child abuse

Seventy-eight-year-old Carl Matthew Johnson was sentenced Thursday on four counts of sexual abuse of a child stemming from his plea deal in January. The judge gave him nine years to life for three first-degree felonies and one to 15 years for a second-degree felony, all to run consecutively.

Behind-the-scenes conversations between legislative leaders and what Senate President Stuart Adams said was “a broad base of religious groups” helped thwart four separate proposals to add clergy to the list of professionals required to report child sexual abuse.

Bateman’s trial was moved to March 5, 2024. He has pleaded not guilty to federal and state charges in Arizona.

The trial date for the leader of a polygamous sect in Arizona had been been scheduled to go on trial Tuesday, but his attorney asked for more time to prepare. The trial now is set to begin March 14.

The details of Samuel Bateman's life were alleged in an FBI affidavit released last Friday. Bateman faces state and federal charges of child abuse and tampering with evidence.

In a court filing in Cochise County, Arizona, made public Wednesday, the children of the late Paul Adams asked an Arizona judge for permission to add Republican state Rep. Merrill F. Nelson and law firm Kirton McConkie as defendants in their lawsuit against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints.

Russell Nelson's remarks were the first from a senior church leader on abuse since The Associated Press published an investigation into how the church handles reports of sexual abuse. He spoke at the church's twice-yearly conference that leaders use to reflect on current events and announce changes in doctrine.

An Associated Press review finds that over the past two decades, more than 130 bills have been proposed in state legislatures to create or amend child sex abuse reporting laws. After intense opposition from religious groups, the clergy privilege remained unchanged.

Investigators say Carl Matthew Johnson acknowledged the abuse. They say he was in a position of trust over the victims but aren't saying if the alleged abuse occurred while he was a bishop in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Records from a log of calls fielded by a law firm representing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a church official deposition show that Republican State Rep. Merrill F. Nelson took the initial call from a bishop reporting that church member Paul Adams had sexually abused his daughters.

On the heels of a church help line scandal, two Utah lawmakers have proposed legislation to require clergy to report sexual abuse.

The ruling says the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may not use the state's “clergy-penitent privilege” to refuse to answer questions or turn over documents in a child sex abuse case.