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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- James Hogan (1939 – ) was a Mormon church member and scout leader in Oregon; in 1989, was sentenced to five years in prison for child sexual abuse; released in 1994; in 2011, a victim filed a civil lawsuit against the Boy Scouts of America, seeking $5.2 million; the Mormon church settled with two victims for $800,000 and $75,000
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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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- 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 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
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"The church is not in the business of covering up."— Church spokesman Don LeFevre-
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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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- Douglas Holyoak (1960 – ) was a Mormon bishop in Sycamore, Illinois from about 1999 to 2004; accused in a 2024 civil lawsuit of sexual assault of an underage girl in his office at church when she reported sexual harassment by other youth; allegedly covered up the assault with the help of a stake presidency counselor (Michael John Evans)
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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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- 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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- 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
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- Paul Lewis was a Mormon church member and scout leader in Seattle, Washington; accused of sexual abuse; the victim sued the Mormon church in 2006
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- Dustin Hall was a Mormon church member and Boy Scout leader in Washington; accused of sexually abusing boys in the Shelton Ward near Olympia; a lawsuit filed against the Mormon church in 2009 claimed church leaders knew Hall posed a risk to boys but failed to prevent him from working with them
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- Robert Berchtold (1936 – 2005) was a Mormon church member in Idaho; sexually abused a child; in 1986, was found guilty of rape of a child and spent one year in jail
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- Keith Price (1956 – ) was a Mormon bishop in Pleasant Grove, Utah; convicted in 2018 of class A misdemeanor voyeurism; secretly recorded underage girls; the crime occurred while he was serving as bishop
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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"
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- 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
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- Arlin Hatch was a Mormon church member in California; accused of sexual abuse in a 2025 lawsuit against the Mormon church
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- Kim Hartley was a Mormon church member; accused of sexual abuse; convicted
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- John UNKNOWN was a Mormon church member; accused of sexual abuse
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- Timur Dykes was a Mormon church member and scout leader in Portland, Oregon; accused of sexual abuse; convicted multiple times; in 1987, three plaintiffs sued the Mormon church and the Boy Scouts of America; in about 2009, the Mormon church paid $350,000 to a victim to settle its portion of a civil lawsuit
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- Susan Brock (1962 – ) was an LDS church member in Arizona; was sentenced in April 2011 to 13 years in prison for engaging in a three-year-long sexual relationship with a boy, beginning when he was 14 years old; was released in December 2021
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- Stephen Field was a Mormon church member in California; convicted of sexual abuse; sentenced to prison
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- Gene Guinn (1932 – 2008) was an LDS church member in the Dallas Seventh Ward, Texas; in 2000, found guilty by a jury of indecency with a child and sentenced to 68 years in prison; the victim was 10 years old at the time of the crime; Mormon officials allegedly knew about the abuse but failed to report to police
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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
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- Derek Layton was an LDS church member in Arizona; accused of sexual abuse in the late 1980s; convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison for "sexual conduct with minor and dangerous crimes against children"
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- Michael Adamson (1945 – ) was a Mormon church caretaker and organist in York, England; allegedly abused at least four children as young as seven years old between 1966 and 1982; sentenced to prison in England in 2008 for child sexual abuse
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- Michael Cunningham (1947 – ) was a Mormon church member in England; accused of sexual abuse; a judge sentenced Cunningham to ten years imprisonment and told him that he must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life
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- Eric Avant (1959 – ) was a Mormon cub scout leader in Norfolk, Virginia; convicted in 1979 of sodomizing an 11-year-old; Mormon leaders allegedly knew of his sexual attraction to young boys but did not check police records; convicted in 1988 of 14 counts of aggravated sexual battery and sentenced to 26 years in prison for molesting nine boys; had as many as 41 alleged victims; the church settled a lawsuit in 1992
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- Maynard McFarland (1959 – ) was an LDS church member in California and Minnesota; sentenced in 2005 to 32 years in prison for sexually abusing his daughter for many years; released from prison in 2020; as of 2024, lives in Chula Vista, California as a registered sex offender
- View report »
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- Clayton Hildreth (1952 – ) was a Mormon stake president in Butte, Montana; from Dillon, Montana; arrested in June 2004 by Boise, Idaho police for soliciting sex from a person he thought was a 14-year-old girl online; was stake president at the time of his arrest; pleaded guilty in October to a charge of interstate travel with intent to have sex with a minor; sentenced in 2005 to three years and five months in prison
- View report »
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- James Denos (1929 – 2017) was a former LDS bishop and junior high school teacher in Utah; previously lived and served as a Mormon bishop in 1970 in Westminster, Orange County, California; sentenced in 2002 to a minimum of 20 years in a Utah state prison for sexually abusing four minor girls living in Utah; allegedly began molesting kids as early as 1950
- View report »
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- Orin Searle (1926 – 2014) was an LDS church member in Ogden, Utah; accused of sexual abuse in 2013 but was deemed incompetent to stand trial; a victim said that Searle's predatory behavior began as early as the late 1950s, and that several family members, and multiple members of the LDS 44th Ward (Mount Ogden Stake), knew that Searle was a child molester but did nothing to stop him; died in 2014
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- James Danenon (1989 – ) was an LDS church member in American Fork, Utah; guilty of sexual abuse of a minor abuse
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- 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 »
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- Anastasia Dawson (1993 – ) was a Mormon church member in Missouri; arrested in 2023 and charged with several counts relating to sexual abuse of a minor
- 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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- 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
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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
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- Christopher Kite was an LDS church member in Chicago, Illinois; accused of sexual abuse
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- Geoffrey Ashdown was a Mormon bishop and deputy school principal in Australia; allegedly sexually abused two children while he was a bishop; died
- 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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- Geoffrey Powell (1947 – ) was an LDS bishop in Western Australia; accused of sexually abusing a seven-year-old girl in his ward; the alleged abuse took place while he was a bishop; the victim twice complained to the LDS church, but said she was not believed and was chastised, and it was suggested she should move away if she felt uncomfortable; in 2019, he was sentenced to 12 months in jail
- View report »
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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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- Douglas Stoddard (1949 – ) was an LDS bishop in Hurst, Texas; convicted in 1992 of a felony child sexual abuse charge of indecency with a child by contact; sentenced to 8 years of probation; a lifetime registered sex offender in Texas; named publicly in August 2023 by a victim who said Stoddard molested him and three other boys in his Mormon ward while serving as bishop
- View report »
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- Keith Vallejo (1974 – ) was a Mormon bishop in Utah; accused of sexually abusing and raping two underage girls; in 2017, was found guilty in a jury trial of ten counts of second-degree felony forcible sexual abuse and one count of first-degree felony object rape; sentenced to five years to life in prison
- View report »
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- John Doe was a Mormon church member; accused of sexual abuse
- View report »
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- Christopher Warnock (1950 – ) was a Mormon church member in Waukesha County, Wisconsin; pleaded guilty to two counts of 1st Degree Sexual Assault of Child and one 2nd Degree Sex Assault-Intoxicated Victim
- View report »
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- Luis Zarate was a Mormon bishop in Panama; accused of sexual abuse of a 4-year-old
- View report »
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- Philander Smartt was a Mormon mission president in Puerto Rico; accused of sexually manipulating some of his sister missionaries; in 2014, the LDS church sent him home and called his behavior "immoral and sinful," but no criminal charges or civil lawsuits resulted
- View report »
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- John Doe was a Mormon church member in Vernon, Utah; 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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Documents
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Criminal case documents
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