The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is at the center of several lawsuits filed on December 28th. The lawsuits accuse the Mormon church of covering up sexual abuse allegations brought on by members of the Boy Scouts of America.

The seven lawsuits filed against the church each represent a male victim who alleges sexual abuse was covered up by the church. The LDS church is the biggest sponsor of the Boy Scouts of America, and when scout members came to the church to describe the abuse they endured, the church allegedly responded by telling the victims to keep quiet so that the church could conduct its own investigation.

However, church investigations were allegedly not done, and the church is accused of misconduct by never alerting authorities of the abuse and by allowing the accused perpetrators to remain in the presence of children. In most cases, the accused sexual abusers were transferred to work with different troops.

The sexual abuse allegations related to the LDS church span 30 decades between 1972 and 2009. The male victims who have filed lawsuits did so just as the end-of-the-year deadline for adult victims to sue came to a close.

In the seven lawsuits that were recently filed against the church, the male victims are seeking monetary compensation for medical expenses as well as pain and suffering. The victims are also seeking punitive damages for what is described as “outrageous conduct” by church officials.

Hurley McKenna & Mertz, the law group that is representing the seven male victims, expressed in a statement that the church “must be held accountable in order to bring healing and closure to Mormon victims of childhood sexual abuse.”

The church has responded to the allegations that the church mishandled the initial complaints through church spokesman Sam Penrod. Penrod spoke with CBS where he shared, "The claim that the church has had access to the BSA ineligible volunteer files for many decades is simply false." Penrod goes on to add, "The church learned about the details of those files at the same time as the general public. These claims will be carefully evaluated and appropriately addressed."

A Severed Partnership

The relationship between the Boy Scouts of America and the LDS church is one that dates back nearly a century. The LDS church eventually grew to be the Boy Scouts' largest sponsor, hosting a multitude of events and activities for the scouts. However, on the first of January, 2020, the church ended its relationship with the Boy Scouts and pulled out over 400,000 Members. The church went on to create its own "global youth program" that emphasized spiritual and religious growth while weaving in skills like camping and outdoor recreation into the program as a way to foster and maintain practices and activities promoted in the Boy Scouts program.

The latest allegations against the church and the Boy Scouts of America are just a few of thousands of sexual abuse cases that have surfaced regarding the Boy Scouts of America. The organization is currently facing just under 90,000 sexual abuse allegations. In addressing the sexual abuse claims, the National Chair of the Boy Scouts of America, Jim Turley, released a statement to its victims in which he expressed the following:

"I am outraged that individuals took advantage of our programs to commit these heinous acts. I am also outraged that there were times when volunteers and employees ignored our procedures or forgave transgressions that are unforgivable. In some cases, this led to tragic acts of abuse. While those instances were limited, they mean we didn't do enough to protect the children in our care — to protect you. On behalf of myself and the entire Scouting community: I am sorry. I am devastated that there were times in the past when we failed the very children we were supposed to protect."

The organization later came out with the intention to build a compensation fund for sexual abuse victims. To secure this fund, the organization filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. During the time that the organization sought to create this fund, they also sought out new membership by allowing girls to join the organization as well as openly gay individuals and transgender boys.