UNITED STATES
Huffington Post
Ari Weisbrot
My childhood Rabbi stands accused of sexual abuse. As fun as that may sound, in the two hours since the news broke, it has spread like wildfire over the internet. Phone lines are blowing up. I heard about it while in court, so it took a few hours for me to actually read the story. And, here it is: over a 40 year career in education, and 20 years as a pulpit Rabbi, one former student accuses the Rabbi of checking out his “physical development” during a one-time dorm-room visit over 30 years ago, and then sodomizing him with a toothbrush.
If guilty of the accusations, he should be jailed for the rest of his life, where he can look forward to many years of ironic retribution. I am not soft on this issue. I was outspoken ten years ago against a second Rabbi who physically and sexually abused scores of children over his career. There was no doubt of his guilt. I witnessed it first-hand, and many of my friends were victims. He spent 7 years in jail for his crimes but my calls for a more appropriate punishment were ignored. After all, he is still very much alive and enjoying retirement in Florida.
But, there is one thing I have learned in my years as a prosecutor, lawyer, and advocate. Sexual predators do not commit just one single crime in 40 years. Nor, do they typically victimize a vulnerable child on only one occasion. I do not know if the exposure of this story will call forth more victims, more evidence, and more proof. Frankly, I do not know if the Rabbi is innocent or guilty. He never abused me or, to my knowledge, any of the many children in our community. But, predators never seemed particularly attracted to me. I’m sure it was nothing personal.
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.