Local Men File Sex Assault Lawsuit Against Boy Scouts

On Monday, two Puget Sound-area men filed a civil lawsuit against the Boy Scouts of America and its Seattle chapter for sexual assaults they say they suffered as children by an assistant scoutmaster in Kent, Seattle attorney Tim Kosnoff said.

The lawsuit said Boy Scouts of America allowed the Mormon Church to disregard policies designed to protect children from sex abuse.

Kosnoff said BSA gives special treatment of the Mormon Church is due to the church’s power and influence within the scouting organization.

According to the lawsuit, an assistant scoutmaster convicted of sex crimes in Washington and Canada molested two victims in the 1970s, who are identified as C.P., a 53-year-old Anacortes man, and S.P., a 51-year-old Maple Valley man.

The lawsuit said a key church member and scout leader was given notice that the man was sexually abusing children but did not take action, court papers said.

In addition, the lawsuit said a Mormon Church bishop was aware of other cases of abuse by the same man but failed to notify authorities or warn parents and instead removed the man from his scouting duties and sent him to counseling.

The Mormon Church is not named as a defendant in the case, having paid confidential settlements without admitting liability to both C.P. and S.P. in prior cases, Kosnoff said.