims recover the compensation they need. This can include:

  • Pain and suffering damages
  • Compensation for any necessary counseling
  • Punitive damages against the perpetrator of the abuse
  • Punitive damages against any group that covered up the abuse including the Watchtower, Christian Congregation, and local congregations

When you need a Philadelphia child sexual abuse attorney for a Jehovah’s Witness case, you can contact us for a free consultation by clicking here or calling us at (215) 732-2260.