67 matching Mormon sex abuse cases

  • Crime years: 1970s
    • Larren Arnold was a Mormon church member and scout leader in Idaho; in 1984, arrested for lewd conduct with a minor under sixteen (molested a nine year-old boy) in Idaho; convicted in October 1984; received a five year suspended sentence and three years probation; the Mormon church made a settlement payment to a victim in approximately 2007
    • Eric Avant was a Mormon church member and cub scout leader in Norfolk, Virginia; convicted on 14 counts of aggravated sexual battery; sentenced in 1988 to 26 years in prison for molesting eight boys; had as many as 41 alleged victims
    • George Barnett was a Mormon church member 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
    • Robert Berchtold 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
    • Arthur Bishop was a Mormon boy scout leader in Utah; was excommunicated in the 1970s; later molested multiple children and killed five young boys; was sentenced to death by lethal injection in 1988
    • 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
    • Douglas Bowen was an LDS church member and Boy Scout leader in Washington, California, Utah and Idaho; was convicted of attempted aggravated sexual abuse of a child
    • Carlfred Broderick was a Mormon stake president 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
    • William Bruhn was an LDS church member and civic leader in Utah; accused of masturbating in a public restroom; convicted
    • Max Cheatham was an LDS church member in Wyoming, Utah and Colorado; accused of sexual abuse; convicted in Colorado of child sexual abuse
    • Dennis Collins was an LDS church member in Washington; pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse
    • Clark Crookston 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
    • Franklyn Curtis was a Mormon church member in Pennsylvania and Oregon; excommunicated in 1983 in Pennsylvania for sex abuse; rebaptized in 1984; molested five boys in Oregon; local LDS bishop knew but didn't report to police; convicted in 1995 in Oregon of sexual abuse; died in 1995
    • Luke Dalton was a Mormon church member; admitted to sexually abusing dozens of boys over decades in Ohio, Montana and Utah; arrested in 1997 in Utah for sexually abusing his only son; convicted and sentenced to prison; served 3.5 years in prison
    • James Denos was a former LDS bishop and junior high school teacher in Utah; previously lived and served as a Mormon bishop in 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
    • 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
    • Alan Dunlap was a Mormon church member in Fresno, California; pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse
    • Alan Dunn was a Mormon church member and scout leader in Venice, California (Los Angeles); accused in 1978 of child sexual abuse; confessed to the police
    • Stephen Field was a Mormon church member in California; convicted of sexual abuse; sentenced to prison
    • Jayne Furness was a Mormon church member and boy scout leader in Arroyo Grande, California; accused of sex abuse; found guilty of voyeurism charges in or before 1972, and found guilty of sexual abuse charges in 1976; sentenced in 1976 or 1977 to prison; died in 1987
    • Juan Guerrero Regalado was a Mormon church member in California; accused of sexual abuse in a 2025 civil lawsuit against the Mormon church
    • Billy Hagen was a Mormon church member and scout leader in Idaho; accused of sexual abuse; convicted, sentenced to prison; died in 2005
    • 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
    • William Harding was a Mormon bishop and ward clerk in Tasmania, Australia 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 and May 2025, he was extradited to Tasmania to face new charges
    • Kenneth Harper was an LDS church member in California; accused of sexual abuse; convicted
    • James Hogan 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
    • Allan Howe was an LDS church member and Utah politician; accused of a sex crime; convicted
    • Melvin Johnson was a Mormon seminary teacher and Brigham Young University (BYU) religion professor; accused by multiple victims of sexually abusing them when they were children; excommunicated and rebaptized; reportedly confessed to sexual abuse, but was not criminally charged; two victims filed lawsuits against him; one named the Mormon church as a defendant; it settled out of court
    • Gary Jones was a Mormon church member 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
    • Doyle Kelstrom was a Mormon church member in Oregon and Utah; accused of child sexual abuse; sentenced in 1992 to five years to life in prison in Utah
    • William Knox was a Mormon church member and scout leader in California; accused of sexually abusing multiple children
    • George Koford was a Mormon bishop 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
    • Arthur Krigbaum was an LDS church member and scout leader in Idaho; accused of sexual abuse
    • Jack Loholt was an LDS church member and Boy scout leader in Kent, Washington; accused of sexual abuse in the 1970s; court records show that two Mormon bishops knew about the abuse allegations but did not tell police; the Mormon church was court-ordered in 2006 to pay $87,500 to one victim after it settled with three others for undisclosed sums
    • Dennis Loveless was a Mormon church member in Farmington, Utah; accused of sexual abuse in 1977 and 1984; sentenced to prison both times; died in 2016
    • Franklin Mathias was a Mormon church member and Boy scout leader in Oregon; had a career as a schoolteacher; accused in 1987 of sexual abuse; sentenced in 1988 to four years in prison for molesting a child; he said that he had 242 victims over a 30-year period
    • Timothy McCleve 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
    • Melvin McKinney was an LDS church member in California; accused of sexual abuse
