Mormon sexual abuse cases: new updates

• Brian Richard Pickett
  • 
  • 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
  • Alleged crime: 1980s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime state: Hawaii,
  • LDS positions: Branch president, Stake high council,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Civil case(s): Dismissed with prejudice, Lawsuit v. LDS church, Settlement,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• UNKNOWN Smith
  • 
  • UNKNOWN Smith was a Mormon bishop in Lancaster, California; a 2024 civil lawsuit said he took part with two Melchizedek priesthood holders in sexually assaulting an underage boy inside an LDS church building on a weekly basis from 2001 to 2003, starting when the victim was 15 years old
  • Alleged crime: 2000s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime state: California,
  • LDS positions: Bishop,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Civil case(s): Lawsuit v. LDS church, Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• David Brian Farley
  • 
  • David Farley (1958 – ) was a former doctor in West Linn, Oregon; accused of sexually abusing more than 200 patients over a span of many years, during some of which Farley was an LDS stake high council member; in 2024, the city of West Linn, Oregon released a report about the way its police department investigated Farley; in October 2025, a grand jury indicted him on 11 felony sexual assault charges
  • Alleged crime: 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime city: OR - West Linn,
  • Alleged crime county: OR - Clackamas,
  • Alleged crime state: Oregon,
  • LDS positions: Bishopric counselor, Primary, Stake high council, Sunday school,
  • Criminal case(s): Admitted guilt, Not convicted, Ongoing,
  • Civil case(s): Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  Church fought in court to keep records on Farley secret
  "When I was assaulted, I thought I was alone, I thought I had misread things."
  — Katie Medley
  • View report »
• Ronald Terry Brockner
  • 
  • Ronald Brockner (1959 – ) was a Mormon bishop and stake president in Louisiana; moved to Idaho; convicted in Idaho in 2020 of sexually exploiting a minor; sentenced to 5 to 10 years in prison
  • Convicted: 2020,
  • LDS positions: Bishop, Stake president,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Prison,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• William Leonard Butcher
  • 
  • William Butcher was a Mormon church member in Provo, Utah; turned himself in to police in 2013, three days before he was planning to begin a Mormon mission, and admitted to sexually abusing 12 boys and girls; pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse charges; sentenced in 2014 to 18 years to life in prison; as of 2025, lives in Provo, Utah
  • Crime: 2000s, 2010s,
  • Places lived:
  • Crime city: UT - Provo,
  • Crime county: UT - Utah,
  • Crime state: Utah,
  • LDS positions: Unknown position,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Plea deal, Pleaded guilty, Prison, Registered sex offender,
  • View report »
• Brigham Young
  • 
  • Brigham Young (1801 – 1877) was the second president of the Mormon church; married 56 women, including a 15-year-old and three 16-year-olds; was publicly accused during his life (1801-1877) of sexual misconduct, including adultery and illegal polygamy; never charged with a sex crime; arrested and charged with adultery in 1871; not convicted
  • Alleged crime: 1840s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime state: Illinois, Utah,
  • LDS positions: Apostle, Missionary,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Francis DeFord Corser Cochran
  • 
  • 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
  • Crime: 1980s,
  • Places lived:
  • Crime city: WA - Seattle,
  • Crime county: WA - King,
  • Crime state: Washington,
  • Convicted: 1987, 1988,
  • LDS positions: High priest,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Plea deal, Pleaded guilty,
  • Civil case(s): Lawsuit v. LDS church, Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  Stake president and two LDS bishops allegedly covered up abuse allegations
  "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)
  • View report »
• Murray Colin Stubbs
  • 
  • Murray Stubbs (1965 – ) was a Mormon church member in Canberra ACT Australia; accused of grooming a child using the internet because of sexually explicit texts; was found guilty in 2010 of using the internet in an offensive way
  • Crime: 2000s,
  • Places lived:
  • Crime country: Australia,
  • Convicted: 2010,
  • LDS positions: Unknown position,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Found guilty, Hung jury,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Douglas Edwin Holyoak
  • 
  • 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)
  • Alleged crime: 2000s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime state: Illinois,
  • LDS positions: Bishop,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Civil case(s): Lawsuit v. LDS church, Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Craig Scott Capron
  • 
  • Craig Capron (1965 – ) was a podiatrist; Mormon branch president in Macy, Nebraska (1999-2002), then a stake/ward executive secretary in Wyoming; allegedly sexually abused at least five children over a span of 20-plus years, despite LDS officials allegedly knowing of the first victim and prohibiting Capron from teaching kids; convicted in 2024 in Wyoming; sentenced to six to 12 years in prison; convicted again in 2025
  • Convicted: 2024,
  • LDS positions: Branch president, Other leader, Ward executive secretary,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Plea deal, Pleaded guilty, Prison, Registered sex offender,
  Mormon officials allegedly assigned Capron to leadership positions despite forbidding him from teaching children - more than 20 years prior to his conviction
  "I just want what's best for you."
