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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Update 3 p.m. Friday: \u003c/strong>A federal judge on Friday officially appointed Wendy Still as the first-ever “special master” for the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. Still will oversee changes at the Federal Correctional Institution, Dublin, a low-security women’s prison in the East Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ms. Still and her team shall have full access to FCI Dublin, all its records, and all physical facilities as necessary to provide the Court with the information necessary to address the issues raised in the Order, both in terms of assessment and implementation. The warden shall take all steps to ensure such access,” U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers wrote in her order.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A team of experts will assist Still in working to remedy issues around sexual assault, reporting and retaliation. According to the judge’s order, that team, so far, includes nurse consultant Jackie Clark, data analyst Barbara Owen, special assistant Sara Malone, and Dawn Davison, former warden of the California Institution for Women.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Original story, 2 p.m. Friday: \u003c/b>Prison Rape Elimination Act expert Wendy Still is poised to oversee mandatory changes at an East Bay women’s prison where allegations of sexual abuse and retaliation have persisted for years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Kara Janssen, plaintiff attorney\"]‘We are happy with this selection. Ms. Still was one of the individuals we proposed, she has extensive experience and will be able to make meaningful changes quickly at the facility.’[/pullquote]Still’s expected appointment at Federal Correctional Institution, Dublin — where incarcerated plaintiffs\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11971786/theres-no-support-incarcerated-survivors-testify-in-east-bay-womens-prison-court-hearing,\"> say they have been victims of sexual abuse and retaliation\u003c/a> — comes as the facility is facing at least 63 lawsuits over abuse, as well as a class action lawsuit. She is the first “special master” to monitor a facility in U.S. Bureau of Prisons history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The situation at Dublin can’t wait, so the court is doing things quickly and trying to provide as much transparency as possible,” said plaintiff attorney Kara Janssen. “We are happy with this selection. Ms. Still was one of the individuals we proposed, she has extensive experience and will be able to make meaningful changes quickly at the facility.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Allegations of sexual abuse at FCI Dublin go back decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most recent series of scandals first started unraveling following an investigation by The Associated Press in 2021 that found a culture of abuse and cover-ups that had persisted for years at the low-security federal women’s prison, which has more than 650 inmates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Eight officers have been criminally charged for sexual abuse since 2021. Some cases included the former warden and chaplain, who have both been convicted and sentenced for the abuse they committed while working at the prison.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Amaris Montes, attorney, Rights Behind Bars\"]‘No matter who they would have chosen for special master, it’s not going to solve all of the issues that come with such an extensive culture of abuse in Dublin.’[/pullquote]Still is the former chief probation officer for Alameda and San Francisco counties. She previously worked in correctional policy and criminal justice for more than 30 years and is coming out of retirement to oversee the beleaguered prison. She is a certified auditor for the U.S. Department of Justice Prison Rape Elimination Act, and served as a consultant on sexual abuse investigations in prions, jails, Customs and Border Protection facilities and with the U.S. Coast Guard, according to court filings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Department of Justice previously appointed Still to develop and implement statewide strategies in California for better gender-aligned health care services for incarcerated people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=news_11980960 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/GettyImages-1181905632-1020x680.jpg']“No matter who they would have chosen for special master, it’s not going to solve all of the issues that come with such an extensive culture of abuse in Dublin,” said attorney Amaris Montes of Rights Behind Bars, one of the groups representing the plaintiffs. “We know this is just a first step, but the reason why we asked for it is because there is such a huge problem and we really need a separate entity to come in and be able to see what the problems are.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers held a status conference on Friday, following interviews on Tuesday with candidates whom attorneys on both sides proposed. Still has accepted the offer, according to Janssen, who said a court order officially appointing her is expected soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Next, Still will work with the court to assemble a team of experts to help oversee and address ongoing issues of abuse and retaliation at FCI Dublin. Still and her team will report to the court — not the Bureau of Prisons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is too much for any one person to do,” Janssen said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s Alex Hall contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Update 3 p.m. Friday: \u003c/strong>A federal judge on Friday officially appointed Wendy Still as the first-ever “special master” for the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. Still will oversee changes at the Federal Correctional Institution, Dublin, a low-security women’s prison in the East Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ms. Still and her team shall have full access to FCI Dublin, all its records, and all physical facilities as necessary to provide the Court with the information necessary to address the issues raised in the Order, both in terms of assessment and implementation. The warden shall take all steps to ensure such access,” U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers wrote in her order.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A team of experts will assist Still in working to remedy issues around sexual assault, reporting and retaliation. According to the judge’s order, that team, so far, includes nurse consultant Jackie Clark, data analyst Barbara Owen, special assistant Sara Malone, and Dawn Davison, former warden of the California Institution for Women.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Original story, 2 p.m. Friday: \u003c/b>Prison Rape Elimination Act expert Wendy Still is poised to oversee mandatory changes at an East Bay women’s prison where allegations of sexual abuse and retaliation have persisted for years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘We are happy with this selection. Ms. Still was one of the individuals we proposed, she has extensive experience and will be able to make meaningful changes quickly at the facility.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Still’s expected appointment at Federal Correctional Institution, Dublin — where incarcerated plaintiffs\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11971786/theres-no-support-incarcerated-survivors-testify-in-east-bay-womens-prison-court-hearing,\"> say they have been victims of sexual abuse and retaliation\u003c/a> — comes as the facility is facing at least 63 lawsuits over abuse, as well as a class action lawsuit. She is the first “special master” to monitor a facility in U.S. Bureau of Prisons history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The situation at Dublin can’t wait, so the court is doing things quickly and trying to provide as much transparency as possible,” said plaintiff attorney Kara Janssen. “We are happy with this selection. Ms. Still was one of the individuals we proposed, she has extensive experience and will be able to make meaningful changes quickly at the facility.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Allegations of sexual abuse at FCI Dublin go back decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most recent series of scandals first started unraveling following an investigation by The Associated Press in 2021 that found a culture of abuse and cover-ups that had persisted for years at the low-security federal women’s prison, which has more than 650 inmates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Eight officers have been criminally charged for sexual abuse since 2021. Some cases included the former warden and chaplain, who have both been convicted and sentenced for the abuse they committed while working at the prison.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘No matter who they would have chosen for special master, it’s not going to solve all of the issues that come with such an extensive culture of abuse in Dublin.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Still is the former chief probation officer for Alameda and San Francisco counties. She previously worked in correctional policy and criminal justice for more than 30 years and is coming out of retirement to oversee the beleaguered prison. She is a certified auditor for the U.S. Department of Justice Prison Rape Elimination Act, and served as a consultant on sexual abuse investigations in prions, jails, Customs and Border Protection facilities and with the U.S. Coast Guard, according to court filings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Department of Justice previously appointed Still to develop and implement statewide strategies in California for better gender-aligned health care services for incarcerated people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“No matter who they would have chosen for special master, it’s not going to solve all of the issues that come with such an extensive culture of abuse in Dublin,” said attorney Amaris Montes of Rights Behind Bars, one of the groups representing the plaintiffs. “We know this is just a first step, but the reason why we asked for it is because there is such a huge problem and we really need a separate entity to come in and be able to see what the problems are.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers held a status conference on Friday, following interviews on Tuesday with candidates whom attorneys on both sides proposed. Still has accepted the offer, according to Janssen, who said a court order officially appointing her is expected soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Next, Still will work with the court to assemble a team of experts to help oversee and address ongoing issues of abuse and retaliation at FCI Dublin. Still and her team will report to the court — not the Bureau of Prisons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is too much for any one person to do,” Janssen said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s Alex Hall contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced former women’s prison correctional officer Nakie Nunley to six years in prison for sexually abusing people incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution, Dublin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nunley is one of eight officers to be criminally charged for sexual abuse since 2021 at the low-security federal women’s prison that has been \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11979936/judge-certifies-class-action-lawsuit-for-women-incarcerated-at-fci-dublin\">embroiled in sexual misconduct allegations for years\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You left a wake of destruction behind you. I don’t know how else to describe it,” said U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers on Wednesday to Nunley, just before announcing his sentence. “You were cruel, you were perverse, you were predatory, and you exploited them. A sentence has to reflect the reality of what you did. There are women you abused who have longer sentences than I will give you. One wonders if that is appropriate.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Allegations of sexual abuse at FCI Dublin go back decades, and the most recent scandals began unraveling in 2021 after an investigation by The Associated Press revealed a culture of abuse and cover-up at the facility. The former warden, chaplain and multiple other officers have been charged and sentenced, but allegations of abuse have continued.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>FCI Dublin is currently facing 63 individual lawsuits over sexual misconduct and retaliation by officers, including 12 filed this year. A separate class-action lawsuit was filed by eight women incarcerated at FCI Dublin, alleging women at the prison were subject to rampant and ongoing sexual abuse, including rape and sexual assault, drugging, groping and being forced to take explicit photos.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It also claims women incarcerated at the facility were subject to abuse during medical exams and that immigrants were threatened with deportation if they did not comply.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nunley, who is from Fairfield, served in the U.S. Air Force before working for the Bureau of Prisons. In July 2023, he pleaded guilty to sexually abusing five women who were serving prison sentences while he was a supervisor for inmates working at a call center called UNICOR.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers\"]‘You left a wake of destruction behind you. … A sentence has to reflect the reality of what you did. There are women you abused who have longer sentences than I will give you. One wonders if that is appropriate.’[/pullquote]The call center was a desirable place to work because it paid more than other jobs at the facility and women could gain transferable work skills, Molly Priedeman, assistant United States attorney who is prosecuting the case, said in court on Wednesday. She said the guard took advantage of his position and threatened women with firing and other punishment if they didn’t comply with sex acts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He held his victims’ jobs, their livelihood within the prison walls within his hands, and he used that power to harass, degrade his numerous victims,” Priedeman said. “This is not just a case where there are implicit power dynamics at play. … A number of his victims have described nightmares, suicidal thoughts.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In his \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23875698-nakie-nunley-plea-agreement\">plea deal\u003c/a>, Nunley admitted that he lied to federal investigators about sexually abusing his victims and about sending one of his victims sexually explicit notes. When confronted about his behavior, Nunley threatened to transfer one woman who was incarcerated at the prison to another facility and that she could lose her job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At Wednesday’s court hearing in Oakland, women currently incarcerated at FCI Dublin testified about their experiences with Nunley. One inmate said that Nunley promoted her in the call center “because he told me he liked the way I looked” and that he repeatedly sexually assaulted her in his office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=\"news_11979936,news_11972346,news_11971786\"]“I felt uncomfortable and embarrassed,” the woman testified on Wednesday over a phone call. “Mr. Nunley became more and more aggressive with me after this incident. I felt scared. I didn’t know what he would do next.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another woman who was formerly incarcerated at the prison shared that Nunley left her a dozen sexually explicit notes and raped her after a shift at the call center. When she reported the notes and behavior, she said an officer laughed to the point of tears. After Nunley admitted to the acts, she received compassionate release.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several family members testified in support of Nunley in the courtroom on Wednesday. “I understand and accept the allegations made against my husband,” said Samantha Nunley, the defendant’s wife. “I do not think that these actions define him as a person.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nunley himself addressed the judge and women who had testified in person on Wednesday, sharing that he has been active in therapy and a treatment program for sexual offenders.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I stand here today in a place I never thought I would be, but I know that it is my own actions that brought me to this place. I want to first and foremost apologize to the women that I violated at FCI Dublin,” he said. “I’m really sorry I didn’t fulfill that promise I wanted to fulfill for them. I’m so sorry to all of those who were affected by my actions.