Boy Scouts 'Perversion Files' Show Almost 8,000 Alleged Sexual Abusers

A review of data compiled from the Boy Scouts of America has shown 7,819 reported sexual offenders and 12,254 identified victims. 

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The data, which spans from 1994 to 2016, was analyzed by Janet Warren, a professor of psychiatry and neurobehavioral sciences at the University of Virginia. The professor spent five years going through an extensive amount of information, which resulted in findings that suggested there were 2,800 more leaders than previously known by the public. 

Warren was hired by the Boy Scouts to review what had been coined as the "perversion files," which listed the names of volunteers who had been terminated from the organization over sexual abuse allegations. 

Tim Kosnoff, an attorney who works closely with victims of sexual abuse by Boy Scouts volunteers, called the "perversion files" a "blacklist of alleged molesters going back to 1919." The lawyer has spoken out about the problems surrounding the list and Boy Scouts' handling of the cases.

"In many of the cases … there was no record of Scouting officials reporting the allegations to police, and often officials actively sought to conceal the abuse or allowed the suspects to hide it," Kosnoff stated.

Lawyer Jeff Anderson, who also specializes in cases of child sexual abuse, pointed out that the Boy Scouts has "a long-standing practice of preservation of these "perversion files" and as a result he has taken the initiative to inform the public by identifying abusers through public documents.

Anderson compiled a list and map of 50 alleged abusers located in New Jersey, with four of them being priests. Anderson has also stated that it is unclear whether any of the alleged perpetrators on the list have been convicted of any criminal charges and that the cases require further research. 

According to the Boy Scouts, every case was reported to law enforcement. The organization also maintain that "at no time have we ever knowingly allowed a perpetrator to work with youth... Nothing is more important than the safety and protection of children in scouting, and we are outraged that there have been times when individuals took advantage of our programs to abuse innocent children."

Warren has confirmed that she found no evidence of the organization attempting to cover up any of the allegations.