Was Scout leader,
Unknown result,
updated Jan 18, 2025 - request update
John Doe (pseudonym) was a Mormon church member and Cub/Boy Scout leader in the United States. In the 2020s, a sexual abuse survivor identified Doe as part of a “proof of claim” submission in the massive Boy Scouts of America (BSA) bankruptcy case. The claim was one of 2,854 that directly identified the Mormon church, according to an expert analysis of the LDS church’s potential total liability for the sexual abuse allegations. The alleged abuse took place prior to the bankruptcy filing in February 2020, and may have dated back as early as the 1940s. FLOODLIT is seeking court documents and more details about these cases.
Do you know them? Add info or contact us
FLOODLIT.org compiles reports on sexual abuse in the LDS church to raise public awareness and help survivors heal. Learn more » or Get involved »
Sponsored Content
Other Mormon sex abuse cases
-

- Kevin Curlew was an LDS church member in Methuen, Massachusetts; accused of sexually abusing a child in an LDS chapel; convicted and sentenced to prison; in 2008, a victim's mother filed a civil lawsuit against the the Mormon church, claiming the church allowed the accused to babysit children despite his prior convictions for child sexual abuse, and that LDS leaders failed to report her child's abuse to police
- View report »
-
-

- Wendell Thompson (1963 – ) was a former LDS bishop and stake presidency member in Clinton, Mississippi; convicted in 2011 of felony child sexual abuse (gratification of lust); some of the abuse took place while Thompson was in an LDS stake presidency role
- View report »
-
-

- Richard James (1966 – ) was a Mormon church member in Potomac, Maryland; accused of sexually abusing a boy from 1995 to 1999 at billionaire Bill Marriott's home, an LDS church and other locations; pleaded guilty to reduced child abuse charges; sentenced to 10 years in prison (nine suspended); was a registered sex offender; the victim sued the church, Marriott and six others in 2024
- View report »
-
-

- Arlo Atkin (1956 – ) was a former LDS bishop in or near Chandler, Maricopa County, Arizona; accused of raping and impregnating a 14-year-old girl in his ward while he was her bishop; pleaded guilty, spent 132 days in jail
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- Kip Later was an LDS church member and scout leader in Idaho; accused in the 1980s of sexual abuse; Mormon church leaders allegedly failed to tell police about abuse allegations
- View report »
-
-

- Ronald Phelps was an LDS bishop and stake executive secretary, and attorney, in Oklahoma; arrested for indecent exposure before becoming an LDS bishop; accused of child sexual abuse; Mormon church leaders allegedly covered up the abuse
- View report »
-
-

- Frederick Edvalson (1920 – 2009) was a Mormon in Utah and Camp Springs, Prince George's County, Maryland; convicted 3 times of sexual abuse in Maryland in the 1980s; third conviction: while on probation, groomed a 10-year-old girl and sexually assaulted her in a room inside a Mormon chapel on multiple occasions from 1983 to 1984; reportedly told her he was giving her "special religious training;" sentenced to 8 years in prison
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- Francis Cochran (1921 – 2005) was a Mormon high priest in the Seattle 6th Ward in Seattle, Washington in the 1980s; convicted twice in the 1980s of crimes related to sexual abuse of multiple children; allegedly assaulted multiple young girls on LDS property, including during church meetings; a 2025 lawsuit (Floodlit broke the story) said stake president Paul Diehl & multiple ward bishops covered up allegations against Cochran
- View report »
"Despite numerous red flags, Defendants continued to give High Priest Cochran access to minor church members. Defendants allowed High Priest Cochran to continue to attend and volunteer at church events, including those attended by minors. Defendants also allowed High Priest Cochran to continue to transport young girls, including vulnerable refugee girls, to and from church events."— civil complaint filed Sept. 17, 2025 (case 2:25-cv-01797)-
-

- Stephen Field was a Mormon church member in California; convicted of sexual abuse; sentenced to prison
- View report »
-
-

- Cesar Duran (1982 – ) was a Mormon bishopric counselor in a Spanish-speaking LDS ward in Orem, Utah (Geneva Height Stake); arrested for alleged sexual abuse of a 13-year-old girl in his ward; the alleged abuse took place inside an LDS church building
- View report »
-
-