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite several convictions already, the situation at FCI Dublin has continued to spiral, and more reports of retaliation have come forward throughout criminal proceedings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It is so dire at the facility that Judge Gonzalez Rogers earlier this month approved a request to appoint a special master to oversee mandatory changes to address sexual abuse and retaliation at FCI Dublin, a first in Bureau of Prisons history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Attorneys for plaintiffs and defendants have since submitted their proposals for the special master, which the judge will select in the coming weeks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The judge’s decision about the special master came less than a week after an FBI raid at the facility. The prison’s warden — the third to step in since an earlier warden was charged with sexual abuse at the prison — and three other top officials were abruptly replaced.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The situation can no longer be tolerated. The facility is in dire need of immediate change,” she wrote in her order. “The court finds the Bureau of Prisons (“BOP”) has proceeded sluggishly with intentional disregard of the inmates’ constitutional rights despite being fully apprised of the situation for years. The repeated installation of BOP leadership who fail to grasp and address the situation strains credulity. The court is compelled to intercede.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“I felt uncomfortable and embarrassed,” the woman testified on Wednesday over a phone call. “Mr. Nunley became more and more aggressive with me after this incident. I felt scared. I didn’t know what he would do next.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another woman who was formerly incarcerated at the prison shared that Nunley left her a dozen sexually explicit notes and raped her after a shift at the call center. When she reported the notes and behavior, she said an officer laughed to the point of tears. After Nunley admitted to the acts, she received compassionate release.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several family members testified in support of Nunley in the courtroom on Wednesday. “I understand and accept the allegations made against my husband,” said Samantha Nunley, the defendant’s wife. “I do not think that these actions define him as a person.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nunley himself addressed the judge and women who had testified in person on Wednesday, sharing that he has been active in therapy and a treatment program for sexual offenders.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I stand here today in a place I never thought I would be, but I know that it is my own actions that brought me to this place. I want to first and foremost apologize to the women that I violated at FCI Dublin,” he said. “I’m really sorry I didn’t fulfill that promise I wanted to fulfill for them. I’m so sorry to all of those who were affected by my actions.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite several convictions already, the situation at FCI Dublin has continued to spiral, and more reports of retaliation have come forward throughout criminal proceedings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It is so dire at the facility that Judge Gonzalez Rogers earlier this month approved a request to appoint a special master to oversee mandatory changes to address sexual abuse and retaliation at FCI Dublin, a first in Bureau of Prisons history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Attorneys for plaintiffs and defendants have since submitted their proposals for the special master, which the judge will select in the coming weeks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The judge’s decision about the special master came less than a week after an FBI raid at the facility. The prison’s warden — the third to step in since an earlier warden was charged with sexual abuse at the prison — and three other top officials were abruptly replaced.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The situation can no longer be tolerated. The facility is in dire need of immediate change,” she wrote in her order. “The court finds the Bureau of Prisons (“BOP”) has proceeded sluggishly with intentional disregard of the inmates’ constitutional rights despite being fully apprised of the situation for years. The repeated installation of BOP leadership who fail to grasp and address the situation strains credulity. The court is compelled to intercede.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>Warning: This story contains descriptions of sexual abuse.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[dropcap]A[/dropcap]n alleged San Francisco sex cult has attempted to groom new members, multiple sources told KQED, even as one of their most well-known former “students” now faces federal charges for practices many past members say she learned while living with the group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On June 6, \u003ca href=\"https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/onetaste-founder-and-former-head-sales-indicted-forced-labor-conspiracy\">Nicole Daedone was indicted on forced labor charges\u003c/a> that include \u003ca href=\"https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-06-18/the-dark-side-of-onetaste-the-orgasmic-meditation-company\">allegations of sexual and emotional abuse at her company, OneTaste\u003c/a>, which she founded in San Francisco. The commune and sexual wellness company sold courses and coaching promoting sexual empowerment and so-called “orgasmic meditation,” a ritual where a group of women would lie naked from the waist down while men wearing clothes would stroke the women’s genitals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Former employees said OneTaste took advantage of people with sexual trauma, subjecting members and employees to surveillance, plus emotional, physical and psychological abuse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But before her “orgasmic meditation” startup \u003ca href=\"https://www.lamag.com/culturefiles/inside-hollywoods-orgasm-cult/\">took off in Hollywood circles\u003c/a> — and recently came crashing down — Daedone learned the basis for her business model and orgasmic meditation techniques, former affiliates told KQED, while living for two years with the San Francisco-based\u003ca href=\"https://www.welcomed.com/\"> The Welcomed Consensus\u003c/a>, a much older organization that sold thousand-dollar courses promising sexual pleasure, social empowerment and freedom.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rather than enlightenment, however, nearly a dozen ex-members, students and other affiliates have come forward to tell KQED about a consistent pattern of psychological and sexual abuse at the hands of the Welcomed Consensus, and its leader Robert “RJ” Testerman, over the past three decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Nicole news, I mean, it made me feel like RJ has done all of this times a hundred, and he’s still doing it,” said Sasha Nelson, who lived with the Welcomed Consensus for about four months at their house in the Glen Park neighborhood in 2018, after a member recruited her via Tinder.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956149\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956149\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"Two people with long hair sit next to each other at a table and look and look at the camera.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Christine Talbott Acosta (left) and Sasha Nelson sit in Christine’s home in San Francisco. Nelson and Talbott Acosta were part of a San Francisco-based alleged sex cult known as The Welcome Consensus and are now trying to warn people about abuse within the group. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>KQED made multiple attempts to reach Testerman at the Welcomed Consensus’ properties in San Francisco and Siskiyou County, but phone calls and emails were not returned. An unnamed person who picked up the phone at a Siskiyou County ranch owned by the Welcomed Consensus declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Similar to OneTaste, the Welcomed Consensus sold courses on sex and held gatherings where men would stroke undressed women. At its classes and recruiting events, the Welcomed Consensus taught “DOing,” essentially stroking a person’s genitals — most often it would be a man touching a woman. “DO” stood for “deliberate orgasm,” a term still actively trademarked by the Welcomed Consensus, \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23892105-trademark-electronic-search-system-tess\">according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Former affiliates of Daedone’s say the model was the foundation for her company’s orgasmic meditation or “OMing” practice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While keeping a lower profile these days, the Welcomed Consensus has continued recruiting for a different era, now through social media, online dating apps and volunteer programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘The Wild West’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Christine Talbott Acosta was a member and former recruiter for the Welcomed Consensus. Born and raised in Redwood City, she was initially connected to Testerman while babysitting for a woman who was a family friend of his, while he was working in San Francisco as a hairdresser.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He was 32 and I was 12, and the first time we had sex, it was three months after my 13th birthday,” said Talbott Acosta, who is now 57 and continues to live in San Francisco. “At 16, my life kind of crumbled.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the early ’80s, Talbott Acosta was kicked out of her high school and left home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was free drug use where I babysat, and I smoked and drank with RJ. They gave me acid when I was 15,” Talbott Acosta said. “They treated me like an adult and encouraged it. He taught me to lie, and I couldn’t tell anybody.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She briefly lived in the Tenderloin near Post and Polk Streets. Testerman helped Talbott Acosta acquire birth control, then began prostituting her when she turned 17, she claims. At 18, she also began working as a hairdresser for Testerman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Their belief was that you’re born fully responsible [to have sex],” Talbott Acosta said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During this time, Talbott Acosta grew estranged from her family, something common among Welcomed Consensus members she has encountered over the years. The distance strengthened the pull Testerman had over her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He was my world. I worked for him and he was my lover and my dad and my family, really, my family,” Talbott Acosta said. “RJ referred to that time as the Wild West. We didn’t have any structure, it was just a sex commune with lots of drinking and drugs and violence and drama.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956148\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956148\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with long hair looks out of a window in a residential setting.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Christine Talbott Acosta stands in her home in San Francisco. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Talbott Acosta then moved into a house near Oak and Fell streets that was affiliated with an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11913686/this-bay-area-sex-loving-commune-is-still-going-strong\">East Bay sex commune\u003c/a> called Lafayette Morehouse, which taught and sold sex classes through its so-called More University that began in 1977.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Everyone at her new house was taking classes from More University, with topics ranging from “Advanced Sensuality” to “Expansion of Sexual Potential.” Elite members of Morehouse lived at the commune’s larger property in Lafayette.[aside postID=news_11913686 label='More on Lafayette Morehouse']At around age 20, Talbott Acosta began living with Testerman at a house on Joost Avenue in San Francisco’s Glen Park neighborhood with about seven others while working for him at the hair salon. It was there in the early ’90s that Testerman formed the Welcomed Consensus, using the teachings and financial models he learned with More University.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was word for word,” Talbott Acosta said of how the Welcomed Consensus model is based on More University. She added, however, that she never experienced the rigid rules over sex, food, clothing or pressure to leave family with More University as she did with Welcomed Consensus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Years later, Daedone would also become affiliated with both Morehouse and the Welcomed Consensus before launching her own version.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Members of the Welcomed Consensus’ inner circle had to pass what was referred to as “validation,” which required performing a three-hour long orgasm in private with Welcomed Consensus members as well as a one-hour orgasm demonstration as part of a public course offering, Talbott Acosta said. Women in the house would take turns performing DOing at workshops, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Members of the inner circle typically lived at the Glen Park house. The group later bought a ranch in far Northern California near the community of Klamath River in rural Siskiyou County, called A Madrone Ranch and Gardens.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Former members described typical Welcomed Consensus lessons as a scene where a group of men and women would gather in a room, and men would practice stroking the clitoris of an assigned female partner.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He would get the guys to come in and then all the women in the house would be who they practice on,” Talbott Acosta recalled.[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Christine Talbott Acosta, former Welcomed Consensus member\"]‘That was the big hook. These guys who had been coming and ogling at you could do this. If you lived in the house, you were a shill they used as bait to bring guys in.’[/pullquote]For years, Talbott Acosta floated in and out of the Welcomed Consensus community, recruiting new members and participating in classes even as she moved out with a spouse and focused on having her own children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She remembers one particular meeting with Testerman that influenced her split from the group, but it still took years to leave behind that life, even after moving out of the Glen Park house.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“RJ just hit me so hard… that I couldn’t imagine doing it again,” Talbott Acosta said of one particular DOing session where he repeatedly slapped her genitals. “The idea of taking my clothes off all of a sudden in public just had me really scared.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There was also a “touch and look” course, where Welcomed Consensus students who reached a certain level in the courses could stroke and touch women who lived at the house, like Talbott Acosta, on the floor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That was the big hook,” Talbott Acosta said. “These guys who had been coming and ogling at you could do this. If you lived in the house, you were a shill they used as bait to bring guys in.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956446\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11956446 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A house in a residential neighborhoods with a verdant front garden.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">827 Joost Avenue in San Francisco’s Sunnyside neighborhood, the house owned by the Welcomed Consensus where members of the group’s inner circle typically lived. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She tried to take on other roles at the house, like cooking, but even then she was required to wear a French maid’s outfit. Any time she objected, she said, “I was told this is my resistance to pleasure.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Years after leaving the group, Talbott Acosta reported the abuses she faced there to local police in Redwood City and San Francisco. Her reports fell beyond California’s statute of limitations, so she says police told her she would need evidence of Testerman admitting to the abuse, which she did not have. The cases went nowhere.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She later tried reaching out to five different law firms to see if she had a civil case she could try, but hit wall after wall with the justice system.