Govt sued over alleged child abuse in former Dept of Social Welfare homes

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 10:40p.m.
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It is being called the biggest case of child abuse in New Zealand – three decades of alleged violence and sexual abuse in children’s homes run by the state.

The Government is being sued over the more than 500 cases of alleged abuse at children’s homes, run by the former Department of Social Welfare.

A 60 Minutes investigation has revealed the abuse happened in the 1960s through till the late 1980s in institutions which were supposed to care for troubled or abandoned children.

Some say what is alleged to have happened to the victims is our country’s greatest shame.

“Everyone time he came in to wake me up he’d either be sucking on my penis or masturbating me, and if I said anything he’d hit me,” said former home resident Brian Wilkinson.

“I wasn’t raped, but I suffered what I consider to be serious sexual assaults,” says another victim, Keith Wiffen who spent time as a young boy in Epuni Boys’ Home.

It was not only sexual abuse – physical abuse is said to have happened daily, and at random.

“Your cell would open up at night time and a couple of boys would run in and give you a hiding,” says another former resident Mark Baker.

“That’s the staff organising that stuff.”

The cases of the abused fill shelves at Sonja Cooper’s law practice.

She says it is the biggest case of child abuse in New Zealand’s history.

“It was essentially in every institution that was run by social welfare and it was pervasive,” she says.

Ms Cooper is representing hundreds of complainants and is calling for a Government level enquiry into what went on in the homes.

“The fact that we represent 500 people is, in my view, just the tip of the iceberg,” she says.

“My calculation is that we are probably only acting for, at present, one percent of the potential victims.”

The Attorney General Chris Finlayson says the Ministry of Social Development already has teams set up to deal with complaints.

“If their claims are shown to have merit, they will get some compensation,” he says.

“That system is working. There is no need for them to go to court.”

Ms Cooper disagrees.

“We have found their process overall to be demeaning, humiliating, long, drawn out.”

So Ms Cooper is taking her clients’ cases to court.

It is estimated half a billion dollars could be paid out by the Crown in compensation – 270 claims have already been filed.

But what the victims want most of all is official recognition, and an apology.

3 News

Ex-police chief arrested for years of child sexual abuse

By:Patricia Phillips

In a shocking case, a former police chief is in jail after confessing to sexually abusing a child for the last eight years--since she was eight years old.

Timothy Boyer was police chief of tiny Wynona from March 17 to June 16, when he resigned. Reports say that during his short tenure, Boyer wasn't popular with the town.

As it turns out, he had a secret: eight years of sexually molesting a young girl, now 16 years old. Boyer voluntarily turned himself in to the Sand Springs police department and admitted the years of abuse. He's in the Tulsa County jail with bond set at $200,000.

He's been charged with rape by instrumentation and lewd molestation of a child under 16. Boyer reportedly told officers that he performed "everything but intercourse" in his sexual acts with the child.

Boyer previously worked in two other Oklahoma police departments, as well as working as a registered nurse. Fox 23 News has more on this bizarre case.

ISPs urged to sign up for child porn filters

By KATARINA FILIPE - The Timaru Herald

A new filtering system to block websites with child sexual abuse images has been applauded by South Canterbury's Presbyterian Support Service.

The filtering system will be made available to internet service providers in a couple of months, though it is up to each ISP whether they sign up to it.

Chief executive Michael Parker said it was common sense for ISPs to join, as the filtering programme would not be necessary if there wasn't a problem with child sexual abuse in New Zealand. "We totally support it. All internet service providers should sign up."

Family Works counsellor Matt Rainey said staff would support anything that reduced child sexual abuse. He urged ISPs to join the filtering programme.

"Internet service providers, don't they have a moral or legal obligation there to not let that stuff past their door?"

Internal Affairs deputy secretary Keith Manch said the filter was a response to calls from the community that the Government and ISPs should do more to provide a safe internet environment.

According to the Internal Affairs, only 42 per cent of offenders who could have been jailed last year for child pornography offences found themselves behind bars.

"It is not a silver bullet that will prevent everyone from accessing any sites that might contain images of child sexual abuse, but it is another important tool in the department's operations to fight the sexual abuse of children."