- Anthon Ellsworth (1982 – ) was an LDS bishopric counselor and returned missionary in Arizona; in 2021, pleaded guilty to three felony counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and was sentenced to seven years in prison
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS stake mission president; accused by Mormon leader Vaughn Featherstone in 1975 of child sexual abuse of "many, many Aaronic Priesthood boys" in Doe's stake
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- Orson Wright (1928 – 2017) was a Mormon mission president in Sydney, Australia from 1978 to 1980; accused of grooming some of the sister missionaries in his care to be his polygamous wives; removed early from his mission assignment; LDS church leaders in Salt Lake City, Utah allegedly covered up the reasons for Wright's removal
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- William Gillespie (1936 – ) was an LDS church member in Montgomery, Alabama; accused of reaching inside the swimsuits of two girls and fondling them in his backyard pool in 1987; convicted in 1988 of three charges of first-degree sexual abuse and sentenced to one year in prison, plus four years of probation; conviction was reversed on appeal, then upheld; was allegedly excommunicated from the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- Melvin McKinney was an LDS church member in California; accused of sexual abuse
- View report »
-
-

- Steven Murdock (1963 – ) was a Mormon stake high council member and former LDS bishop in Holladay, Salt Lake County, Utah; allegedly sexually harassed multiple women in his ward while he was their bishop (he was bishop from 2013 to 2017); in 2019, was caught taking photos of a young woman in a dressing room in Tennessee; pleaded guilty in November 2019; sentenced in 2019 to one year probation, 48 hours community service
- View report »
-
-

- Waylon White (1982 – ) was a Mormon church member in Payson, Arizona; was a licensed practiced nurse (PN); charged in 2025 with 18 felonies related to child sexual abuse
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- Stephen Davis was a Mormon bishopric counselor in Orange County, California; accused of sexual abuse
- View report »
-
-

- Lon Kennard (1941 – 2019) was a former Mormon bishop in Heber City, Utah; in 2011, pleaded guilty to three felony counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child; sentenced in 2011 to three consecutive terms of five years to life in the Utah State Prison
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe (1955 – ) was a Mormon church member in Lake Elsinore, California; arrested in 1997; pleaded guilty to committing lewd acts with a child under age 14; spent three years in state prison; in December 2022, the LDS church paid $995,000 to settle its part of a related civil lawsuit wherein a jury awarded the victim $2.28 billion
- View report »
-
-

- Vance Hein (1951 – ) was an LDS church member and scoutmaster in West Bradford, Pennsylvania; was convicted in 1999 of a misdemeanor for sexually abusing one of his boy scouts; sentenced in 2000 to 15 years of probation; arrested in 2011 for possessing child pornography; sentenced in 2012 to 15 to 30 years in prison; the Mormon church settled a related lawsuit in 2014
- View report »
-
-

- Brian Pickett was a Mormon branch president and leader at a youth program picking pineapples in Maui, Hawaii; accused of sexual abuse in a civil lawsuit that also named the LDS church; the suit was dismissed with prejudice after a settlement in 2016
- View report »
-
-

- Mark Gum (1957 – ) was a Mormon scout leader in Oxnard, California; a 2011 lawsuit against the LDS church and the Boy Scouts of America accused him of sexually assaulting a boy scout; while the boy was living with Gum (with the consent of the boy's parents), church members visited and accepted the living arrangement, the suit said; in 2012, the Mormon church made a settlement payment for an undisclosed amount
- View report »
-
-

- Arthur Stout was a Mormon church member in Littlerock, California; in 2024, a civil lawsuit said he sexually assaulted a girl "on a weekly basis" from 1991 to 1997, starting when she was 5 years old; some of the alleged abuse took place in an LDS church building
- View report »
-
-

- Harvey Harper (1935 – 2014) was an LDS church member and deputy county district attorney in Los Angeles, California; arrested in 1984 and charged with child sexual abuse; jumped bail; found guilty; sentenced in absentia to 14 years in prison; lived secretly in Colorado for 20 months until federal investigators found him; local LDS church coverup alleged
- View report »
-
-

- Randall Deaton (1959 – ) was an LDS church member in the Holmes Lake Ward, Lincoln Nebraska Stake; convicted in 2002 of attempted 1st degree sexual assault of a minor; the abuse took place before Deaton joined the LDS church; subsequently called as counselor in a YSA ward bishopric
- View report »
-
-

- Michael Driggs (1950 – ) was a Mormon missionary in Brazil in the early 1970s; allegedly sent to a different mission in the United States after being found having inappropriate relationships with young boys; convicted of child sexual abuse in 1985 in Arizona; convicted again of child sexual abuse in 2013 in Utah; he met his victim in the Utah case at church, according to court documents
- View report »
-
-

