Subscribe
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events
Menu
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events

Montana Council of Boy Scouts faces 3 fresh sexual abuse lawsuits

in Health, Regional
Montana Council of Boy Scouts faces 3 fresh sexual abuse lawsuits
‘Boy Scout Salute,’ by Norman Rockwell, featured on the cover of Boys’ Life
Outlaw Partnersby Outlaw Partners
April 30, 2020

“Town Crier” newsletter – Briefs from the Region (2) – 4/30/20

Beginning in May 2019, Montana passed a law that permitted otherwise time-barred lawsuits against entities that should have known about child sexual abuse and allegedly failed to prevent it. Working against a ticking clock and taking advantage of that allowance, three men filed lawsuits against the Montana Council of the Boy Scouts of America and two sponsoring agencies on April 29, alleging they had been subjected to sexual abuse at scouting camps decades ago—and that evidence of such abuses had been observed or acknowledged without reporting to authorities. The lawsuits are the latest in a nationwide spate against the Boy Scouts of America, “which filed for bankruptcy protection in February to consolidate nearly 300 lawsuits and other expected claims,” reports the Flathead Beacon. Local councils are separate legal entities from the national organization, but at least two other lawsuits in Montana have targeted both the state’s council and the national body, alleging scout leaders abused them when improperly supervised. Christopher Ford, one of the April 29 lawsuit plaintiffs, has plenty of ground to stand on: “A year after Ford told his parents about the abuse during a Scout outing near Libby in 1974, assistant Scoutmaster John David McBride pleaded guilty to 15 felony counts of lewd and lascivious acts upon a child and deviate sexual conduct without consent. The counts involved several boys.” The lawsuits, filed under the firm of Seattle attorney Michael Pfau, seek a jury trial and compensatory and punitive damages. According Pfau, the Boy Scouts of America have kept ineligible volunteer files practically since the organization’s inception, and files released through other cases allege that more than 12,000 boys have been molested by 7,800 perpetrators while active in the Boy Scouts of America. According to Pfau, the Boy Scout’s failure “to institute effective policies and procedures to protect children has to be judged in the context of how much information they knew,” Pfau asserted. “They can’t say they didn’t understand that single men are identifying Scouting as a means to gain access to children.”

Article Inline Ad Article Inline Ad Article Inline Ad
Outlaw Realty Outlaw Realty
Outlaw Realty
ADVERTISEMENT

Listen

Hoary Marmot Podcast

Joe Borden & Michele Veale Borden

Lastest Episode
See More Episodes

Upcoming Events

Jun 13
11:00 am - 5:00 pm Event Series

June Show at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery

Jun 13
7:00 pm - 9:30 pm Event Series

Trivia at the Waypoint

Jun 14
11:00 am - 5:00 pm Event Series

June Show at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery

Jun 15
11:00 am - 5:00 pm Event Series

June Show at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery

Jun 16
9:00 am - 12:00 pm Event Series

Community Hike Big Sky

View Calendar
Event Calendar

Related Posts

Report: Most Montanans agree tourism benefits outweigh negative impacts
Regional

Report: Most Montanans agree tourism benefits outweigh negative impacts

June 12, 2025
Montana State’s Leon Costello earns FCS national AD of the Year nod
Regional

Montana State’s Leon Costello earns FCS national AD of the Year nod

June 12, 2025
Smokejumper injured during Yellowstone training exercise
Regional

Smokejumper injured during Yellowstone training exercise

June 11, 2025
New paved pathway opens in West Yellowstone
Regional

New paved pathway opens in West Yellowstone

June 10, 2025

An Outlaw Partners Publication

Facebook-f Instagram X-twitter Youtube

Explore Big Sky

  • About/Contact
  • Advertise
  • Publications
  • Subscriptions
  • Podcast
  • Submissions

Outlaw Brands

  • Mountain Outlaw
  • Plan Yellowstone
  • Big Sky PBR
  • Wildlands Music
  • Outlaw Partners
  • Outlaw Realty
  • Hey Bear

Copyright © 2025 Explore Big Sky | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Your Privacy Choices

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Yellowstone
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Real Estate
  • Events

©2024 Outlaw Partners, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Explore Big Sky Logo
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events
Subscribe
Facebook X-twitter Instagram Youtube