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Men sue Mormon Church, Boy Scouts in abuse case
2007-01-23
Two grown brothers sued the Mormon Church and the Boy Scouts of America on Monday, claiming they were sexually molested as children by a man who served as a Scout leader and church teacher. The brothers, who are in their early 30s and are identified only by initials in the $6.5 million lawsuit, say they have suffered "severe debilitating physical, mental and emotional injury." The suit, filed in the Oregon state circuit court in Multnomah County, claims the men were molested as boys in the early 1980s by Timur Dykes, a home teacher for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- the formal name of the Mormon Church -- and a Boy Scout leader. The church denied any responsibility and said it does not tolerate child abuse. The Boy Scouts had no immediate comment. Dykes, who has been previously convicted of sodomy and sex abuse and is also known by the last name Van Dykes, is listed on a Multnomah County Web site of registered sex offenders. The site says he targets infant males and boys 7 to 15 years old. According to the lawsuit, Dykes used his positions with the church and Boy Scouts to gain the trust of the boys and "groom" them for sex abuse. Each brother is seeking $3.25 million in damages. One brother accuses Dykes of molesting him from 1983 to 1985, the other says he was abused only once. One was born in 1972 and the other 1973. "Mr. Van Dykes was excommunicated from the Church over 20 years ago and has spent most of the last 20 years in prison. The Church adamantly denies allegations of responsibility in this case and will defend itself vigorously," the Mormon Church said in a statement. The church said it "condemns child abuse and does not tolerate such actions by anyone affiliated with our faith." Don Cornell, a spokesman for the local Boy Scout council had no immediate comment on the lawsuit. "We just got (the lawsuit) today. We have verified that this man was a volunteer Scout leader in 1983 and part of 1984." Cornell said. He said the number of cases of alleged sex abuse by Boy Scout leaders has dropped since the organization established "stringent protections" for youth in 1990.
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