Today, KSL reported on the arrest of Ronald Charles Jones of West Jordan, Utah: https://www.ksl.com/article/51353482/elderly-west-jordan-man-arrested-accused-of-sexually-abusing-young-girl-
The KSL article pulls information from a police probable cause affidavit, but doesn’t mention the name of the church of which Jones is a member – despite the affidavit itself stating he “is an influential member of his LDS ward and held several positions within the church.”
KSL also only mentions one prior sex crime conviction, whereas the police affidavit – and a search of Utah’s online court records website – reveals two. Jones was convicted in 1990 and again in 1995 for solicitation.
Ronald Charles Jones is a former LDS bishop, stake president (Lawton, Oklahoma), regional representative, and temple presidency member and temple sealer (Palmyra New York Temple).
Jones was also “Military Relations Director” for the LDS church from approximately 1989 to 1991. He was in the US Army in Vietnam during the Vietnam War and became a decorated military veteran.
This isn’t the first time Floodlit has made note of Utah media reports that appear to downplay or avoid mention of the Mormon church in sex abuse case reporting. Example: https://floodlit.org/mormon-references-removed-news/