Anyone trying to access websites offering child sex abuse pictures will receive a screen message saying the site has been blocked because it is illegal. If a site seems wrongly blocked, a user will be able to ask anonymously for the filter to be checked."

The filter was trialled with Ihug, TelstraClear, Watchdog and Maxnet over two years. It filtered out more than 7000 objectionable websites with no noticeable impact on internet performance.

Temuka man Cornelius Baars, 62, was sentenced in the Timaru District Court on March 25 to five months' home detention and 100 hours' community work on two charges of possession of objectionable material, after child pornography was found on his home computer.

On July 9 last year, a Pareora man was jailed in what was described as one of the worst cases in New Zealand, after 250,000 child sex abuse images were found in his possession.

Andrew James Robinson, 33, a freezing worker, was sentenced in the Timaru District Court to four years' imprisonment on two charges of indecently assaulting an eight-year-old girl, four charges of making and 40 charges of possessing objectionable material.

Child sexual abuse case ready to proceed to jury trial

ST. GEORGE - An attorney for Anthony Gene Jiron said Wednesday in 5th District Court that his client is ready to proceed to a trial by jury on charges he sexually abused a child in his care.

Jiron entered not guilty pleas to three charges of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, sodomy on a child and rape of a child on Sept. 16, 2008, and is scheduled for a five-day trial beginning July 27.

Jiron's attorney, Douglas Terry, told Judge James Shumate the case could be given priority for trial but that there is a possibility of negotiating a settlement with the prosecution before the trial date.

Washington County Attorney Brian Filter confirmed that Terry had mentioned the possibility of a resolution but said the case remains on the trial calendar for now.

Shumate gave attorneys until Wednesday to decide if they will be able to resolve the case without a trial.

Jiron is accused of sexually abusing a 7-year-old girl in his care during a week in July 2008.

According to the arrest narrative filed by St. George Police Detective Chris Trani, police were called following an argument between Jiron and another adult about the alleged abuse.

According to the state-ment, Jiron threatened to harm himself with a knife and initially refused police summons to exit the building until he had finished drinking a beer, at which point he allowed himself to be taken into custody.

During an interview with Trani, Jiron admitted sexual behavior with the partially clothed child, the statement said.

However, in an October 2008 letter to the judge, Jiron declared his innocence and said he was intoxicated at the time of his arrest and should not have been questioned in that state and that the alleged victim was already in therapy for sexual abuse at the time of his arrest and that her motives were suspect.

An article I found while searching the net just a few seconds ago, tell me what you think?

Issues in Mental Health: Sexual abuse: Understanding the perpetrator, protecting your family

By Greg Volk, PsyD - Volk Human Services
Published: Tuesday, May 12, 2009 12:01 PM CDT

It may be appropriate to issue a warning that reading this section of the article may challenge your preconceived notions, lead to intense emotions, and cause a great deal of discussion. That is good because talking about sexual perpetrators is difficult and necessary. Most people are of the mindset that society should castrate them (if they are male) and/or ship them off to a remote island somewhere in the middle of the ocean. While this mindset is understandable, it only serves to perpetuate the illusion that offenders are somehow inhuman and can be isolated effectively from society. The reality is that approximately 85 percent of all sexual offenders will be back in the communities from which they came or ones that are similar. Given this number, understanding and treating sexual offenders can be considered to be the number one prevention effort in the area of sexual abuse, particularly when one considers that successful treatment outcomes for sex offenders reduce re-offense rates in the neighborhood of 40 percent for adults and 85 percent for youth. These success rates are higher than many other treatment interventions including that for addictions. Why then is treatment for these offenders so rare?

In many situations, it is because people are so strongly offended themselves by the offenses that it is impossible to be objective and provide the necessary treatment. We prefer to think of sexual offenders as monsters because it makes them so much different than you and I. This is another false belief that can cause individuals to ignore the realities of sexual abuse and miss key warning signs such as those discussed in Part One. There is no profile that categorizes sexual offenders specifically, they come from all walks of life. They are not typically the “dirty old man” down the street.

More commonly, it is a seemingly upstanding person who is already involved in your life. Clergy, partners, school personnel, youth leaders, and others who have a reason to be actively involved in your child’s life are the most likely perpetrators of abuse. Anyone who takes an unusual interest in your child or for whom your child demonstrates some hesitance should be suspect.

