When Byler filed a 2004 court case against her siblings at the age of 19, it represented a unique situation in which Amish men were found guilty of rape and sentenced to jail time in addition to community service and fines.
On Johnny's sentencing day, the courtroom was filled with 150 emotional Amish supporters, as noted by the case's judge, Michael Rosbrough. "How many of you have ever cried for Mary Byler?" he questioned in a rhetorical manner.
Brothers of Byler entered guilty pleas. Eli, who had previously been convicted of a misdemeanor, received an eight-year prison sentence, while David received a four-year sentence. Johnny was granted work release and permitted to return to his community during the day after receiving an order to spend nights at the county jail for a year.
No place was safe for Mary Byler, who was sexually assaulted by her brothers Johnny, David, and Eli as well as other Amish community members when she was a little girl, bedrooms, barns, even outhouses. Johnny claimed he had raped her hundreds of times in a covertly taped confession.
Child Sex Abuse Among The Amish In The News
The victim chose not to report the offense on her own. When a doctor learned that the girl, who had also been sexually raped by two other brothers when they were minors, was 13 years old, it was looked into. The physician dialed a helpline.
After completing the Missouri Sex Offender Treatment Program (MOSOP), they were sentenced to five years of probation, one hundred hours of community service, $250 to the Law Enforcement Restitution Fund, and an apology letter to their Amish community. Although "there isn't a question of what happened," the boys were "immature for their age," according to Berkstresser.
Ben Berkstresser, the prosecutor, stated that he "offered a 15-year sentence" because the case had brothers who "engaged in acts with their sister" as opposed to a parent abusing their child sexually. And I decided to suspend the sentences rather than send the brothers to the DOC. In a state jail, these two young men would have been eaten alive.
Media outlets in the United States and the United Kingdom cited articles published by the Webster County Citizenin Missouri regarding the 2020 trial of two Amish brothers. They entered guilty pleas to a Class C felony at the ages of 18 and 22, admitting to raping their sister when she was 12 or 13. They did not have any jail time.
On the topic, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette released a number of in-depth stories. In one article from 2019, the function of Conservative Crisis Intervention (CCI), a team of unassuming intermediaries between law enforcement and Child Protective Services (CPS) and isolated communities, was discussed.Regarding this relationship, local officials appear optimistic. However, former residents of the communities spoke with reporters Shelly Bradbury and Peter Smith, who expressed worry that CCI was accepting accusations of sexual abuse but not forwarding them to CPS.
The plain communities, which include the Amish and other Mennonite communities, have been the subject of investigations by mainstream media regarding sex crimes against minors. Additionally, survivor testimonies have been featured in memoirs, movies, and podcasts such as Mary Byler's The Misfit Amish.
Amish communities can be found all over the country; they are mostly found in rural parts of Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Missouri, and Wisconsin. The issue of child sexual abuse in these communities has received increased attention lately.
Amish Child Sexual Abuse - A Crime Hidden From Outsiders
She stated in the 2019 piece, "I've learned that sexual abuse in their communities is an open secret, spanning generations." "Testimonials from victims told me tales of inappropriate touching, groping, fondling, genital exposure, digital intrusion, forced oral sex, forced anal sex, and sexual assault—all perpetrated by members of their own family, neighbors, and religious authorities."
She went to the police when he threatened to visit her room at night. She also reported to the authorities that she thought he was abusing his daughter and poisoned his wife; the suspicion about the latter came from observing him in a vulnerable situation with just one child. It was subsequently revealed to her that he had been abusing that daughter since she was four years old. He was apprehended, avoided for a fortnight, and thereafter permitted to continue as a bishop. He abused his numerous children for years.)
Griffin's family became Amish after converting. Griffin's parents adopted the lifestyle on their own at first, but eventually moved to a community in Pennsylvania. Helping a Bishop and his sick wife with their children was a calm, hard existence at first, a relief following a turbulent, traumatic background. However, Bishop soon started abusing Griffin sexually on a regular basis.
"We told them to keep their dresses down, and over and over, they wouldn't keep their dresses down," he stated, according to the report that Griffin read. "You know, they're just tiny girls—small girls in dresses—they climb over the fences and lift them over their heads. They shouldn't arouse your interest. The reason you are the way you are is not their fault.
Author of "Tears of the Silenced," Misty Griffin, an assault survivor from an Amish village, tells that her former Bishop confessed to abusing females when they were four or five years old and placed the blame on the kids.
When an Amish or Mennonite victim reports their assault to the police outside of their community, they run the risk of being shunned by their group.
"A language barrier may exist," she states. "We may not truly have terms in our language to represent private body parts; for example, you might say "my stomach hurts" instead of "I have vaginal pain."
Survivors believe that the English tend to underestimate the extent of abuse that occurs in the plain communities. According to Byler, who speaks with A&E True Crime, many abuse survivors blame this on the English people's romanticized perception of the quiet, small-town way of life. However, survivors' testimonies can sometimes be lost in translation.
According to Byler, the Amish call outsiders "English," and the English are ignorant of the Amish church's organizational system. She claims that the hierarchy of the church is akin to a caste system, with a bishop, ministers, and deacons at its head. The next class comprises well-known families and affluent businesses. The middle class comes next, then those who are "maybe not as well to do and at the very bottom is the poor." The internal handling of abuse reports is impacted by this arrangement.
Numerous factors, including the Amish's isolation and patriarchal culture, as well as their "religion that prioritizes repentance and forgiveness over actual punishment or rehabilitation," were cited by McClure as contributing to the high rate of abuse. (Forgiveness usually entails not bringing up the issue ever again.)
Journalist Sarah McClure conducted a year-long series of interviews with over thirty Amish community members, law enforcement, and other authorities on Amish sexual abuse for a joint Type Investigations and Cosmopolitan article.
What Is Being Done To Combat Child Sexual Abuse Among The Amish?
More contemporary communities and younger members of traditional communities are working to support those who remain in the community after being abused, while many advocates and organizations concentrate on assisting abuse victims who have left the community.
According to Byler, there are Amish families that are advocating for their children.
Griffin worries that someone else will speak out for the victims because they are so reluctant to come forward. She just started the Childs Rights Petition, asking for mandated reporting training for teachers at home and religious schools as well as some instruction on sexual abuse for kids. Shortly after filing her report, Griffin fled the neighborhood, but her sister is still there.
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