An expert contracted by the Boy Scouts to examine sexual abuse cases within its ranks revealed that as many as 7,819 troop leaders and volunteers allegedly abused 12,254 victims, according to newly released court documents.
Attorney Jeff Anderson, who specializes in sexual abuse cases, released the figures during an April 23 news conference in New York, where at least 130 abusers have been identified. New York recently changed its reporting laws, easing the statute of limitations and giving victims more time to report their abuse.
The breadth of the scouting abuse was first revealed in January, but not made public, during court testimony provided by Dr. Janet Warren, a professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Neurobehavioral Sciences at the University of Virginia’s medical school. Warren was a witness in a Minnesota child sex abuse case.
According to ABC News, Warren testified that she has been “on private contract” with the Boy Scouts of America for the past five years, evaluating its handling of sexual abuse within the organization from 1944 through 2016.
That work included the review of thousands of records sometimes referred to as “perversion files,” which contain details of leaders and volunteers who were let go because of alleged abuse.
“The disclosure made by Dr. Janet Warren really sounded the alarm to us,” Anderson said, adding“this is…
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