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The Welcomed Consensus and OneTaste\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Sasha Nelson grew up in Berlin and traveled all over the world before landing a corporate job in Sonoma County. She didn’t like her static lifestyle, and heard about OneTaste from friends taking workshops. She wanted the freedom and sexual empowerment it advertised.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She attended an OMing workshop with OneTaste and said their sorority-rush-like efforts to recruit her were “intoxicating” at first. She described the group as “a typical cult vibe, everyone was euphoric and excited and giddy and making friends.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she arrived at her first gathering, “you do this horrifying exercise and all these women are taking off their pants in a warehouse of 200 people, getting stroked in front of everybody,” Nelson said. “My first experience was with a man I had an aversion to the entire weekend, but after I felt really close to him and felt like ‘wow, there’s something really to this.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But as time went on, she became less charmed by the large group events and felt disconnected from the strangers she was having sexual encounters with at the workshops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then in the fall of 2017, she matched with a man named Bill Berndt on Tinder. Text messages shared with KQED show he told her that he was in a sensuality community, and she was curious about it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I had liked the concept that was taught in Nicole [Daedone’s] workshop, but I didn’t like the scene,” Nelson said of the OneTaste event. “I thought, ‘Oh, here’s maybe another way to explore that. Like a little smaller group.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Welcomed Consensus pushed much harder to recruit Nelson, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was hard for me to believe these women would mislead me,” she told KQED. “It was a higher level of recruiting and grooming” than she experienced at the OneTaste workshops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She began traveling to San Francisco for weekly “BenchMarks,” essentially cocktail-party-like recruitment gatherings led by Testerman and women who lived at Welcomed Consensus’ house on Joost in Glen Park.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>BenchMarks were the first step in recruitment. Before each meeting, members would discuss who would be in attendance that night, remind each other to be happy and bubbly and not share any negatives about the group, and ultimately, bring in new members with money to spend, multiple former affiliates told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A primary viewpoint of the group is that fun, turned-on women always enthusiastically say ‘Yes’ to offers,” Nelson told KQED. “By saying, ‘No, thank you,’ you are seen as out of agreement, resistant, or just plain unfun… Nobody wants to be deemed unattractive or unfun.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956150\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956150\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with long hair looks out of a window in a residential setting.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sasha Nelson sits in the home of Christine Talbott Acosta in San Francisco. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Nelson was persuaded to move into the Welcomed Consensus’ San Francisco house in 2018, but left after four months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She was often physically exhausted while living there — something other former members said was common in the early days of living among the Welcomed Consensus. Like sex, food was strictly controlled in the house, and women’s bodies were heavily scrutinized around weight, Nelson remembers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“RJ likes skinny girls, that was one of the unspoken rules,” Nelson said. “You would really be pressured to eat the food being made, yet you were also not allowed to be fat.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another former student named Allyson told KQED she witnessed Testerman, wearing cowboy boots, repeatedly kick a household member who was on the floor. KQED is only using Allyson’s first name due to personal safety concerns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the time Nelson was being groomed by the Welcomed Consensus, OneTaste was booming. It was still edgy, but good marketing helped it inch its way toward mainstream acceptance with \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/15/fashion/15commune.html\">profiles in publications like \u003cem>The New York Times\u003c/em>\u003c/a> — and it made lots of money along the way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Daedone herself was a student with the Welcomed Consensus in the late 1990s and early 2000s, multiple sources told KQED, including a former housemate of hers and a colleague at OneTaste. Talbott Acosta described her mission with OneTaste as attempting to make the courses scalable, startup-style.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Nicole took the Welcomed Consensus information and put her own twist on it. She used a lot of the same stuff, the basic business plan, but did change some of it,” Talbott Acosta said. “Her goal was to bring it to the masses.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘So much social punishment’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>After graduating with a degree in ecology during the COVID-19 pandemic, Nat Jennings, then 23, was eager to get out into a world beyond screens to put it to use. In September 2022, she headed to California from Texas to volunteer with A Madrone Ranch and Gardens, which she found through a website that connects volunteers with organic farms to work in exchange for boarding, called Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jennings signed up to work at the farm — a remote property in rural Siskiyou County owned by the Welcomed Consensus — not knowing anything about the group. These days, she describes the experience as, “accidentally signing up to go live in a sex cult.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956925\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956925\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with glasses inside a room with clothes and chairs and a tall fan.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nat Jennings stands in her bedroom at A Madrone Ranch and Gardens in Sept. 2022, a property in Klamath River, Siskiyou County, owned by the Welcomed Consensus. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Nat Jennings)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s really hard to realize what is happening, and to leave,” Jennings told KQED. “If I didn’t have friends on the outside, if I didn’t have a car there, I could have been trapped and I could have, like, not believed myself because I was struggling with sleep deprivation, overworking, like all these factors that were just kind of convincing me I was the crazy one.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A few red flags stood out to her during her stay. First was early into her stay when women at the house began insisting that she wear a dress to dinner. When she replied she had come to work and didn’t bring a dress, they gave her one to put on. Jennings said she complied out of pressure, but said the dress felt “horribly inappropriate” and the experience made her feel “very uncomfortable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another day, she went berry picking with one of the house mates, an older man, and he flashed his gun before asking her to go swimming with him and taking off his shirt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was a lot of love bombing and then taking it away, that type of thing,” Jennings said. Love bombing refers to lavishing someone with affection, and usually revoking that kindness later to manipulate them. “There was so much social punishment if you do anything out of line.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956924\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1501px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956924\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with glasses holds a plastic container full of blackberries in a wooded area.\" width=\"1501\" height=\"2000\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED.jpg 1501w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED-800x1066.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED-1020x1359.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED-1153x1536.jpg 1153w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1501px) 100vw, 1501px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nat Jennings holds a container of blackberries she picked near A Madrone Ranch and Gardens in Sept. 2022. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Nat Jennings)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Something felt off. So she and another volunteer in the work-away program dug around online and came across Talbott Acosta’s blog, \u003ca href=\"https://www.truthaboutrj.com/\">TruthAboutRJ.com\u003c/a>, where they saw the faces of several people they were staying with and read stories that started similar to their own — but ended badly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We read all that and had this mutual panic attack like, ‘We have to leave tomorrow. This is ridiculous,’” Jennings said. “So on day 12, we woke up at 4:45 a.m., packed our bags and ran out to our cars.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s unclear exactly how many members are still active with the Welcomed Consensus community. Jennings said at least five people were living at the house while she was there and Talbott Acosta believes two new members were validated in recent years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Talbot Acosta said she reported the group and its ranch to WWOOF, but no action was taken. As of publication, \u003ca href=\"https://wwoofusa.org/en/host/20952-homestead-garden-vegetables-community-ranchlivestock\">the ranch listing was still active on the volunteer farming program’s website\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>WWOOF did not respond to KQED’s requests for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As young women like Jennings have come forward more recently, Talbott Acosta and Nelson fear a new generation of Welcomed Consensus leaders are being elevated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Testerman’s daughter, Ginger Mueller-Testerman, completed a master’s thesis in 2021 titled “\u003ca href=\"https://scholarworks.calstate.edu/downloads/x633f6180\">Clitoral Analysis: Analysis of Pleasure in Contemporary Sex Instruction Materials\u003c/a>” at San Francisco State in Human Sexuality Studies, where she also taught a course. In Spring 2023, Mueller-Testerman taught a critical studies course including topics on gender and sexual identity at the California College of the Arts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Upon hearing the news about Daedone and discovering Mueller-Testerman was teaching a course related to sex, Talbott Acosta contacted SF State and CCA to report personal experiences of abuse and recruiting for the Welcomed Consensus alongside Mueller-Testerman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SF State and CCA also declined to comment on Talbott Acosta’s reports, but both schools confirmed she taught courses there last spring and said she was not signed up to teach this fall. Mueller-Testerman declined to comment when reached by phone.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>California, cults and the Welcomed Consensus\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It took decades before Talbott Acosta and her husband Dennis, who she met at the Welcomed Consensus, to fully cut ties with the group. She said it wasn’t until beginning intensive therapy, and having a total emotional breakdown, that she began to see more clearly the abuse that she encountered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For me, it was learning about trauma and learning about PTSD and getting the mental health care that I needed to start seeing what was really happening.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Poulomi Saha, a UC Berkeley professor who teaches a course called Cults in Popular Culture, said that type of groupthink and pressure that keeps many members inside groups like the Welcomed Consensus is not uncommon in cults or other intentional communities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The first thing you have to ask is ‘Why do people join?’ without diagnosing some kind of brainwashing, mis-recognition or stupidity,” Saha told KQED. “If we begin by believing that followers are already in the wrong, we can’t understand what gets someone somewhere.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These groups draw followers by offering big-ticket items. Bliss. Salvation. Wild financial success. But also things that are big-ticket items that we make mundane like true belonging,” she said. “You also have a structure of authority, and huge financial outlays. People have bought in on every level of their social being. And there’s a leader whose power you actually somewhere really begin to adhere to.”[aside postID=news_11705963]California is often the backdrop to popular culture’s obsession with cults, from the \u003ca href=\"https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/manson-family-murders-what-need-to-know-180972655/\">Manson Family\u003c/a> to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11705963/do-you-really-want-to-know-one-mans-search-for-family-from-jonestown-and-beyond\">People’s Temple\u003c/a> and more. But there’s been a noticeable shift toward financial exploitation of group members, Saha said, which her research shows took off in the 1980s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Groups like the Welcomed Consensus sold their offerings for thousands of dollars. \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Suit-It-s-hooking-not-sex-training-3055850.php\">One former member, Erwan Davon, even tried to sue Testerman\u003c/a>, court records show, for putting him out of at least $136,000.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Allyson, who worked as a computer programmer before the Welcomed Consensus recruited her, estimated she spent at least $30,000 on courses with the Welcomed Consensus, plus buying a van for their food program. To get OneTaste up and moving, Daedone later convinced her to hand over the $5,000 she had saved in her 401K plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, the Welcomed Consensus ran a nonprofit out of the house called \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/freetheneed/\">Free the Need\u003c/a>, through which it claimed to help distribute surplus groceries to hungry families. But multiple former affiliates that spoke to KQED said most of the donated food was kept to feed members of the Welcomed Consensus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two male sources who were associated with the group told KQED that it was common for leaders to probe recruits about their finances and convince students to pay up. In return, they promised to revolutionize their sex life and relationship to women.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you couldn’t pay, they would find work for you to do to pay off your debts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I refinished the hardwood floors. We wanted to build a subterranean brewery in the backyard, so we literally dug like 15 feet down,” said Dennis Acosta. “Then we realized we were totally insane and covered it all up.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Testerman sold freedom from mainstream power dynamics and markets, but, Saha argues, groups like his often recreate them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You are not outside of the market logic at all. In fact, it’s a place where the market logic is perfected,” said Saha. “How do you draw someone in? Go out and bring four friends.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These days, Talbott Acosta is spreading a different message.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It makes people very uncomfortable. But it is important to talk about,” she said. “It’s the only way to let people know that it exists and that it can happen to anyone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The Welcomed Consensus, which inspired the now-indicted founder of the sexual wellness company OneTaste, has engaged in a pattern of psychological and sexual abuse for decades, according to nearly a dozen ex-members, students and others.",
