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.
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Other Mormon sex abuse cases
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- Kenneth Johnson was a Mormon church member and home teacher in Beaverton, Oregon; a victim filed a $55.7 million lawsuit against the Mormon church saying Johnson had sexually molested him when Johnson was his home teacher; the alleged sexual abuse took place as often as twice a week for two years between 1987 and 1989
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- Matthew Anderson was an LDS church member in West Haven, Utah; accused of sexual abuse; convicted
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- 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
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- Carlos Escalante was an LDS branch president in San Nicolas, Argentina; sexually abused his stepdaughter for 5 years, including while branch president; the victim asked local LDS leaders for support, but allegedly received none; she was punished by the church for "refusing to forgive" and for "failing to comply with worthiness standards;" Escalante was sentenced in 2018 to 14 years in prison
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- George Barnett was a Mormon ward clerk in Cerritos, California; accused in a 2025 lawsuit against the Mormon church of sexually abusing a child as part of a sex trafficking ring, and of covering up the abuse; the plaintiff said she was abused over 200 times at the Cerritos LDS stake center from 1979 to 1983
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- Keith Knutson (1968 – ) was a Mormon church member in Seattle, Washington; pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse charges in 1995; a Mormon bishop allegedly failed to report abuse allegations to police
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- 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)-
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- Lowell Robison (1944 – 2018) was a Mormon mission president in the Mexico Leon mission (1995-1998) and stake president of the Provo, Utah Edgemont Stake (2001-2006); accused in 2018 of sexual abuse of multiple people; two months later, died by suicide
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- Tim Ryan was allegedly an LDS church member in Idaho; accused of sexual abuse; pleaded guilty in 2008 to a felony charge of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 16; detectives said the victim's family reported the abuse in 1999, but that it was dropped when they wouldn't cooperate with investigators
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- 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
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- Joseph Bishop was a Mormon church member and president of the Provo, Utah Missionary Training Center (MTC) in the 1980s; allegedly sexually abused multiple sister missionaries; not criminally charged because the statute of limitations had expired (in 1984, the legal deadline in Utah for filing a rape charge was four years); civil lawsuit was dismissed after an agreement by the plaintiff and the LDS church
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- George Lee (1943 – 2010) was a Mormon general authority in Utah; member of the First Quorum of the Seventy from 1975 to 1989; in 1994, pleaded guilty to attempted sexual abuse of a child, a third-degree felony; registered sex offender; died in 2010
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- G N was a Mormon church member; accused of sexual abuse
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- Peter Brackner was second counselor in an LDS bishopric in Purvis, Mississippi, and a scoutmaster; accused of sexual abuse
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- William Knox was a Mormon church member and scout leader in California; accused of sexually abusing multiple children
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- F N was an LDS bishop 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
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- Michael Shean (1947 – ) was a Mormon bishopric counselor and temple worker, and deputy district attorney in Santa Maria, Santa Barbara County, California; convicted of sexually molesting boys; sentenced to prison; the Mormon church allegedly made at least one settlement payment to a victim who said a stake president covered up the abuse for years
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- Jay Toombs (1956 – ) was an LDS scout leader and private investigator in Benson, Utah; allegedly told his stake president (a Cache County prosecutor) in 1994 that he had molested boys; three LDS bishops and stake president Jerry Toombs (his older brother) allegedly knew of abuse but did not tell police; convicted in 2000 and sentenced to five years to life in prison; released in 2025; lives in Logan, Utah
- View report »
"I felt like I was going to the authorities [by reporting to multiple bishops]. I wanted to do what was right. I didn't want to see him go to prison. I wanted him to get help. [...] I was always told to be patient with Jay, he was a good man. That's what I was told again and again and again. I was even given priesthood blessings that I had been chosen to help him."— Jane Doe, mother of abuse victim John Doe-
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- Jack Schofield (1923 – 2015) was an LDS church member, school administrator and state senator in Las Vegas, Nevada; accused of sexual harassment; died in 2015; a victim told FLOODLIT he sold her repeatedly to sex trafficking clients at a motel in Las Vegas
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- 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
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- James Bayless (1946 – ) was a Mormon church member in Gilbert, Arizona; pleaded guilty in 2015 to two counts of molestation of a child; as of 2024, is a registered sex offender living in Mesa, Arizona
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- Larry Johnson was a Mormon mission president from 1989 to 1992 (Virginia Roanoke) and a longtime LDS institute teacher in California; accused of sexual abuse in a lawsuit filed in 2021 in Orange County, California against Johnson and the LDS church; case ended in a settlement
- View report »
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- Jonathon Moser (1981 – ) was an LDS church member and middle school teacher in Rawlins, Wyoming; found guilty of sexually abusing two minor girls; sentenced to a minimum of 36 years in prison; a source told FLOODLIT that North Dakota LDS church leaders knew about the abuse but "did nothing"
- View report »
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- 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 »
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- 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 »
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- Buckland Darrell (1979 – ) was a former LDS Primary teacher in Redmond, Washington; accused of molesting young boys in sacrament meeting and at their homes; charged with first-degree felony child molestation in 2022-23 (5 victims); admitted to sexually abusing around 6 to 8 boys; pleaded guilty; sentenced in 2024 to at least 8 years in prison; faced two additional counts in March 2025 after two more victims came forward