  — Craig Capron (allegedly), to Jane Doe, abuse survivor, while he was abusing her
  • View report »
• William John Harding
  • 
  • William Harding (1940 – ) was a Mormon branch president, elders quorum president and ward clerk in Tasmania and Queensland, Australia; charged in or before 2023 with multiple counts of sexual assault of a minor in two states in Australia; allegedly had as many as 40 victims; in 2024, pleaded guilty to reduced charges and was sentenced to 9 months in jail in Brisbane; in 2025, faced new charges in Tasmania
  • Crime: 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s,
  • Places lived:
  • Crime country: Australia,
  • LDS positions: Branch president, Ward clerk,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Jail, Ongoing, Plea deal, Pleaded guilty,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Joseph Smith
  • 
  • Joseph Smith (1805 – 1844) was the founder of the LDS church (the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormon church); was publicly accused during his life (1805-1844) of sexual misconduct, including adultery and illegal polygamy; in May 1844, a Hancock County, Illinois grand jury indicted Smith for perjury, fornication and polygamy; died in June 1844
  • Alleged crime: 1830s, 1840s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime state: Illinois, Missouri, Ohio,
  • LDS positions: Apostle,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Bishop Baldwin
  • 
  • Bishop Baldwin was a Mormon bishop in Pittsburg, California in 1989; in 2024, accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse that allegedly lasted from 1989 to 1997, when the victim was 5 to 13 years old; the suit was one of 91 or more coordinated civil suits filed in California in 2024 against the Mormon church
  • Alleged crime: 1980s, 1990s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime state: California,
  • LDS positions: Bishop,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Civil case(s): Lawsuit v. LDS church, Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Karey Clark Zimmerman
  • 
  • Karey Zimmerman (1962 – ) was a Mormon church member in Utah and Nevada; in 2025, was accused in a civil lawsuit of child sexual abuse that allegedly took place in Nevada and Utah; the Mormon church was also named as a defendant; the lawsuit said a Utah bishop failed to report abuse allegations to police
  • Alleged crime: 2000s, 2010s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime county: UT - Salt Lake,
  • Alleged crime state: Nevada, Utah,
  • LDS positions: Missionary,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Civil case(s): Lawsuit v. LDS church, Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Gary Earl Woolstenhulme
  • 
  • Gary Woolstenhulme (1933 – 2002) was a Mormon bishop in Imperial Beach, California in 1978; died in 2002; 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 (plaintiff John Roe JB 65 - San Diego 24CU008107, CASD 3:24-cv-02349-AJB-MSB); allegedly sexually assaulted a 14-year-old boy in his office at church
  • Alleged crime: 1970s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime state: California,
  • LDS positions: Bishop, Bishopric counselor,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Civil case(s): Lawsuit v. LDS church, Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Russell Norman Harbin
  • 
  • Russell Harbin (1974 – ) was a Mormon church member in Polson, Montana; convicted of sexual intercourse without consent with an 11-year-old child; the alleged abuse lasted from 2022 to 2024; he allegedly was assigned to be a Primary teacher sometime after the abuse began; sentenced in 2025 to 40 years in prison; the judge suspended 20 years of the 40-year term
  • Crime: 2020s,
  • Places lived:
  • Crime state: Montana,
  • Convicted: 2025,
  • LDS positions: Primary,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Prison,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Thomas Theron Schofield
  • 
  • Thomas Schofield (1955 – ) was a Mormon bishop in Elk Grove, Sacramento County, California; accused in a 2024 civil lawsuit of sexually abusing a 16-year-old child in 2004-05 while he was a Mormon Bishop; some of the alleged abuse took place in the Salt Lake City and Oakland LDS temples and the bishop's office at church
  • Alleged crime: 2000s,
  • Places lived:
  • Alleged crime city: UT - Salt Lake City,
  • Alleged crime county: UT - Salt Lake,
  • Alleged crime state: California, Utah,
  • LDS positions: Bishop,
  • Criminal case(s): Never charged, Not convicted,
  • Civil case(s): Lawsuit v. LDS church, Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Niles Lorence Carr
  • 
  • Niles Carr was a Mormon missionary in Ireland in the late 1980s, originally from California; convicted of child sexual abuse charges; Mormon leaders allegedly assigned Carr to work with Boy Scouts after knowing he was sent home from his mission due to child sex abuse allegations
  • Crime: 1980s,
  • Places lived:
  • Crime state: California,
  • Crime country: Ireland,
  • LDS positions: Missionary,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Todd Mitchell Edwards
  • 
  • 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
  • Crime: 2000s, 2010s,
  • Places lived:
  • Crime state: California,
  • Convicted: 2013,
  • LDS positions: Bishop, Youth leader,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Plea deal, Pleaded guilty, Prison, Registered sex offender,
  • Civil case(s): Lawsuit v. LDS church, Ongoing,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »
• Gene Audra Guinn
  • 
  • 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
  • Crime: 1990s,
  • Places lived:
  • Crime state: Texas,
  • Convicted: 2000,
  • LDS positions: High priest,
  • Criminal case(s): Convicted, Found guilty, Jury trial, Prison,
  • Alleged failure to report
  • View report »

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