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"title": "Is a San Francisco 'Sex Cult' Subjecting People to Abuse? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>Warning: This story contains descriptions of sexual abuse.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__dropcapShortcode__dropcap\">A\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>n alleged San Francisco sex cult has attempted to groom new members, multiple sources told KQED, even as one of their most well-known former “students” now faces federal charges for practices many past members say she learned while living with the group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On June 6, \u003ca href=\"https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/onetaste-founder-and-former-head-sales-indicted-forced-labor-conspiracy\">Nicole Daedone was indicted on forced labor charges\u003c/a> that include \u003ca href=\"https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-06-18/the-dark-side-of-onetaste-the-orgasmic-meditation-company\">allegations of sexual and emotional abuse at her company, OneTaste\u003c/a>, which she founded in San Francisco. The commune and sexual wellness company sold courses and coaching promoting sexual empowerment and so-called “orgasmic meditation,” a ritual where a group of women would lie naked from the waist down while men wearing clothes would stroke the women’s genitals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Former employees said OneTaste took advantage of people with sexual trauma, subjecting members and employees to surveillance, plus emotional, physical and psychological abuse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But before her “orgasmic meditation” startup \u003ca href=\"https://www.lamag.com/culturefiles/inside-hollywoods-orgasm-cult/\">took off in Hollywood circles\u003c/a> — and recently came crashing down — Daedone learned the basis for her business model and orgasmic meditation techniques, former affiliates told KQED, while living for two years with the San Francisco-based\u003ca href=\"https://www.welcomed.com/\"> The Welcomed Consensus\u003c/a>, a much older organization that sold thousand-dollar courses promising sexual pleasure, social empowerment and freedom.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rather than enlightenment, however, nearly a dozen ex-members, students and other affiliates have come forward to tell KQED about a consistent pattern of psychological and sexual abuse at the hands of the Welcomed Consensus, and its leader Robert “RJ” Testerman, over the past three decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Nicole news, I mean, it made me feel like RJ has done all of this times a hundred, and he’s still doing it,” said Sasha Nelson, who lived with the Welcomed Consensus for about four months at their house in the Glen Park neighborhood in 2018, after a member recruited her via Tinder.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956149\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956149\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"Two people with long hair sit next to each other at a table and look and look at the camera.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67129_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-03-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Christine Talbott Acosta (left) and Sasha Nelson sit in Christine’s home in San Francisco. Nelson and Talbott Acosta were part of a San Francisco-based alleged sex cult known as The Welcome Consensus and are now trying to warn people about abuse within the group. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>KQED made multiple attempts to reach Testerman at the Welcomed Consensus’ properties in San Francisco and Siskiyou County, but phone calls and emails were not returned. An unnamed person who picked up the phone at a Siskiyou County ranch owned by the Welcomed Consensus declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Similar to OneTaste, the Welcomed Consensus sold courses on sex and held gatherings where men would stroke undressed women. At its classes and recruiting events, the Welcomed Consensus taught “DOing,” essentially stroking a person’s genitals — most often it would be a man touching a woman. “DO” stood for “deliberate orgasm,” a term still actively trademarked by the Welcomed Consensus, \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23892105-trademark-electronic-search-system-tess\">according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Former affiliates of Daedone’s say the model was the foundation for her company’s orgasmic meditation or “OMing” practice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While keeping a lower profile these days, the Welcomed Consensus has continued recruiting for a different era, now through social media, online dating apps and volunteer programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘The Wild West’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Christine Talbott Acosta was a member and former recruiter for the Welcomed Consensus. Born and raised in Redwood City, she was initially connected to Testerman while babysitting for a woman who was a family friend of his, while he was working in San Francisco as a hairdresser.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He was 32 and I was 12, and the first time we had sex, it was three months after my 13th birthday,” said Talbott Acosta, who is now 57 and continues to live in San Francisco. “At 16, my life kind of crumbled.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the early ’80s, Talbott Acosta was kicked out of her high school and left home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was free drug use where I babysat, and I smoked and drank with RJ. They gave me acid when I was 15,” Talbott Acosta said. “They treated me like an adult and encouraged it. He taught me to lie, and I couldn’t tell anybody.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She briefly lived in the Tenderloin near Post and Polk Streets. Testerman helped Talbott Acosta acquire birth control, then began prostituting her when she turned 17, she claims. At 18, she also began working as a hairdresser for Testerman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Their belief was that you’re born fully responsible [to have sex],” Talbott Acosta said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During this time, Talbott Acosta grew estranged from her family, something common among Welcomed Consensus members she has encountered over the years. The distance strengthened the pull Testerman had over her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He was my world. I worked for him and he was my lover and my dad and my family, really, my family,” Talbott Acosta said. “RJ referred to that time as the Wild West. We didn’t have any structure, it was just a sex commune with lots of drinking and drugs and violence and drama.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956148\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956148\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with long hair looks out of a window in a residential setting.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67128_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-05-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Christine Talbott Acosta stands in her home in San Francisco. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Talbott Acosta then moved into a house near Oak and Fell streets that was affiliated with an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11913686/this-bay-area-sex-loving-commune-is-still-going-strong\">East Bay sex commune\u003c/a> called Lafayette Morehouse, which taught and sold sex classes through its so-called More University that began in 1977.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Everyone at her new house was taking classes from More University, with topics ranging from “Advanced Sensuality” to “Expansion of Sexual Potential.” Elite members of Morehouse lived at the commune’s larger property in Lafayette.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>At around age 20, Talbott Acosta began living with Testerman at a house on Joost Avenue in San Francisco’s Glen Park neighborhood with about seven others while working for him at the hair salon. It was there in the early ’90s that Testerman formed the Welcomed Consensus, using the teachings and financial models he learned with More University.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was word for word,” Talbott Acosta said of how the Welcomed Consensus model is based on More University. She added, however, that she never experienced the rigid rules over sex, food, clothing or pressure to leave family with More University as she did with Welcomed Consensus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Years later, Daedone would also become affiliated with both Morehouse and the Welcomed Consensus before launching her own version.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Members of the Welcomed Consensus’ inner circle had to pass what was referred to as “validation,” which required performing a three-hour long orgasm in private with Welcomed Consensus members as well as a one-hour orgasm demonstration as part of a public course offering, Talbott Acosta said. Women in the house would take turns performing DOing at workshops, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Members of the inner circle typically lived at the Glen Park house. The group later bought a ranch in far Northern California near the community of Klamath River in rural Siskiyou County, called A Madrone Ranch and Gardens.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Former members described typical Welcomed Consensus lessons as a scene where a group of men and women would gather in a room, and men would practice stroking the clitoris of an assigned female partner.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He would get the guys to come in and then all the women in the house would be who they practice on,” Talbott Acosta recalled.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘That was the big hook. These guys who had been coming and ogling at you could do this. If you lived in the house, you were a shill they used as bait to bring guys in.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>For years, Talbott Acosta floated in and out of the Welcomed Consensus community, recruiting new members and participating in classes even as she moved out with a spouse and focused on having her own children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She remembers one particular meeting with Testerman that influenced her split from the group, but it still took years to leave behind that life, even after moving out of the Glen Park house.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“RJ just hit me so hard… that I couldn’t imagine doing it again,” Talbott Acosta said of one particular DOing session where he repeatedly slapped her genitals. “The idea of taking my clothes off all of a sudden in public just had me really scared.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There was also a “touch and look” course, where Welcomed Consensus students who reached a certain level in the courses could stroke and touch women who lived at the house, like Talbott Acosta, on the floor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That was the big hook,” Talbott Acosta said. “These guys who had been coming and ogling at you could do this. If you lived in the house, you were a shill they used as bait to bring guys in.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956446\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11956446 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A house in a residential neighborhoods with a verdant front garden.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67218_230724-WelcomeConensusHouse-03-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">827 Joost Avenue in San Francisco’s Sunnyside neighborhood, the house owned by the Welcomed Consensus where members of the group’s inner circle typically lived. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She tried to take on other roles at the house, like cooking, but even then she was required to wear a French maid’s outfit. Any time she objected, she said, “I was told this is my resistance to pleasure.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Years after leaving the group, Talbott Acosta reported the abuses she faced there to local police in Redwood City and San Francisco. Her reports fell beyond California’s statute of limitations, so she says police told her she would need evidence of Testerman admitting to the abuse, which she did not have. The cases went nowhere.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She later tried reaching out to five different law firms to see if she had a civil case she could try, but hit wall after wall with the justice system.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The Welcomed Consensus and OneTaste\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Sasha Nelson grew up in Berlin and traveled all over the world before landing a corporate job in Sonoma County. She didn’t like her static lifestyle, and heard about OneTaste from friends taking workshops. She wanted the freedom and sexual empowerment it advertised.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She attended an OMing workshop with OneTaste and said their sorority-rush-like efforts to recruit her were “intoxicating” at first. She described the group as “a typical cult vibe, everyone was euphoric and excited and giddy and making friends.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she arrived at her first gathering, “you do this horrifying exercise and all these women are taking off their pants in a warehouse of 200 people, getting stroked in front of everybody,” Nelson said. “My first experience was with a man I had an aversion to the entire weekend, but after I felt really close to him and felt like ‘wow, there’s something really to this.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But as time went on, she became less charmed by the large group events and felt disconnected from the strangers she was having sexual encounters with at the workshops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then in the fall of 2017, she matched with a man named Bill Berndt on Tinder. Text messages shared with KQED show he told her that he was in a sensuality community, and she was curious about it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I had liked the concept that was taught in Nicole [Daedone’s] workshop, but I didn’t like the scene,” Nelson said of the OneTaste event. “I thought, ‘Oh, here’s maybe another way to explore that. Like a little smaller group.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Welcomed Consensus pushed much harder to recruit Nelson, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was hard for me to believe these women would mislead me,” she told KQED. “It was a higher level of recruiting and grooming” than she experienced at the OneTaste workshops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She began traveling to San Francisco for weekly “BenchMarks,” essentially cocktail-party-like recruitment gatherings led by Testerman and women who lived at Welcomed Consensus’ house on Joost in Glen Park.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>BenchMarks were the first step in recruitment. Before each meeting, members would discuss who would be in attendance that night, remind each other to be happy and bubbly and not share any negatives about the group, and ultimately, bring in new members with money to spend, multiple former affiliates told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A primary viewpoint of the group is that fun, turned-on women always enthusiastically say ‘Yes’ to offers,” Nelson told KQED. “By saying, ‘No, thank you,’ you are seen as out of agreement, resistant, or just plain unfun… Nobody wants to be deemed unattractive or unfun.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956150\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956150\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with long hair looks out of a window in a residential setting.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/RS67132_230710-OneTasteChristineSasha-07-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sasha Nelson sits in the home of Christine Talbott Acosta in San Francisco. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Nelson was persuaded to move into the Welcomed Consensus’ San Francisco house in 2018, but left after four months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She was often physically exhausted while living there — something other former members said was common in the early days of living among the Welcomed Consensus. Like sex, food was strictly controlled in the house, and women’s bodies were heavily scrutinized around weight, Nelson remembers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“RJ likes skinny girls, that was one of the unspoken rules,” Nelson said. “You would really be pressured to eat the food being made, yet you were also not allowed to be fat.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another former student named Allyson told KQED she witnessed Testerman, wearing cowboy boots, repeatedly kick a household member who was on the floor. KQED is only using Allyson’s first name due to personal safety concerns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the time Nelson was being groomed by the Welcomed Consensus, OneTaste was booming. It was still edgy, but good marketing helped it inch its way toward mainstream acceptance with \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/15/fashion/15commune.html\">profiles in publications like \u003cem>The New York Times\u003c/em>\u003c/a> — and it made lots of money along the way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Daedone herself was a student with the Welcomed Consensus in the late 1990s and early 2000s, multiple sources told KQED, including a former housemate of hers and a colleague at OneTaste. Talbott Acosta described her mission with OneTaste as attempting to make the courses scalable, startup-style.