Daniel Luke Taylor

Case report

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Daniel Taylor was found guilty in 2013 in New Zealand of child sexual abuse.

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from the NZ Herald on November 13, 2013:

“Victims of a prominent Far North businessman who were sexually abused while in his care have expressed disappointment at the sentence handed down today.

Daniel Taylor, 34, a former foster parent for Child Youth and Family, was sentenced to five years and seven months behind bars when he appeared for sentencing in the High Court at Whangarei this morning.

Justice Peter Woodhouse ordered that Taylor serve at least two years and 10 months before he was eligible for parole and expressed doubt at the convicted paedophile’s remorse after it emerged he had penned a single line apology letter to his victims – signed “regards, Daniel Taylor”.

Speaking outside the court, a victims’ spokesman said the young boys who Taylor had sexually abused were “very disappointed” with the sentence.

“Because you have a person who was given a lot of trust, a person who had a lot of power to some extent. All that he used in an unwise and unprofessional way and that has had great significant impact on those young boys.”

Taylor was also a youth leader with the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS).

LDS church member in Kaitaia, Anahera Herbert-Graves, said the sentence wasn’t “very punitive” in that Taylor could be out of prison in three years.

Taylor had earlier pleaded guilty to six charges of indecently assaulting a boy aged between 12 and 16, one of indecent assault on a boy under 16, one charge of indecent assault on a boy aged over 16 and one of attempted sexual connection with a boy under 12.

A former vice president of the Kaitaia Business Association, Taylor sat motionless with eyes fixed at the judge throughout today’s sentencing.

Justice Woodhouse said given Taylor’s lack of insight into his offending and his one-line apology letter to his victims, he had doubts about the extent of his remorse.

About a dozen people, including victims, their families and supporters, attended the court hearing, with a man in the public gallery shouting profanities at Taylor as he was escorted back to the cells.

A father and his two children left court crying while the victim impact statements were being read out.

Three of the five boys he sexually abused over a five-year period were brothers and their mother read out their victim impact statements while facing Taylor in court.

The first victim said he felt lonely and embarrassed and began to shy away from friends because he was afraid they would find out about Taylor’s offending.

Another victim said he was 15 years old when Taylor first abused him and that his offending continued for two years.

“I was embarrassed. After a while, I started telling others (about his offending). I was disgusted with Daniel Taylor’s behaviour.”

Justice Woodhouse said Taylor befriended and groomed his victims by spending money and taking them to places.

He said the victims could learn how to cope but the harm would last for a long time.

The boys’ parents felt a lasting sense of guilt at not being able to protect their children, the judge said.

Taylor’s actions had caused considerable harm, he abused positions of trust and authority, and all the victims were vulnerable.

Northland police criminal investigations manager Detective Inspector Kevin Burke said while Taylor had been sentenced, his victims would remain victims for the rest of their lives.

“Police would encourage any further victims of sexual abuse in Northland to come forward.”

In August, Far North school teacher James Parker was sentenced to preventive detention with a minimum non-parole period of seven years after admitting 74 sex charges relating to sleepovers with boys at his Awanui farm between 1999 and 2012.

The court was told the charges related to upwards of 300 offences.

And police are currently carrying out an investigation against James Sanders, who has already appeared in the Kaitaia District Court on a number of sexual offence charges against children.”

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from Newshub on 2013-11-14:

“A Child, Youth and Family (CYF) caregiver who used his role in Kaitaia’s Mormon Church to groom young boys for sex has been jailed for five years and seven months.

But Daniel Taylor’s victims and their families described the sentence as a joke.

From the moment Taylor was led into court, he was stoney-faced as his victims and their families got an empty apology.

“He knows only too well what he has done, how he has let these boys down, how he has let himself down, how he has let his community down,” says Arthur Fairley.

His role as a seminary teacher at the local Mormon Church was pivotal in much of his offending.

Between 2007 and 2011, the court heard Taylor, also the deputy head of the Kaitaia Business Association, befriended five boys and their families.