Individuals who have adult love interests and seem to gravitate toward children of the same age and gender should be suspect. However, it is awareness, not fear that should guide your understanding.

There are many factors that contribute to the sexual abuse of children. When looking at perpetrators, there are specific factors at which to look.

Pedophiles have a particular sexual attraction to prepubescent children but may also maintain age-appropriate sexual relationships. However, pedophiles are by no means the only perpetrators of sexual offenses, or even sexual offenses toward children. In thinking of pedophiles there are prerequisite factors that combine with other factors to result in child sexual abuse.

These prerequisite factors are sexual arousal to children, distorted thinking, impulse control deficits, diminished capacity, and interpersonal problems.

The other factors which may contribute to abuse occurring include patriarchal attitudes, values regarding sexuality, marital discord, sexual dysfunction in the marriage, inadequate parenting, social isolation, unsupervised access to children, unemployment, substance abuse, poor social skills, low self-esteem, traumatic sexual experience as a child, sexually abusive role models, and a non-nurturing childhood.

Male offenders often fit two broad profiles - regressed or situational offenders and fixated or preferential offenders. Regressed or situational offenders generally have more profound social skill deficits and problematic upbringings that contribute to identification with children. They tend to be opportunistic in offending. They may seek relationships with more age-appropriate individuals but struggle with them. Fixated or preferential offenders have a stronger identification with children that is driven by specific sexual arousal toward children primarily and their pursuit of sexual contact with children is often more aggressive and predatory. Female offenders tend to fall into one of several categories including experimenters who are young and typically offend against 2-4 year old males, teachers/lovers who begin as a caretaker and fails to see the behavior as abusive, predisposed individuals with their own history of abusive (often lengthy) and who pair nurturing behaviors with abuse, and male-coerced offenders who engage in the sexually abusive behavior through the intimidation of a male partner.

From a treatment perspective, we want to intervene with offenders by providing information regarding normal and appropriate sexuality, fostering the development of empathy, decreasing cognitive distortions, reducing access to potential targets, bolstering social skills and self-esteem, and advocating for factors that reduce risk including stable employment, stable housing, and social support. In working with sexual offenders, the primary client is always the community being aware of potential risk to the community is on the forefront of any effort. At times, what decreases risk is counter-intuitive to common thoughts and beliefs and this is why this topic is so important.

For example, the offender registration process and laws such as those which prevent offenders from living within a certain radius of places where children congregate are meant to increase community safety, but in fact do not accomplish this and in many ways actually serve to increase risk to children.

The increased risk results from offenders failing to register and adopting more transitory living arrangements to avoid confinement and the adverse effect of this additional stress on psychosocial functioning. Offenders who have guidelines on their presence in places where children congregate but who do not have a residency restriction tend to be more stable in the community and the overall risk is reduced and the ability to supervise the offenders in the community is increased. Another seemingly counter-intuitive issue is related to incarceration. Particularly with youth and younger adults, incarceration can increase the risk of re-offense for individuals who are primarily driven by social skills deficits rather than antisocial attitudes.

Statistics from North Dakota indicate that low and moderate risk offenders tend to have significantly fewer incidents of re-offense when given probation versus incarceration. The primary distinction for those who evaluate and treat offenders is the determination of risk because high risk offenders do have a profoundly higher risk of reoffending if on probation instead of incarceration. From a societal perspective, it is a difficult issue to know that for many offenders probation can more effectively reduce risk than incarceration when you have children and families who have suffered as a result of the offenders actions and want some type of strong consequence.

In terms of protecting our children, it is important to think of prevention as the deflection of perpetrators getting access to our children rather than detecting perpetrators since detection is nearly impossible. Probably the single most important thing that you can do is to be involved in your child’s life. Do not leave your child at events such as sports practices or other extra-curricular activities. You should attend these events as well in order to monitor the quality of relationships the leaders have with your child, others who may be around and take an interest in the children, and situations in which your child might be unattended. Not only does this provide the protection of your direct observation, it also provides your child with your much needed attention.