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Nicole took the Welcomed Consensus information and put her own twist on it. She used a lot of the same stuff, the basic business plan, but did change some of it,” Talbott Acosta said. “Her goal was to bring it to the masses.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘So much social punishment’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>After graduating with a degree in ecology during the COVID-19 pandemic, Nat Jennings, then 23, was eager to get out into a world beyond screens to put it to use. In September 2022, she headed to California from Texas to volunteer with A Madrone Ranch and Gardens, which she found through a website that connects volunteers with organic farms to work in exchange for boarding, called Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jennings signed up to work at the farm — a remote property in rural Siskiyou County owned by the Welcomed Consensus — not knowing anything about the group. These days, she describes the experience as, “accidentally signing up to go live in a sex cult.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956925\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956925\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with glasses inside a room with clothes and chairs and a tall fan.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-02-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nat Jennings stands in her bedroom at A Madrone Ranch and Gardens in Sept. 2022, a property in Klamath River, Siskiyou County, owned by the Welcomed Consensus. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Nat Jennings)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s really hard to realize what is happening, and to leave,” Jennings told KQED. “If I didn’t have friends on the outside, if I didn’t have a car there, I could have been trapped and I could have, like, not believed myself because I was struggling with sleep deprivation, overworking, like all these factors that were just kind of convincing me I was the crazy one.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A few red flags stood out to her during her stay. First was early into her stay when women at the house began insisting that she wear a dress to dinner. When she replied she had come to work and didn’t bring a dress, they gave her one to put on. Jennings said she complied out of pressure, but said the dress felt “horribly inappropriate” and the experience made her feel “very uncomfortable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another day, she went berry picking with one of the house mates, an older man, and he flashed his gun before asking her to go swimming with him and taking off his shirt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was a lot of love bombing and then taking it away, that type of thing,” Jennings said. Love bombing refers to lavishing someone with affection, and usually revoking that kindness later to manipulate them. “There was so much social punishment if you do anything out of line.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11956924\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1501px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11956924\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with glasses holds a plastic container full of blackberries in a wooded area.\" width=\"1501\" height=\"2000\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED.jpg 1501w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED-800x1066.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED-1020x1359.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/07/230731-Nat-Jennings-01-KQED-1153x1536.jpg 1153w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1501px) 100vw, 1501px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nat Jennings holds a container of blackberries she picked near A Madrone Ranch and Gardens in Sept. 2022. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Nat Jennings)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Something felt off. So she and another volunteer in the work-away program dug around online and came across Talbott Acosta’s blog, \u003ca href=\"https://www.truthaboutrj.com/\">TruthAboutRJ.com\u003c/a>, where they saw the faces of several people they were staying with and read stories that started similar to their own — but ended badly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We read all that and had this mutual panic attack like, ‘We have to leave tomorrow. This is ridiculous,’” Jennings said. “So on day 12, we woke up at 4:45 a.m., packed our bags and ran out to our cars.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s unclear exactly how many members are still active with the Welcomed Consensus community. Jennings said at least five people were living at the house while she was there and Talbott Acosta believes two new members were validated in recent years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Talbot Acosta said she reported the group and its ranch to WWOOF, but no action was taken. As of publication, \u003ca href=\"https://wwoofusa.org/en/host/20952-homestead-garden-vegetables-community-ranchlivestock\">the ranch listing was still active on the volunteer farming program’s website\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>WWOOF did not respond to KQED’s requests for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As young women like Jennings have come forward more recently, Talbott Acosta and Nelson fear a new generation of Welcomed Consensus leaders are being elevated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Testerman’s daughter, Ginger Mueller-Testerman, completed a master’s thesis in 2021 titled “\u003ca href=\"https://scholarworks.calstate.edu/downloads/x633f6180\">Clitoral Analysis: Analysis of Pleasure in Contemporary Sex Instruction Materials\u003c/a>” at San Francisco State in Human Sexuality Studies, where she also taught a course. In Spring 2023, Mueller-Testerman taught a critical studies course including topics on gender and sexual identity at the California College of the Arts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Upon hearing the news about Daedone and discovering Mueller-Testerman was teaching a course related to sex, Talbott Acosta contacted SF State and CCA to report personal experiences of abuse and recruiting for the Welcomed Consensus alongside Mueller-Testerman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SF State and CCA also declined to comment on Talbott Acosta’s reports, but both schools confirmed she taught courses there last spring and said she was not signed up to teach this fall. Mueller-Testerman declined to comment when reached by phone.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>California, cults and the Welcomed Consensus\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It took decades before Talbott Acosta and her husband Dennis, who she met at the Welcomed Consensus, to fully cut ties with the group. She said it wasn’t until beginning intensive therapy, and having a total emotional breakdown, that she began to see more clearly the abuse that she encountered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For me, it was learning about trauma and learning about PTSD and getting the mental health care that I needed to start seeing what was really happening.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Poulomi Saha, a UC Berkeley professor who teaches a course called Cults in Popular Culture, said that type of groupthink and pressure that keeps many members inside groups like the Welcomed Consensus is not uncommon in cults or other intentional communities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The first thing you have to ask is ‘Why do people join?’ without diagnosing some kind of brainwashing, mis-recognition or stupidity,” Saha told KQED. “If we begin by believing that followers are already in the wrong, we can’t understand what gets someone somewhere.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These groups draw followers by offering big-ticket items. Bliss. Salvation. Wild financial success. But also things that are big-ticket items that we make mundane like true belonging,” she said. “You also have a structure of authority, and huge financial outlays. People have bought in on every level of their social being. And there’s a leader whose power you actually somewhere really begin to adhere to.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>California is often the backdrop to popular culture’s obsession with cults, from the \u003ca href=\"https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/manson-family-murders-what-need-to-know-180972655/\">Manson Family\u003c/a> to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11705963/do-you-really-want-to-know-one-mans-search-for-family-from-jonestown-and-beyond\">People’s Temple\u003c/a> and more. But there’s been a noticeable shift toward financial exploitation of group members, Saha said, which her research shows took off in the 1980s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Groups like the Welcomed Consensus sold their offerings for thousands of dollars. \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Suit-It-s-hooking-not-sex-training-3055850.php\">One former member, Erwan Davon, even tried to sue Testerman\u003c/a>, court records show, for putting him out of at least $136,000.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Allyson, who worked as a computer programmer before the Welcomed Consensus recruited her, estimated she spent at least $30,000 on courses with the Welcomed Consensus, plus buying a van for their food program. To get OneTaste up and moving, Daedone later convinced her to hand over the $5,000 she had saved in her 401K plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, the Welcomed Consensus ran a nonprofit out of the house called \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/freetheneed/\">Free the Need\u003c/a>, through which it claimed to help distribute surplus groceries to hungry families. But multiple former affiliates that spoke to KQED said most of the donated food was kept to feed members of the Welcomed Consensus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two male sources who were associated with the group told KQED that it was common for leaders to probe recruits about their finances and convince students to pay up. In return, they promised to revolutionize their sex life and relationship to women.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you couldn’t pay, they would find work for you to do to pay off your debts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I refinished the hardwood floors. We wanted to build a subterranean brewery in the backyard, so we literally dug like 15 feet down,” said Dennis Acosta. “Then we realized we were totally insane and covered it all up.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Testerman sold freedom from mainstream power dynamics and markets, but, Saha argues, groups like his often recreate them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You are not outside of the market logic at all. In fact, it’s a place where the market logic is perfected,” said Saha. “How do you draw someone in? Go out and bring four friends.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These days, Talbott Acosta is spreading a different message.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It makes people very uncomfortable. But it is important to talk about,” she said. “It’s the only way to let people know that it exists and that it can happen to anyone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "dublin-womens-prison-faces-class-action-lawsuit-over-sexual-abuse-scandal",
"title": "Dublin Women’s Prison Faces Class-Action Lawsuit Over Sexual Abuse Scandal",
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"headTitle": "Dublin Women’s Prison Faces Class-Action Lawsuit Over Sexual Abuse Scandal | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>Survivors of sexual abuse on Wednesday filed a class-action lawsuit against guards and officials at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11904298/ap-investigation-dublin-womens-prison-fostered-culture-of-abuse\">FCI Dublin\u003c/a>, a federal women’s prison where plaintiffs argue there are inadequate systems for preventing, detecting, investigating and responding to rape and sexual assault at the facility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23911040-ccwp-v-bop-complaint\">putative class-action suit\u003c/a> comes after \u003ca href=\"https://www.ktvu.com/news/2-more-women-sue-3-dublin-prison-officers-for-illegal-sexual-behavior\">nearly a dozen individual lawsuits\u003c/a> were lodged against guards and officials at the facility. Last month, two additional guards who worked at the federal prison, pled guilty to sexually abusing multiple incarcerated women, bringing the total to \u003ca href=\"https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/two-more-dublin-federal-correctional-officers-plead-guilty-sexually-abusing-multiple\">eight staff members at FCI Dublin\u003c/a> who have been charged in the scandal.[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Amaris Montes, attorney, Rights Behind Bars\"]‘Our clients allege that they were forced to engage in various sex acts with officers under threat of retaliation or by being promised basic necessities or special privileges.’[/pullquote]“This litigation shines a light on the systemic nature of the abuse,” said Amaris Montes, an attorney with Rights Behind Bars, one of the law firms representing the eight plaintiffs in the lawsuit. “It was not only the individual officers who were at fault for the abuse, but the whole Bureau of Prisons system where officers at every level literally watched as other officers assaulted incarcerated people and helped to keep survivors silent through retaliation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges that for years, people incarcerated at the low-security women’s prison were subject to rampant and ongoing sexual abuse, including rape and sexual assault, drugging, groping and being forced to take explicit photos. It also claims women incarcerated at the facility were subject to abuse during medical exams and that immigrants were threatened with deportation if they did not comply.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It further alleges that the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) was aware of the problems for decades at FCI Dublin, but that the agency failed to respond to the heinous acts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our clients allege that they were forced to engage in various sex acts with officers under threat of retaliation or by being promised basic necessities or special privileges,” Montes said at a press conference on Wednesday. “Others were forced to act as lookouts while officers sexually abused their friends and cellmates.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuit calls for a jury trial and names the eight individuals charged so far, as well as FCI Dublin Warden Thahesha Jusino, BOP Director Colette Peters and other officers at the facility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges that the prison staff’s sexual abuse of incarcerated people at FCI Dublin violates the Eighth Amendment, prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment, as well as the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003.[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"G.M., survivor, plaintiff\"]‘We are someone’s mom, we are someone’s daughter. We are here to be rehabilitated, but when we are abused, we cannot be.’[/pullquote]One plaintiff in the case is cited as having to remove her clothes while officers masturbated in front of her. Another was forced to strip and dance for an officer who was “well known for trading food and basic goods with incarcerated individuals in exchange for sexual acts,” the complaint reads. Multiple plaintiffs said that officers subjected them to relentless harassment, assault and rape, or that they witnessed such behavior.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are someone’s mom, we are someone’s daughter. We are here to be rehabilitated, but when we are abused, we cannot be,” a plaintiff in the suit named G.M. said in a press release. “We are asking for change, and for these officers and this system to be held accountable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maria, who experienced abuse while incarcerated at FCI Dublin, was sent to solitary confinement for nearly two weeks after a guard who abused her friend was exposed. Maria did not use her last name due to privacy and safety concerns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was abused and I saw my friends abused by guards,” Maria told reporters through a translator on Wednesday. “They were supposed to protect us. I saw them abusing, grabbing and groping.