In 2017, the Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse found the total social exclusion known as "shunning" made it difficult for abuse survivors to leave the organisation, was "upsetting" and "particularly devastating" for those who suffered child abuse and left because their abuser remained in the congregation. They remain cut off from their families and closest friends: those they love the most. The people who break away from the Jehovah's Witnesses like Amy Whitby and Theresa Clare pay a terrible price. Ms Flynn's firm, Shine Lawyers, is representing 10 former Jehovah's Witnesses who allege they were abused within their congregations. In a statement to Four Corners, the Jehovah's Witnesses said, "The organisation responds directly to any claim for compensation in a caring, fair and principled manner". "That continuous denial, the continuous delays certainly has a significant impact on our clients," Ms Flynn said. Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander crisis support line 13YARN on 13 92 76.Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467.In Australia, a similar pattern is being seen. They say the organisation drags cases out until the last possible moment, then settles to avoid a courtroom examination of its practices. Lawyers who have battled the Jehovah's Witnesses in the US and UK have told Four Corners the organisation has a global problem with both child abuse and the way it responds to victims. "We think that the Australian courts will make that same determination when they're called on to do so." It will seek financial compensation and an overhaul of the religion's response to victims.Lisa Flynn is the national practice leader for Shine Lawyers. He says the suit will claim negligence on the part of Jehovah's Witnesses for how they process child sex abuse claims such as Smith's. Smith's attorney, Irwin Zalkin, whose San Diego law firm has been litigating against Jehovah's Witnesses across the country for nearly two decades, expects to file a civil lawsuit in the coming month on her behalf. "It's really this culture of silencing and of cleaning things up and of tolerance." 'This is not tolerable in a civilized society' "I feel that their first interest is not for the victim. Don't ruin his name by taking this public." He says he has collected more than 1,000 stories on the website since he started it in 2001.Ĭhessa Manion, 29, describes the abuse she saw within the religious organization as "systemic." She says she was raped by the teenage son of an elder in 1994 in Illinois when she was five years old, and when her parents told elders what had happened, their response was: "Let bygones be bygones for Jehovah's sake. Bowen is also the national director of Silentlambs, a victims' support group where abuse survivors who have gotten kicked out of the religion anonymously share their stories. They're not cops or welfare workers," said William Bowen, a former elder who now serves as an expert witness on how Jehovah's Witnesses operate with respect to allegations of sexual abuse. These men are literally flying by the seat of their pants. "There's no list of questions or protocols. ( Romans 13:1) Even if the elders have no legal duty to report an accusation to the authorities, the branch office of Jehovah’s Witnesses will instruct the elders to report the matter if a minor is still in danger of abuse or there is some other valid reason," says one bullet point in the document. "When elders learn of an accusation of child abuse, they immediately consult with the branch office of Jehovah’s Witnesses to ensure compliance with child abuse reporting laws. ![]() ![]() It directed NBC News to its " scripturally based position on child protection," a two-page document on its website that intersperses Biblical references with denouncements of child abuse and outlines how the congregation aims to protect its children. In response to questions from NBC News about what happened to Smith, Fairfield Kingdom Hall did not return a request for comment, and the Office of Public Information at the World Headquarters said in an email that "it would be inappropriate for us to comment on specific cases."
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