Children in Florida and around the country have the right to be free of all forms of abuse. Sadly, many whose parents are or were members of the Mormon church faced years of sexual abuse.
Clergy from the Mormon church knew but stayed silent
A little girl faced sex abuse at the hands of her father from the time she was only 5 years old. The father was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
At one point, the father confessed to his bishop that he was sexually abusing his daughter. Nothing was done as the bishop was told by the so-called “helpline” from the church that he could not report the abuse to the police or anyone else. Instead, he kept the secret while counseling the man.
The wife was brought in and the bishop was hopeful that she would do something to help the child. However, she didn’t take any action. The bishop spoke with another bishop who also kept the abuse secret. The Mormon faith insisted on keeping all confessions within the church, which led to the child being sexually abused for another seven years.
Law enforcement finally steps in, but there’s no justice
The father repeatedly taped the instances of sex abuse against his daughter and posted them online. By 2017, he was arrested by Homeland Security officials after law enforcement became aware of the videos. Unfortunately, there was no justice for his daughter as he committed suicide prior to the criminal trial.
The girl who survived the sex abuse at the hands of her father criticized the Mormon church for doing nothing and allowing it to happen. The man was also reportedly physically and emotionally abusive toward his wife.