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11958362\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11958362\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person in sunglasses speaks into a microphone in an outdoor setting.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Robin Lucas, who was formerly incarcerated at FCI Dublin, and also a survivor of sexual abuse at the prison, speaks in front of the Federal Courthouse in Oakland about the challenges of changing the violence and culture at the facility. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Robin Lucas, who was formerly incarcerated at FCI Dublin, spoke to reporters on Wednesday about the challenges of changing the violence and culture at the facility, where she also experienced sexual abuse decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1995, Lucas said she was assaulted while placed in the segregated housing unit for men, the facility’s maximum-security confinement. She, along with two others incarcerated at the Dublin prison, sued and reached a $500,000 settlement in 1998.[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Robin Lucas, survivor\"]‘I remember what it was like when I see these young girls get up there. They well up with fear and intimidation and hurt, but there is a drive within them to speak up and say this is not right.’[/pullquote]As part of the settlement, the Bureau of Prisons agreed to no longer house women in the men’s maximum security unit at the Dublin facility. It also required the BOP to set up new training policies for staff and to better inform people who are incarcerated about how to report assault.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But now, almost 30 years later, Lucas said little has changed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I remember what it was like when I see these young girls get up there,” and come forward to report abuses, Lucas told KQED. “They well up with fear and intimidation and hurt, but there is a drive within them to speak up and say this is not right.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11934639/ex-warden-of-dublin-womens-prison-convicted-of-sexually-abusing-inmates\">Five former FCI Dublin staff members were already convicted\u003c/a> of sexually abusing incarcerated women in the Department of Justice’s ongoing investigation into the notorious facility. They include Chaplain James Highhouse, Warden Ray J. Garcia and three correctional officers. A case is still pending for charges against correctional officer Darrell Smith, according to federal officials.[aside label='More on Criminal Justice' tag='criminal-justice']Highhouse was sentenced to 84 months in prison and Garcia was sentenced to a 70-month term.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nakie Nunley of Fairfield, who pleaded guilty in July, was charged with having sex with five victims while working as a supervisor for UNICOR, a call center staffed by women incarcerated at the prison. Nunley threatened to transfer women or strip them of their employment when confronted about the behavior, according to federal officials. He was also charged with lying to federal investigators with the U.S. attorney’s office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Nunley admitted that he told another victim that if she wanted to keep her job at UNICOR, she needed to pull down her underwear and bend over,” \u003ca href=\"https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/two-more-dublin-federal-correctional-officers-plead-guilty-sexually-abusing-multiple\">the U.S. attorney’s office said in a release\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Andrew Jones of Pleasanton, who oversaw the prison’s Food Services Department, also pleaded guilty in July to sexually abusing incarcerated people in multiple places near the FCI Dublin kitchen, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This Office’s ongoing investigation into FCI Dublin has revealed significant findings of wrongdoing by multiple correctional officers at that facility,” said U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey of the Northern District of California in a July press release announcing the latest charges. “The Department of Justice has repeatedly warned that criminal misconduct in the care and safety of incarcerated persons will not be tolerated.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Plaintiffs filed the class-action suit on Wednesday on behalf of all people incarcerated at FCI Dublin, a federal women’s prison.",
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"title": "Dublin Women’s Prison Faces Class-Action Lawsuit Over Sexual Abuse Scandal | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Survivors of sexual abuse on Wednesday filed a class-action lawsuit against guards and officials at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11904298/ap-investigation-dublin-womens-prison-fostered-culture-of-abuse\">FCI Dublin\u003c/a>, a federal women’s prison where plaintiffs argue there are inadequate systems for preventing, detecting, investigating and responding to rape and sexual assault at the facility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23911040-ccwp-v-bop-complaint\">putative class-action suit\u003c/a> comes after \u003ca href=\"https://www.ktvu.com/news/2-more-women-sue-3-dublin-prison-officers-for-illegal-sexual-behavior\">nearly a dozen individual lawsuits\u003c/a> were lodged against guards and officials at the facility. Last month, two additional guards who worked at the federal prison, pled guilty to sexually abusing multiple incarcerated women, bringing the total to \u003ca href=\"https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/two-more-dublin-federal-correctional-officers-plead-guilty-sexually-abusing-multiple\">eight staff members at FCI Dublin\u003c/a> who have been charged in the scandal.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘Our clients allege that they were forced to engage in various sex acts with officers under threat of retaliation or by being promised basic necessities or special privileges.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“This litigation shines a light on the systemic nature of the abuse,” said Amaris Montes, an attorney with Rights Behind Bars, one of the law firms representing the eight plaintiffs in the lawsuit. “It was not only the individual officers who were at fault for the abuse, but the whole Bureau of Prisons system where officers at every level literally watched as other officers assaulted incarcerated people and helped to keep survivors silent through retaliation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges that for years, people incarcerated at the low-security women’s prison were subject to rampant and ongoing sexual abuse, including rape and sexual assault, drugging, groping and being forced to take explicit photos. It also claims women incarcerated at the facility were subject to abuse during medical exams and that immigrants were threatened with deportation if they did not comply.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It further alleges that the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) was aware of the problems for decades at FCI Dublin, but that the agency failed to respond to the heinous acts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our clients allege that they were forced to engage in various sex acts with officers under threat of retaliation or by being promised basic necessities or special privileges,” Montes said at a press conference on Wednesday. “Others were forced to act as lookouts while officers sexually abused their friends and cellmates.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuit calls for a jury trial and names the eight individuals charged so far, as well as FCI Dublin Warden Thahesha Jusino, BOP Director Colette Peters and other officers at the facility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges that the prison staff’s sexual abuse of incarcerated people at FCI Dublin violates the Eighth Amendment, prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment, as well as the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘We are someone’s mom, we are someone’s daughter. We are here to be rehabilitated, but when we are abused, we cannot be.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>One plaintiff in the case is cited as having to remove her clothes while officers masturbated in front of her. Another was forced to strip and dance for an officer who was “well known for trading food and basic goods with incarcerated individuals in exchange for sexual acts,” the complaint reads. Multiple plaintiffs said that officers subjected them to relentless harassment, assault and rape, or that they witnessed such behavior.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are someone’s mom, we are someone’s daughter. We are here to be rehabilitated, but when we are abused, we cannot be,” a plaintiff in the suit named G.M. said in a press release. “We are asking for change, and for these officers and this system to be held accountable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maria, who experienced abuse while incarcerated at FCI Dublin, was sent to solitary confinement for nearly two weeks after a guard who abused her friend was exposed. Maria did not use her last name due to privacy and safety concerns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was abused and I saw my friends abused by guards,” Maria told reporters through a translator on Wednesday. “They were supposed to protect us. I saw them abusing, grabbing and groping.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11958362\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11958362\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person in sunglasses speaks into a microphone in an outdoor setting.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/230816-Dublin-Womens-Prison-Suit-MD-02-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Robin Lucas, who was formerly incarcerated at FCI Dublin, and also a survivor of sexual abuse at the prison, speaks in front of the Federal Courthouse in Oakland about the challenges of changing the violence and culture at the facility. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Robin Lucas, who was formerly incarcerated at FCI Dublin, spoke to reporters on Wednesday about the challenges of changing the violence and culture at the facility, where she also experienced sexual abuse decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1995, Lucas said she was assaulted while placed in the segregated housing unit for men, the facility’s maximum-security confinement. She, along with two others incarcerated at the Dublin prison, sued and reached a $500,000 settlement in 1998.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>As part of the settlement, the Bureau of Prisons agreed to no longer house women in the men’s maximum security unit at the Dublin facility. It also required the BOP to set up new training policies for staff and to better inform people who are incarcerated about how to report assault.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But now, almost 30 years later, Lucas said little has changed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I remember what it was like when I see these young girls get up there,” and come forward to report abuses, Lucas told KQED. “They well up with fear and intimidation and hurt, but there is a drive within them to speak up and say this is not right.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11934639/ex-warden-of-dublin-womens-prison-convicted-of-sexually-abusing-inmates\">Five former FCI Dublin staff members were already convicted\u003c/a> of sexually abusing incarcerated women in the Department of Justice’s ongoing investigation into the notorious facility. They include Chaplain James Highhouse, Warden Ray J. Garcia and three correctional officers. A case is still pending for charges against correctional officer Darrell Smith, according to federal officials.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Highhouse was sentenced to 84 months in prison and Garcia was sentenced to a 70-month term.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nakie Nunley of Fairfield, who pleaded guilty in July, was charged with having sex with five victims while working as a supervisor for UNICOR, a call center staffed by women incarcerated at the prison. Nunley threatened to transfer women or strip them of their employment when confronted about the behavior, according to federal officials. He was also charged with lying to federal investigators with the U.S. attorney’s office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Nunley admitted that he told another victim that if she wanted to keep her job at UNICOR, she needed to pull down her underwear and bend over,” \u003ca href=\"https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/two-more-dublin-federal-correctional-officers-plead-guilty-sexually-abusing-multiple\">the U.S. attorney’s office said in a release\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Andrew Jones of Pleasanton, who oversaw the prison’s Food Services Department, also pleaded guilty in July to sexually abusing incarcerated people in multiple places near the FCI Dublin kitchen, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This Office’s ongoing investigation into FCI Dublin has revealed significant findings of wrongdoing by multiple correctional officers at that facility,” said U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey of the Northern District of California in a July press release announcing the latest charges. “The Department of Justice has repeatedly warned that criminal misconduct in the care and safety of incarcerated persons will not be tolerated.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "A San José Teacher Is Charged With Sexual Abuse. His School District Knew of Alleged Misconduct a Decade Ago",
"headTitle": "A San José Teacher Is Charged With Sexual Abuse. His School District Knew of Alleged Misconduct a Decade Ago | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>A music teacher at a TK–8 school in San José had a history of complaints roughly a decade before he was criminally charged with sexually abusing students last year, records obtained by KQED show.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Israel Santiago, 43, was arrested in November under suspicion of sexually abusing 10 students beginning in 2021 at Adelante Dual Language Academy. He faces 12 charges, including multiple counts of molestation and lewd acts on a child by force.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year was not the first time a student reported being inappropriately touched by Santiago, according to the records provided by the Alum Rock Union Elementary School District \u003ca href=\"https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/24512265/response-to-pra-request-w-documents-05-17-2023-1-3.pdf\">in response to a Public Records Act request\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Students at two other schools in the district, Sheppard Middle School and Painter Elementary, had reported concerns about Santiago’s behavior to school staff from 2012 through 2014, records show. The district did not provide records of any complaints made to the school in the years that followed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One student said Santiago put his hand on her back and rubbed her back while he praised her. Another said Santiago repeatedly hugged her, asked her for hugs and “picked her up, putting his arms under her legs and carrying her.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Mr. Santiago has failed to practice good judgment regarding physical contact with students, in particular, females, and I find that conduct to be inappropriate and unprofessional,” former Sheppard Middle School Principal Imee Almazan wrote at the conclusion of a personnel investigation in 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alum Rock Union Elementary School District didn’t fire Santiago in 2014, despite the investigation documenting multiple complaints of Santiago inappropriately touching students after repeated warnings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead, the district issued a letter of reprimand, and determined he should be transferred to another school in the district.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Lauren Cerri, attorney, Corsiglia McMahon and Allard\"]‘These complaints are being made, and he’s moved to another school. What are those administrators told? Are they even told about the prior complaints?’[/pullquote]Santiago started teaching at Adelante in 2015, according to Cesar Torrico, assistant superintendent of human resources at Alum Rock.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The district superintendent, Hilaria Bauer, declined to answer any questions about past complaints against Santiago and how they were handled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Bauer wrote that the district has since adopted “a clearer and stronger process to prevent these incidents from happening and to encourage any other victims to come forward.