Hello Everyone,
In case you are not aware of it, I wanted to let you know that it appears something unprecedented is happening. The Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses is actually being held accountable for protecting pedophiles. The Governing Body is being sued as an entity in New York State and that, in itself, has some interesting ramifications as we’ll see shortly.
The reason this case is different from the others is because of legal jurisdiction. According to the documentation, which I will give you a link to access, the Governing Body's principal headquarters was located in Kings County, Brooklyn, New York, at the time of the alleged sexual abuse alleged in this complaint which occurred in the Defendants’ Kings Highway Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, Brooklyn, New York.
What follows are the details of the case that may make the Governing Body responsible for the crime of sexual abuse. These are public records which we can all read and study for ourselves.
The case RKJW1 Doe v Watchtower Bible & Tract Society of N.Y., Inc. was filed in the Kings County Clerk's office (360 Adams St, Brooklyn, New York, 11201, United States) on November 17, 2023. It is just one of a series of lawsuits filed against the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc. These lawsuits are conducted on behalf of survivors of sexual abuse who were minors in New York State congregations and are part of the Child Victims Act (CPLR 214-g), which revived previously time-barred claims for childhood sexual abuse and allege that the Watchtower and its congregations have been involved in the sexual abuse of minors for decades.
In this particular case, several people (unnamed to protect their identities) are called the “Plaintiff” and claim to have been sexually abused as minors by a ministerial servant named Ronald Mark Harding in the Kings Highway Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, Brooklyn. Their claim is that he sexually abused them repeatedly between 1991 and 1994 when they were minors between 11-14 years old.
In this lawsuit, the alleged victims are suing the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses, claiming that it controlled the operations of the Jehovah's Witnesses Organization, and is responsible for overseeing policies, appointing leaders (such as elders and ministerial servants), and setting rules for congregational conduct. The victims allege that the Governing Body had knowledge of Harding’s propensity to sexually abuse minors, failed to take action to prevent the abuse, and allowed Harding to continue his leadership position despite his actions.
The Governing Body moved to dismiss the case arguing that the Governing Body is not a legal entity capable of being sued and that the claims of the alleged victims were not properly pleaded. However, the court ruled against their motion for two reasons:
1) Though the Governing Body is not a formal legal entity it still operates as an unincorporated association and can be sued.
2). The court said that the alleged victims made specific claims that the Governing Body had both actual and constructive knowledge of Ronald Mark Harding's abusive behavior and did not take appropriate steps to prevent or address the abuse. They allowed him to be in a position of authority over minors, which resulted in harm to them.
As a consequence, what do you suspect happened? Yes, of course, the Governing Body appealed the decision to the Supreme Court of the State of New York Appellate Division.
What was the response to their appeal? On November 6 of this year, 2024, the opinion of the court remained unchanged. The court reports its decision:
“The Supreme Court properly determined that the Governing Body, which has a separate and distinct identity from the rest of the Jehovah's Witnesses' organizations, constitutes a jural entity that can be sued as an unincorporated association in New York (see Chestnut v United Methodist Church, _____ AD3d at _____, 2024 NY Slip Op 03726, *9 n 5; Craine v NYSARC, Inc., 88 AD3d 1105, 1105-1107).”
Additionally, the Court stated: “the plaintiff was a member of the Congregation in which a ministerial servant who allegedly abused the plaintiff was an agent of the Governing Body, that the Governing Body knew or should have known about its ministerial servant's propensity to engage in such conduct, and that the conduct occurred during congregational activities and during times at which the plaintiff was under the Governing Body's supervision and care, custody, and control.”
“At the pleading stage of the litigation, where the plaintiff's allegations in the complaint are accepted as true and are accorded the benefit of every possible favorable inference, the causes of action to recover damages for negligent supervision, negligent hiring and retention, and negligent training of the ministerial servant were sufficiently pleaded (see Kaul v Brooklyn Friends Sch., 220 AD3d 936, 937-939; Davila v Orange County, 215 AD3d at 635; Novak v Sisters of the Heart of Mary, 210 AD3d 1104, 1105; cf. Fuller v Family Servs. of Westchester, Inc., 209 AD3d at 984).”
This case, which has not yet been fully adjudicated, is significant. It challenges the accountability of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses for alleged abuses carried out by its appointed leaders. The case also touches on the broader issue of institutional responsibility in sexual abuse cases involving religious organizations. The Supreme Court’s denial of the Governing Body’s appeal allows the plaintiff’s claims to proceed in court.
If the case does not settle out of court, a trial will eventually occur, at which a judge or jury will decide the factual and legal issues, including whether the Governing Body or other defendants are liable and whether any damages, including punitive damages, should be awarded.
The Organization has fought, and is fighting many such cases around the world, but there is one aspect to this case that is unique. You see, in other CSA cases in the past that the Organization has fought, it has come to light that there is a list kept by the Organization of over 20,000 known and suspected pedophiles. Whenever the Governing Body has been ordered to turn this list over, they have failed to comply and have had to pay huge fines. However, because those cases were fought in states where the members of the Governing Body do not reside, only fines could be levied. However, since this case is being fought in New York state where JW leadership including the member of the Governing Body reside, being found guilty of contempt of court could lead to jail time.
How would that look? Well, consider what Peter has to say. I’ll use the New World Translation which seems appropriate:
“However, let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or a wrongdoer or a busybody in other people’s matters. But if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not feel ashamed, but let him keep on glorifying God while bearing this name.” (1 Peter 4:15, 16)
It would be hard to justify going to jail as a Christian and glorifying God while bearing his name if the reason for going is because they are protecting the identity of known pedophiles.
Thank you for watching.