Harrowing victim impact statements were read to the court by a mother of three boys aged 10-15, all brothers, who described their loneliness, embarrassment and guilt at having sleepovers at Taylor’s house over a period of three years.

He’d sometimes fondle them, gyrate against them, and in one victim’s case attempted intercourse.

Another boy placed in Taylor’s care by CYF in 2011 told Taylor in his statement: “At the time CYFS interviewed me about what you’d done I told them only half the stuff […] I even thought of hanging myself because I thought my reputation might be gone.”

CYFS today defended its vetting process, saying the 34-year-old had had a clean record.

“At all levels it’s unacceptable, we are going to be putting in more monitoring for caregivers that they will be seen more often, and an independent voice for children to speak out and that’s part of the Children’s Action Plan that is going through,” says Social Development Minister Paula Bennett.

In sentencing the Kaitaia businessman to five years and seven months, Judge Woodhouse said the early guilty plea sparing the boys a trial helped his case, but the sentence infuriated the families.

“The harm you caused these boys may last them for the rest of their lives […] and the harm can go beyond the victims,” said Judge Woodhouse.

“You have a lack of insight into your victims and a lack of empathy.”

Judge Woodhouse told the court Taylor wrote three letters to his five victims – they were one-sentence apologies which he signed ‘Regards, Daniel Taylor’.”

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from the Otago Daily Times on 2013-11-15:

“Judge doubts sex offender’s remorse

A police hotline number set up to investigate former Northland school teacher James Parker was used by a church member in Kaitaia to dob in another church-goer for sexually abusing young boys.

The youth leader at Latter Day Saints (LDS) church in Kaitaia complained about Daniel Taylor, 34, who was yesterday jailed by the High Court in Whangarei on nine charges of sexually abusing young boys, including three brothers, over a five-year period.

He was sentenced to five years and seven months imprisonment and must serve two years and 10 months before becoming eligible for parole.

The charges to which he admitted included six of indecently assaulting a boy aged between 12 and 16, one of indecent assault on a boy under 16, one charge of indecent assault on a boy aged over 16 and one of attempted sexual connection with a boy under 12.

A foster parent for Child, Youth and Family and vice-president of the Kaitaia Business Association, he sat motionless with eyes fixed on Justice Peter Woodhouse throughout the sentencing.

LDS church member in Kaitaia, Anahera Herbert-Graves, claimed Taylor’s actions became a butt of jokes among youths for many months before church officials formally discussed the issue.

She said a church-goer called an 0800 number police had set up for the Parker investigation and lodged a report against Taylor.

She said the sentence wasn’t “very punitive” in that Taylor could be out of prison in three years.

“Taylor’s sexuality and interest in young boys have been a concern for sometime before he was spoken to and charged by police but he kept being called to positions in the church where he’d have more access to boys,” she said.

Justice Woodhouse said given Taylor’s lack of insight into his offending and his one-line letter of apology to victims, he had doubts about the extent of his remorse.

About a dozen people, including victims, their families and supporters attended the proceedings, with a man in the public gallery shouting profanities at Taylor as he was being escorted back after the sentencing.

A father and his two children left court crying while the victim impact statements were being read out.

The mother of three boys sexually abused by Taylor turned towards him and began reading the effects his offending had had on her children.

One of the boys said Taylor’s persistent offending put him off going to church because he didn’t want to see Taylor.

Another victim said he felt confused and disgusted knowing Taylor taught the word of God, yet he did things that weren’t right. “At times I felt a sense of guilt which I now know has no place in my mind because I am not to be blamed for what he did to me,” he said.

Charles Hohaia, a family therapist at Te Waka Whaanui who provided counselling to Taylor’s victims, said some boys had moved on as best they could but their healing and recovery could be in jeopardy if appropriate funding wasn’t available.

He lauded the wider whanau and the community from Kaitaia for attending the sentencing.

Report sexual abuse by calling police either on 111 or on 0800555111.”