    • Robert Metcalf was an LDS church member in California and Arizona; convicted three times of child sexual abuse; sentenced in 1979 to six years in prison for sexually abusing a child; returned to the Mormon church after being released from prison, was made a scout leader and allegedly molested a scout on a campout in about 1987, according to a civil lawsuit; sentenced in Arizona in 1989 to 37 years in prison
    • 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
    • David O'Connor was an LDS church member and high school wrestling coach in Tacoma, Washington; convicted of sexual abuse in 1977; once reportedly confessed his sexual abuse in an LDS sacrament meeting
    • Chesley Pierson was an LDS bishop, stake presidency counselor and stake patriarch in Calgary, Alberta, Canada; accused of sexually abusing multiple young men
    • Richard Ray was an LDS church member in Arizona; sentenced in 1984 to 61 years in prison for molesting five girls; allegedly had more than 30 victims; the LDS church was involved in a lawsuit regarding clergy-penitent privilege; the church settled out of court for an undisclosed amount just before trial
    • Gary Reese was a Mormon bishopric counselor, seminary teacher and Boy Scout leader in Washington; accused of sexually molesting several boys in his scout troops; never charged; died in 2014
    • Leroy Richins was a Mormon church member in Utah; accused of sexual abuse
    • Mormon church in Yucaipa, California
    • UNKNOWN Ross was an LDS high priest and stake seventy 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
    • Nefi Rubalcava was a Mormon bishop in Norwalk/Cerritos in southern California; accused of child sexual abuse in two lawsuits filed against the Mormon church in 2025; he was the foster father of one of his alleged victims and the bishop of both of them; he allegedly participated in a sex trafficking ring involving at least one other bishop and a stake president
    • 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 son, Vernon Sanford Jr; 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
    • 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
    • James Schmidt was an LDS church member and scout leader, with multiple charges of child sexual abuse over six years; convicted in Idaho; convicted in the late 1990s in Maryland; as of 2024, registered as a sex offender
    • Orin Searle 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
    • Frank Selas was an former childrens TV host/entertainer in California who joined the LDS church in the 1990s; pleaded guilty to one count of indecent behavior with a child; the crime took place in the 1970s
    • Charles Shield was an LDS ward executive secretary in England and Scotland; accused of sexual abuse; convicted; sentenced in 2017 to six years in prison
    • Michael Simms was a Latter-day Saints (LDS) church member, organist and music teacher in Oregon; accused in a civil lawsuit of sexually abusing a boy about 100 times between 1974 and 1976
    • Stewart Singley was an LDS church member in Ohio; convicted in 1975 of child molestation that occurred in 1974; in 1997, convicted and sentenced to one year in jail or prison; as of 2024, is a registered sex offender; lives in East Waterford, Pennsylvania
    • Michael Stillman was a Mormon Tabernacle Choir member and professional scouter with the Boy Scouts of America in Monroe, Sevier County, Utah; accused in 1989 of having sexually abused a boy between the ages of 13 and 15 in the mid-1970s; decided to resign as district scout executive as long as it did not imply guilt; was never reported to police or charged with a crime
    • Larry Strain was a Mormon church member in Missouri; accused of sexual abuse
    • Unknown Survivor FLOODLIT honors every survivor, and remembers those who were never heard.
    • John Tholen was a Mormon church member; sentenced to 10 years in prison for sexually abusing children he babysat with his wife Judith Tholen, who also sexually abused them
    • Judith Tholen was a Mormon church member; sentenced to 10 years in prison for sexually abusing children she babysat with her husband John Tholen, who also sexually abused them
    • George Tilson was a Mormon church member in the Salt Lake City, Utah area (including Holladay); pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse in the 1990s; alleged coverup by Mormon leaders
    • Jay Toombs was an LDS church member and private investigator in Benson, Cache Valley, Utah; accused of sexual abuse; allegations of his abuse were reportedly known to three LDS bishops and stake president Jerry Toombs (his older brother), who never reported it to police; convicted in 2000 and sentenced to life in prison
    • Bruce Van Horn was a Mormon church member 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
    • LaVar Withers was a Mormon and physician in Rexburg, Idaho; accused of sexually abusing at least 133 women and children as young as 13 years old over a period of 30 or more years; admitted to sexual abuse; in 1996, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery; sentenced to 30 to 60 days in jail and two years probation; the Mormon church placed him on probation and took his temple recommend; died in 2005
    • Gary Woolstenhulme 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
    • Orson Wright 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
    • Stephen Young was an LDS church member and police officer in Idaho; allegedly abused 20 babies over a 30-year period; pleaded guilty in 2010 to lewd conduct with a child under 16; sentenced to 25 years in prison

 

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FLOODLIT.org has a free public database of hundreds of reports about people who committed or allegedly committed sex crimes, including sexual abuse, while they were active Mormon church members. You can browse the entire database by LDS church position, number of victims, places where crimes took place, criminal/civil case results, and other criteria.