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We provided extra training during our monthly safety meeting on Dec. 7 and directed all site administrators to retake the mandated reporter training from the beginning of the year. This also included all staff,” Bauer wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Almazan, who is currently director of social and emotional learning at Alum Rock Union School District, declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘We don’t feel safe’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Records from the school district’s 2014 investigation include some documentation of prior complaints against Santiago from students at Painter Elementary and Sheppard Middle School in 2012 and 2013.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Natalie Hernandez, 22, said she was in Santiago’s band class at Sheppard Middle School in 2012 and had reported his behavior to the principal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She and her friends had been passionate about band and loved playing instruments together, forming a whole community inside the small band room. She mainly played flute, but would dabble in the clarinet and the saxophone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But over time, she said, she became increasingly alarmed by her band teacher.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said Santiago asked her to stay in the band room during a break between classes to practice a piece she could already play with her eyes closed.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Natalie Hernandez, former student, Sheppard Middle School\"]‘I just remember being so angry, and even to this day, I’m so angry. It’s almost as if they forgot that we were kids.’[/pullquote]“He kept adjusting his chair and my chair so our knees could be touching and we’d be really close to each other,” Hernandez said. “I remember I just felt a really big rush of anxiety. I just did not feel comfortable at all.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hernandez said she told the principal, Almazan, how Santiago would only ask female students to stay after class.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I strictly remember telling her we don’t feel safe,” Hernandez said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Santiago remained at the school until 2014. When Hernandez learned he had been transferred to another school in the district, she was furious.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I just remember being so angry, and even to this day, I’m so angry,” Hernandez said. “It’s almost as if they forgot that we were kids.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A father’s written sexual harassment complaint prompts investigation\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The records show that Santiago had been instructed in 2012 not to touch students, particularly female students. But he allegedly continued, and a father filed a written complaint that Santiago sexually harassed his daughter in 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school’s investigation prompted by that complaint included interviews with 15 students, and found “an overall discomfort and/or feeling of insecurity in Mr. Santiago’s band class among female students that were interviewed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Out of nine female students interviewed, seven said they were not comfortable in the classroom with Santiago, and one female student said she had been touched inappropriately by him on multiple occasions. Two students said Santiago walked in on them during a dress fitting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The male students interviewed did not report similar discomfort.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Not sufficiently severe and pervasive’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Almazan also wrote in the report that she had called Child Protective Services to report Santiago in 2014, but was told the allegations against a teacher were “not a reportable CPS case.” CPS offered to take a “courtesy report” that would be forwarded to law enforcement, according to the records.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frank Motta, chief of staff at the Santa Clara County Social Services Agency, declined to comment on any specific cases, but said the agency reports information to law enforcement to pursue criminal investigations when allegations do not involve caregivers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The San José Police Department declined to immediately comment on the past complaints. A police spokesperson previously told \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/south-bay/san-jose-music-teacher-sexual-assault/3085337/\">NBC Bay Area\u003c/a> that an allegation of inappropriate touching was made against Santiago in 2014, but that no charges were filed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately Almazan and the school district found that the conduct was not “sufficiently severe and pervasive” to amount to sexual harassment. In the letter of reprimand, the district instructed Santiago again not to touch students and to take a minimum of two hours of training related to sexual harassment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Based on Principal Almazan’s recommendation to Human Resources and to the Superintendent we have decided to transfer you out of Sheppard Middle School,” the March 10, 2014, letter of reprimand from the district’s chief human resources officer says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Santiago worked at Adelante until he was placed on leave last November soon before his arrest.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Prosecutors investigate recent allegations\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://countyda.sccgov.org/news/news-release/sj-music-teacher-charged-touching-students\">According to Santa Clara County prosecutors, at the beginning of the 2021–2022 school year\u003c/a>, Santiago would take children into his office, hold girls on his lap and hug them tightly to his body. Prosecutors say he cupped female students’ buttocks while hugging them on his lap, and stroked the bare skin of a fourth grader’s back.[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=\"news_11911375,news_11935859,news_11928350\"]Santiago, who has not yet entered a plea, remains in custody in Santa Clara County. His next court hearing is scheduled for July 14. Santiago’s defense attorney, Steven Clark, declined to comment on the criminal case or records showing past complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school’s decision to transfer Santiago may have emboldened his behavior, said Lauren Cerri, an attorney with Corsiglia McMahon and Allard who specializes in childhood sexual abuse cases, and who reviewed the records provided by the school district.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These complaints are being made, and he’s moved to another school,” Cerri said. “What are those administrators told? Are they even told about the prior complaints? Are they told to keep an extra eye on him and supervise him more closely?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cerri is currently representing three women suing the Alum Rock Union Elementary School District for allegedly failing to report abuse by a first grade teacher in the 1970s to authorities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And it appears that this is still happening today in the same district,” Cerri said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The district disputes the allegations in their court filing.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The community seeks answers\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>After Santiago was arrested, the Alum Rock school board passed a resolution “reaffirming the critical role of school personnel as mandated reporters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The resolution outlines that the district must “provide a hard copy of the mandated reporter training presentation to all staff and the school board” and encourage all district staff to attend annual mandated reporter training in person.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11952548\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11952548\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A children and adults circulate beside a playground behind a chainlink fence.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students and staff walk through the playground at Adelante Dual Language Academy in San José on June 8, 2023. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Still, some in the Alum Rock community have voiced frustration during recent school board meetings about a lack of transparency and poor communication by district leadership.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Three substitute principals are currently working at Adelante, according to \u003ca href=\"https://adelante.arusd.org/about-us/new-page\">the district’s website\u003c/a>.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Rosalinda Marquez, former employee, Alum Rock Union Elementary School District\"]‘It just seems par for the course for Alum Rock. They aren’t listening. They don’t know how to listen.’[/pullquote]The principal who reported Santiago, Maria Gutierrez, has been on paid leave since December for an unrelated issue, according to her attorney, \u003ca href=\"https://www.hbblaw.com/dvelez/\">Donald A. Velez\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The one person doing the right thing is being targeted,” Velez said. “You have all these complaints over all this time. It comes to a head. And the person who has only been there a year is the one who is taking the brunt of this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Velez declined to describe the specifics of why the principal is on leave but said it stems from an incident between two students, including a school board member’s family member.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>District superintendent Bauer declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rosalinda Marquez, who worked for the district until this year, said Alum Rock must begin to take concerns from parents seriously. She said she was not surprised to learn how the district had responded to past complaints against Santiago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It hurts my heart that I wasn’t surprised,” Marquez said. “It just seems par for the course for Alum Rock. They aren’t listening. They don’t know how to listen. It just seems like any issue that arises either gets Band-Aid solutions or no solutions at all.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Music teacher Israel Santiago was criminally charged with sexually abusing 10 students at a San José elementary school since 2021, but records obtained by KQED through the Public Records Act have found that Santiago had a history of sexual misconduct complaints in the same school district.",
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"description": "Music teacher Israel Santiago was criminally charged with sexually abusing 10 students at a San José elementary school since 2021, but records obtained by KQED through the Public Records Act have found that Santiago had a history of sexual misconduct complaints in the same school district.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A music teacher at a TK–8 school in San José had a history of complaints roughly a decade before he was criminally charged with sexually abusing students last year, records obtained by KQED show.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Israel Santiago, 43, was arrested in November under suspicion of sexually abusing 10 students beginning in 2021 at Adelante Dual Language Academy. He faces 12 charges, including multiple counts of molestation and lewd acts on a child by force.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year was not the first time a student reported being inappropriately touched by Santiago, according to the records provided by the Alum Rock Union Elementary School District \u003ca href=\"https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/24512265/response-to-pra-request-w-documents-05-17-2023-1-3.pdf\">in response to a Public Records Act request\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Students at two other schools in the district, Sheppard Middle School and Painter Elementary, had reported concerns about Santiago’s behavior to school staff from 2012 through 2014, records show. The district did not provide records of any complaints made to the school in the years that followed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One student said Santiago put his hand on her back and rubbed her back while he praised her. Another said Santiago repeatedly hugged her, asked her for hugs and “picked her up, putting his arms under her legs and carrying her.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Mr. Santiago has failed to practice good judgment regarding physical contact with students, in particular, females, and I find that conduct to be inappropriate and unprofessional,” former Sheppard Middle School Principal Imee Almazan wrote at the conclusion of a personnel investigation in 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alum Rock Union Elementary School District didn’t fire Santiago in 2014, despite the investigation documenting multiple complaints of Santiago inappropriately touching students after repeated warnings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead, the district issued a letter of reprimand, and determined he should be transferred to another school in the district.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘These complaints are being made, and he’s moved to another school. What are those administrators told? Are they even told about the prior complaints?’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Santiago started teaching at Adelante in 2015, according to Cesar Torrico, assistant superintendent of human resources at Alum Rock.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The district superintendent, Hilaria Bauer, declined to answer any questions about past complaints against Santiago and how they were handled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Bauer wrote that the district has since adopted “a clearer and stronger process to prevent these incidents from happening and to encourage any other victims to come forward.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We provided extra training during our monthly safety meeting on Dec. 7 and directed all site administrators to retake the mandated reporter training from the beginning of the year. This also included all staff,” Bauer wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Almazan, who is currently director of social and emotional learning at Alum Rock Union School District, declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘We don’t feel safe’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Records from the school district’s 2014 investigation include some documentation of prior complaints against Santiago from students at Painter Elementary and Sheppard Middle School in 2012 and 2013.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Natalie Hernandez, 22, said she was in Santiago’s band class at Sheppard Middle School in 2012 and had reported his behavior to the principal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She and her friends had been passionate about band and loved playing instruments together, forming a whole community inside the small band room. She mainly played flute, but would dabble in the clarinet and the saxophone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But over time, she said, she became increasingly alarmed by her band teacher.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said Santiago asked her to stay in the band room during a break between classes to practice a piece she could already play with her eyes closed.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“He kept adjusting his chair and my chair so our knees could be touching and we’d be really close to each other,” Hernandez said. “I remember I just felt a really big rush of anxiety. I just did not feel comfortable at all.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hernandez said she told the principal, Almazan, how Santiago would only ask female students to stay after class.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I strictly remember telling her we don’t feel safe,” Hernandez said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Santiago remained at the school until 2014. When Hernandez learned he had been transferred to another school in the district, she was furious.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I just remember being so angry, and even to this day, I’m so angry,” Hernandez said. “It’s almost as if they forgot that we were kids.