- View report »
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- Marvin Harker (1968 – ) was an LDS bishop in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada in 2016; reportedly confessed to his mission president in 1987 to sexually abusing multiple children; also reportedly confessed to his bishop; both leaders told him not to report to police, according to records in a 2016 criminal case; convicted in 2019 (alleged abuse 1986-93); sentenced in 2020 to five years in prison; registered sex offender
- View report »
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- Brian Peterson (1964 – ) was an LDS church member and scout leader in Orem, Utah; accused in 1988 of child sexual abuse; convicted and sentenced to prison in 1990
- View report »
"I've had little boys all over the state of Utah in conjunction with the Boy Scout program. Give me an 11-year-old boy for a week, and I'll make him a homosexual for life."— Brian Peterson, as quoted by a neighbor in 1990-
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- Timothy McCleve (1956 – ) was a former Mormon bishop in Harrisville, Utah when he was charged with sexually abusing three children; some of the abuse took place while he was bishop; sentenced in 2008 to up to 30 years in prison for child sexual abuse; in 2024, charged in Utah with threatening a witness in a parole violation investigation
- View report »
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- 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
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- Kimball Ungerman (1957 – ) was an LDS bishopric counselor in California; moved to Utah; pleaded guilty in 2020 to one felony count related to child sexual abuse; sentenced to prison, but term was suspended; sentenced to probation; as of 2023, registered sex offender, lives in Orem, Utah; a 2021 California lawsuit against the church said bishop Phil Stewart failed to protect a victim, and a mission president didn't report
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"The Church does not keep a repository of documents relating to allegations, claims, or notification of child sexual abuse. There is no 'sexual abuse' file."— Branden Wilson, LDS church risk management director-
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- Nelson Bogero (1953 – ) was an LDS church member and Primary children's teacher in Cordoba, Argentina; accused in 2017 of sexual abuse of two girls who were in his Primary class; a local LDS leader allegedly knew about the abuse but failed to report to police; in August 2024, Bogero was sentenced to 16 years in prison
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- Alan Bassett (1948 – ) was a Mormon church member and air traffic controller in Fruit Heights, Utah; accused in a 2019 civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse (dismissed without prejudice); charged in June 2024 with child sexual abuse; over 80 victims came forward; admitted to molesting many neighbor girls; tried to get his case dismissed due to an unsigned 1989 agreement with a deputy Davis County attorney
- View report »
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- John Doe (2006 – ) was an LDS church member in Moses Lake, Washington; accused of child sexual abuse
- View report »
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- 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 »
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- 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 »
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- Todd Edwards (1964 – ) was a Mormon bishop in Menifee, Riverside County, California; in 2013, sentenced to three years in prison for sexual abuse of one teenage girl in 2006 and another in 2012; was bishop at the time of the 2012 abuse; in 2024, two victims sued the LDS church in separate lawsuits; one said a stake president and LDS law firm Kirton McConkie hindered police
- View report »
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- Jeremiah Hatch was a Mormon bishop and scout leader in American Fork, Utah (12th Ward) in the 1970s and early 1980s; accused of sexual abuse of six children that allegedly took place in 1976 during an overnight camping trip, and at his home during a sleepover; allegedly abused up to 30 or more children around the same time
- View report »
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- B P was a Mormon church member; accused of sexual abuse
- View report »
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- 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 »
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- DeRon Olsen (1944 – ) was a former Mormon bishop and stake presidency counselor in Spokane, Washington; in 2024, pleaded guilty to one felony count of child molestation and one felony count of child rape; sentenced to prison
- View report »
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- Vernon Sanford was an LDS church member in San Diego, California; died in 2000; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse, along with his father, Vernon Sanford Sr; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church; the alleged abuse occurred between 1961 and 1970; the Sanfords were the plaintiff's LDS home teachers
- View report »
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- 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 »
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- 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 »
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- Carl Pratt (1930 – 2006) was a Mormon bishop in San Manuel, Arizona; allegedly sexually abused a boy in his ward, in the bishop's office at an LDS chapel; died in 2006
- View report »
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- Timothy Bothell (1969 – ) was a LDS church employee and stake high council member in Utah; pleaded guilty and was sentenced in 2013 to two years in jail for sexual abuse of two girls, ages 11 and 13
- View report »
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- John Doe was an LDS church member in Utah; accused of sexual abuse
- View report »
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- Gary Westlund was an LDS church member; accused of sexual abuse of a Navajo child placed in an LDS foster home as part of the Indian Student Placement Program, also called the Lamanite Placement Program
- View report »
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- David Williams (1948 – ) was an LDS church member in West Valley, Utah; in 2019, found guilty of sexually abusing seven little girls for 14 years; the abuse was reported to parents and bishop and they allegedly did not report to police
- View report »
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- James Adams (1954 – ) was a Mormon church member in Beckley, West Virginia; sentenced to prison in 1994 for sexually abusing multiple children; in 1996, a $750 million lawsuit was filed against the Mormon church alleging coverup; the suit was settled out of court in 2000
- View report »
"The church is not in the business of covering up."— Church spokesman Don LeFevre-
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Documents
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Criminal case documents
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