Boy Scout sex abuse lawsuit in Idaho settled

IDAHO
The Idaho Statesman

Documents related to the landmark case in Idaho show suspicions over pedophiles were kept quiet.

By MEGHANN M. CUNIFF — mcuniff@idahostatesman.com

The terms of the settlement of the Idaho suit against the Boy Scouts of America and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have not been disclosed, but a document filed Nov. 15 in U.S. District Court in Boise says both sides agreed to an undisclosed monetary settlement.

The federal lawsuit asked for $5 million. Lawyers for the LDS Church and the Scouts’ Ore-Ida Council were not available for comment Friday. Oregon lawyer Gilion Dumas, who sued on behalf of a Portland man who said he was sexually abused as a Boy Scout in Idaho, said she couldn’t discuss the settlement, which will be final once a judge approves a mutual request to dismiss the suit.

The lawyers began negotiating after U.S. District Judge Lynn Winmill ruled the case could proceed to trial. At issue was not alleged sexual abuse by Scoutmaster Larren B. Arnold of Nampa, but what Dumas described as institutional fraud by the Scouts and the church to portray the organizations as safe places for boys, despite knowledge of a pedophilia epidemic within its leadership ranks. The case was detailed in a Nov. 6 Idaho Statesman article.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.