DELAWARE
The News Journal
Jessica Masulli Reyes and James Fisher, The News Journal
A Delaware deputy attorney general will argue later this year that elders in a Jehovah’s Witnesses congregation in Seaford failed to report that a woman and 14-year-old boy, both members of the congregation, were having a sexual relationship.
The Department of Justice filed a civil lawsuit against the Seaford Kingdom Hall and two of the congregation’s elders in May 2014.
A Superior Court judge in Wilmington is scheduled to hear the case Nov. 9.
Authorities claimed the elders, Joel Mulchansingh and William Perkins, did not report the sexual abuse when it was disclosed to them. Delaware law requires individuals and organizations to report abuse immediately via a 24-hour state hotline.
James Liguori, the attorney representing the congregation, could not be reached for comment late Wednesday afternoon.
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