- Raphael Caccioppoli (1971 – ) was a Mormon Sunday school teacher, lawyer and Justice Ministry judicial officer in New Zealand; confessed sex crime behavior to a Mormon bishop in 1998; LDS leaders did not tell police or local parents of children he was left alone to supervise; turned himself in to police in 2007; sentenced to five years in jail for child sexual abuse and animal sex abuse (bestiality)
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe (2006 – ) was an LDS church member in Moses Lake, Washington; accused of child sexual abuse
- View report »
-
-

- Kim Nelson was a Mormon church member in St. George, Utah; pleaded guilty to charges of child sexual abuse and was sentenced to prison; LDS leaders allegedly knew about the abuse and failed to report to police
- View report »
-
-

- Clark Crookston (1949 – ) was a former Mormon bishop, dentist and college professor in Orem, Utah; accused of nearly 60 years of sex abuse of multiple children; pleaded guilty to attempted aggravated child sexual abuse; sentenced in 2022 to up to 35 years in prison
- View report »
"I assumed I was alone. I felt guilty even to question his worthiness. [...] I buried the hurt and kept it secret for over 30 years. [...] The children who came forward are my heroes. These are the brave souls [who] broke the curse that has been happening for nearly 60 years."— Jane Doe, abuse survivor-
-

- Matthew Doyle (1973 – ) was an LDS bishop in Copperas Cove, Texas (2nd Ward) in the 2000s; was a high school basketball coach; convicted in 2011 of sexual assault
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was a Mormon church member; accused of sexual abuse
- View report »
-
-

- Calvin McGee (2002 – ) was an LDS missionary in Virginia in 2022; accused of soliciting sexually explicit pictures and video from a person he believed to be an 11-year-old girl, and inviting her to meet in person; arrested in Boise, Idaho in July 2023 and accused of rape of a minor; pleaded guilty to two charges related to child sexual abuse; sentenced in May 2024 to three to 25 years in prison
- View report »
-
-

- James Carnegie was a Mormon bishop in Silverdale, Washington in the mid-1980s (Silverdale 3rd Ward, Silverdale Washington Stake); convicted in 2009 and sentenced to jail for child molestation
- View report »
-
-

- Kenneth Jenks was an LDS church member in California (Milpitas Ward); was a ward executive secretary and ward librarian; charged with sexual abuse; convicted; served 14 years in prison for sexual abuse of a minor under duress; three victims sued the LDS church, claiming it knew about Jenks's abuse but allowed him to work with children
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in Germany; accused of sexual abuse
- View report »
-
-

- Daniel Taylor (1979 – ) was an LDS church member and seminary teacher in New Zealand; found guilty in 2013 of sexual abuse of multiple underage boys; local Mormon leaders allegedly failed to report Taylor's abuse
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- David Chadwick (1966 – ) was an LDS church member in Eagle Mountain, Utah; convicted in 2019 of sex abuse of a child
- View report »
-
-

- John Doe was an LDS church member in California; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
- View report »
-
-

- Brandon Manning (1973 – ) was an LDS church member in Utah and Georgia; convicted three times of sex crimes: Scotland in the 1990s, Utah in 2001, Georgia in 2020; assigned to be a young men's president in a Georgia LDS branch in 2017; arrested in 2019 and charged with eight felony counts of child sexual exploitation; convicted; as of November 2023, lives in Fort Valley, Georgia as a registered sex offender
- View report »
-
Help Floodlit raise awareness about sexual abuse in the Mormon church
Your donations help us cover costs, create reports and make court documents available.
We've accomplished a lot in 2025 thanks to you!
Donate »Donate to support FLOODLIT.org
Your support enables us to conduct research, publish case info, and make documents freely available.
Our relentless reporting honors survivors, assists researchers, and empowers those who protect the vulnerable.
We're an independent non-profit newsroom.
Donate »Sources
No sources available. Please contact us to request an update.
Documents
Have docs or info? Add information
Criminal case documents
Floodlit does not have information regarding whether a related probable cause affidavit exists. Please check back soon or contact us to request that we look for one.Civil case documents
Floodlit does not have information regarding whether a related civil complaint exists. Please check back soon or contact us to request that we look for one.Other documents
Floodlit does not have information regarding whether other related documents exist. Please check back soon or contact us to request that we look for some.Add information
If someone you know was harmed by the person listed on this page, or if you would like us to add or correct any information, please fill out the form below. We will keep you anonymous. You can also contact us directly.
"*" indicates required fields




