Other high risk situations include leaving your children with men who do not have children of their own or at least children of the same age group as your own; leaving your children with men who do not appear to have many or any adult relationships; individuals who provide special gifts to your child or invite them on special outings with them; unsupervised screen time on the internet; and being a single or divorced mother looking for a relationship.

Low risk situations that you can be aware of and further decrease risk include putting pictures of your children in your workspace if the public comes to your office; not having access to a cell phone including while you are sleeping; and not having a security system in your home. You should replace locks when your keys are lost or stolen and you might consider owning a dog.

As a psychologist, I advocate for children and others to be involved in activities such as awareness skills, social development, and the martial arts which are conducive to the development of self-esteem, awareness, and defensive skills. For children in particular, the training can be invaluable in terms of self-confidence, understanding how to protect yourself if attacked, and the development of both discipline and awareness. Predators look for children who will be an easy target. Rather than instilling fear with notions such as stranger danger, it can be of more benefit to have children who exude confidence and have the support and attention of their family. These children are visibly noticing their surroundings, communicate well, and are confident in social environments - all factors that are protective against sexual offenders. Children who are withdrawn or shy, unquestioningly obedient to adults, and who are frequent without direct adult supervision are targets.

If you would like more information about this issue or others related to psychological development, please call Dr. Volk at toll-free at 1-877-846-4554.

Scottish court convicts 8 men over child sex abuse

(CNN) -- A Scottish court has convicted eight men of child sexual abuse in what police say is the largest pedophile ring ever dismantled in Scotland.

The eight men were all convicted Thursday of offenses related to indecent photographs of children. Three were also convicted of the sexual abuse of young children, and five were convicted of conspiring to take part in the sexual abuse of a child, identified only as Child F.

"Tens of thousands of photographic and video images of children being sexually abused were recovered," said Morag McLaughlin, the prosecutor for the Lothian and Borders region. "All of those involved in the investigation and prosecution of the case have been profoundly affected by it."

Two of the men, Neil Strachan and James Rennie, face a maximum of life in prison when they are sentenced July 29, said a spokesman for the High Court in Edinburgh, where the men were convicted. The others, who will be sentenced June 11, face a variety of lesser sentences.

The police investigation revealed a network of people who shared a common interest in child sexual abuse, said Detective Superintendent Allan Jones, of Lothian and Borders Police. Information from the probe yielded information on 70 others around Britain and led to "numerous arrests," he said.

"They made initial contact via the Internet and used it to share vile imagery and discuss the abuse of children," Jones said. Watch a report on the convicted men »

Strachan was the only one of the eight who was previously known to police, he said.

"All of them led classic double lives. Some of them were respected members of their professions and communities," Jones said.

The family of Child F released a statement after the conviction that detailed how Rennie betrayed the family's trust to abuse their son.

Rennie was "the closest of family friends" for more than 15 years and even offered support and friendship during difficult times, they said.

"To subsequently learn that he abused our son, and invited others to do the same, has been devastating," the family said. "As a family we have had to learn to live and cope with the effects these horrific events have had."

The mother of another child involved in the case, identified only as Child JL, described her "anguish" about what Strachan had done to her son.

"I will never be able to forgive him for the sick acts that he committed against my son," said the mother, whose name was not released. "I feel that no matter what punishment given to Mr. Strachan, it will never be able to compensate for the hurt, devastation and great deal of stress brought to me and my family. Mr. Strachan used and abused our trust in order to satisfy his and others' sick needs."

Police and prosecutors gathered important evidence from overseas and used new scientific expertise in order to prosecute the case, the court said.

Lothian and Borders Police said it received "invaluable" expertise from the FBI in the United States and other British and Scottish agencies -- including the Serious Organized Crime Agency and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Center.

Microsoft helped police trace e-mail addresses and identities, Jones said. Police also had help from two U.S. academics, Professors Hany Farid of Dartmouth University and Miroslav Goljan of the State University of New York at Binghamton, who are experts in steganalysis, a forensic technique that links an image to the camera on which it has been taken, Jones said.

Jones praised the forensic scientists who had to examine the imagery in the case.

"They do not have the option to look away and have to live with the memory of what they have seen," he said. "It is a testament to their expertise that they did this day in, day out. They did it for the good of children and provided us with a first-class service."