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A father’s written sexual harassment complaint prompts investigation\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The records show that Santiago had been instructed in 2012 not to touch students, particularly female students. But he allegedly continued, and a father filed a written complaint that Santiago sexually harassed his daughter in 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school’s investigation prompted by that complaint included interviews with 15 students, and found “an overall discomfort and/or feeling of insecurity in Mr. Santiago’s band class among female students that were interviewed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Out of nine female students interviewed, seven said they were not comfortable in the classroom with Santiago, and one female student said she had been touched inappropriately by him on multiple occasions. Two students said Santiago walked in on them during a dress fitting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The male students interviewed did not report similar discomfort.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Not sufficiently severe and pervasive’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Almazan also wrote in the report that she had called Child Protective Services to report Santiago in 2014, but was told the allegations against a teacher were “not a reportable CPS case.” CPS offered to take a “courtesy report” that would be forwarded to law enforcement, according to the records.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frank Motta, chief of staff at the Santa Clara County Social Services Agency, declined to comment on any specific cases, but said the agency reports information to law enforcement to pursue criminal investigations when allegations do not involve caregivers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The San José Police Department declined to immediately comment on the past complaints. A police spokesperson previously told \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/south-bay/san-jose-music-teacher-sexual-assault/3085337/\">NBC Bay Area\u003c/a> that an allegation of inappropriate touching was made against Santiago in 2014, but that no charges were filed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately Almazan and the school district found that the conduct was not “sufficiently severe and pervasive” to amount to sexual harassment. In the letter of reprimand, the district instructed Santiago again not to touch students and to take a minimum of two hours of training related to sexual harassment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Based on Principal Almazan’s recommendation to Human Resources and to the Superintendent we have decided to transfer you out of Sheppard Middle School,” the March 10, 2014, letter of reprimand from the district’s chief human resources officer says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Santiago worked at Adelante until he was placed on leave last November soon before his arrest.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Prosecutors investigate recent allegations\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://countyda.sccgov.org/news/news-release/sj-music-teacher-charged-touching-students\">According to Santa Clara County prosecutors, at the beginning of the 2021–2022 school year\u003c/a>, Santiago would take children into his office, hold girls on his lap and hug them tightly to his body. Prosecutors say he cupped female students’ buttocks while hugging them on his lap, and stroked the bare skin of a fourth grader’s back.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Santiago, who has not yet entered a plea, remains in custody in Santa Clara County. His next court hearing is scheduled for July 14. Santiago’s defense attorney, Steven Clark, declined to comment on the criminal case or records showing past complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school’s decision to transfer Santiago may have emboldened his behavior, said Lauren Cerri, an attorney with Corsiglia McMahon and Allard who specializes in childhood sexual abuse cases, and who reviewed the records provided by the school district.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These complaints are being made, and he’s moved to another school,” Cerri said. “What are those administrators told? Are they even told about the prior complaints? Are they told to keep an extra eye on him and supervise him more closely?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cerri is currently representing three women suing the Alum Rock Union Elementary School District for allegedly failing to report abuse by a first grade teacher in the 1970s to authorities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And it appears that this is still happening today in the same district,” Cerri said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The district disputes the allegations in their court filing.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The community seeks answers\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>After Santiago was arrested, the Alum Rock school board passed a resolution “reaffirming the critical role of school personnel as mandated reporters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The resolution outlines that the district must “provide a hard copy of the mandated reporter training presentation to all staff and the school board” and encourage all district staff to attend annual mandated reporter training in person.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11952548\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11952548\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A children and adults circulate beside a playground behind a chainlink fence.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/06/RS66174_20230608_ksuzuki_adelanteschool-007-KQED-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students and staff walk through the playground at Adelante Dual Language Academy in San José on June 8, 2023. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Still, some in the Alum Rock community have voiced frustration during recent school board meetings about a lack of transparency and poor communication by district leadership.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Three substitute principals are currently working at Adelante, according to \u003ca href=\"https://adelante.arusd.org/about-us/new-page\">the district’s website\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The principal who reported Santiago, Maria Gutierrez, has been on paid leave since December for an unrelated issue, according to her attorney, \u003ca href=\"https://www.hbblaw.com/dvelez/\">Donald A. Velez\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The one person doing the right thing is being targeted,” Velez said. “You have all these complaints over all this time. It comes to a head. And the person who has only been there a year is the one who is taking the brunt of this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Velez declined to describe the specifics of why the principal is on leave but said it stems from an incident between two students, including a school board member’s family member.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>District superintendent Bauer declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rosalinda Marquez, who worked for the district until this year, said Alum Rock must begin to take concerns from parents seriously. She said she was not surprised to learn how the district had responded to past complaints against Santiago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It hurts my heart that I wasn’t surprised,” Marquez said. “It just seems par for the course for Alum Rock. They aren’t listening. They don’t know how to listen. It just seems like any issue that arises either gets Band-Aid solutions or no solutions at all.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>A track coach at Miramonte High School in Orinda was removed from employment last fall following allegations that he had sexual relationships with multiple former students he had coached, records obtained by KQED show.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tristan Tool, founder of Orinda Fitness, according to the organization’s website, was dismissed from his job with the school district in October, on the same day an alum sent an email to school administrators and the athletic director detailing the allegations. Records show his employment contract with the district was “at will” and that he could be “terminated at any time with or without cause.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The alum claimed the sexual relationship with Tool began after graduation, just a few months after they had turned 18, and that Tool had groomed them in high school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.rainn.org/news/grooming-know-warning-signs\">Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN)\u003c/a>, grooming can include manipulative behaviors used to gain access to victims and coerce them to agree to abusive conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“During our relationship, Tristan admitted to having sexual relationships with two other graduates of Miramonte High School that also competed on the Track and Field team, and were directly coached by him,” the alum, whose name is redacted in the records, writes in the Oct. 25 email to school officials. “I believe he is dangerous to the children he is coaching as he has shown a pattern of developing inappropriate relationships with athletes he has coached in the past.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The email to the school does not indicate when the alleged sexual relationships with the other former students may have occurred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tool did not respond to requests for comment on the allegations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Acalanes Union High School District Superintendent John Nickerson did not comment on the claims against Tool, but said in an email to KQED, “All disclosable records were released in response to your [California Public Records Act request] regarding Tool. A formal investigation was completed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Billie-Jo Grant, chief operating officer of McGrath Training Solutions, which provides training to improve safety in schools, said complaints against school employees should be thoroughly investigated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Abuse and misconduct is not something that happens all of a sudden,” Grant said. “That power relationship between a teacher and a student doesn’t go away the day that they graduate as well as the grooming or bread crumbs that would have been in place prior to that graduation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Grant said schools can investigate how the relationship developed or occurred to prevent it from happening to other students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What was the culture that allowed this to occur, and do we have good policies in place? Have we done proper training for our staff and our students and our administrative team?” Grant said, citing questions schools can ask when similar complaints are made.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The records shared with KQED in response to a public record request with the school district also include an email from another alum, expressing disappointment in the way the school handled “the allegations behind … Tool’s release as head coach.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was no effort to contact past athletes, and I therefore heard the news through rumor weeks after it had occurred,” the alum wrote. “It hurts those who have suffered to not have the truth out there. This cannot be swept under the rug.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is not the first time the Acalanes Union High School District has had to contend with allegations of misconduct by employees. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11935859/a-shot-at-justice-lawsuits-mount-over-sexual-abuse-in-california-schools-as-end-of-year-deadline-approaches\">In December, the school and district were sued\u003c/a> by three former students who say the school failed to investigate reports of harassment and assault against an English teacher, Mark Christopher Litton, more than a decade ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Litton was sentenced to prison in 2010 after pleading no contest to sexual abuse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A state law, AB 218, went into effect in 2020 and, among other changes, opened a three-year window for victims of childhood sexual abuse to sue school districts or other institutions regardless of how long ago the alleged abuse occurred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to court filings, an attorney for the district has argued that AB 218 violates the state constitution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The records shared by the school district with KQED also show that an additional alum, who is not a plaintiff in the lawsuit, had complained to the school about Litton’s behavior months before his arrest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In particular he would kiss the top of my head, hug me tightly for extended periods of time and he touched my legs,” the former student wrote in a handwritten note dated April 2009. “At the time I was charmed and flattered. It disturbs me a great deal to write this down.”\u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\n\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11942600\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11942600 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-800x458.png\" alt='An image of a handwritten message that begins, \"I was a student at Miramonte a few years ago and recently graduated.\"' width=\"800\" height=\"458\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-800x458.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-1020x584.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-160x92.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-1536x880.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte.png 1540w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A Miramonte High School alum reported inappropriate behavior by English teacher Mark Christopher Litton in April 2009, records obtained by KQED show.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The next hearing related to the civil case is scheduled for April.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s certainly upsetting that the school seems to continue to employ sexual predators,” Jessica Dayton, an attorney representing the plaintiffs in the suit, said after reviewing the records.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dayton added, however, that she was encouraged to see that the school appeared to swiftly address the alum’s complaint against Tool, in contrast to how officials responded to her clients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“From what I could tell, I was pleased to see [the school] received one complaint and they took swift action,” she said. “That was very heartening to see.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "A track coach at Miramonte High School in Orinda was removed from employment last fall following allegations that he had sexual relationships with multiple former students he had coached, records obtained by KQED show.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A track coach at Miramonte High School in Orinda was removed from employment last fall following allegations that he had sexual relationships with multiple former students he had coached, records obtained by KQED show.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tristan Tool, founder of Orinda Fitness, according to the organization’s website, was dismissed from his job with the school district in October, on the same day an alum sent an email to school administrators and the athletic director detailing the allegations. Records show his employment contract with the district was “at will” and that he could be “terminated at any time with or without cause.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The alum claimed the sexual relationship with Tool began after graduation, just a few months after they had turned 18, and that Tool had groomed them in high school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.rainn.org/news/grooming-know-warning-signs\">Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN)\u003c/a>, grooming can include manipulative behaviors used to gain access to victims and coerce them to agree to abusive conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“During our relationship, Tristan admitted to having sexual relationships with two other graduates of Miramonte High School that also competed on the Track and Field team, and were directly coached by him,” the alum, whose name is redacted in the records, writes in the Oct. 25 email to school officials. “I believe he is dangerous to the children he is coaching as he has shown a pattern of developing inappropriate relationships with athletes he has coached in the past.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The email to the school does not indicate when the alleged sexual relationships with the other former students may have occurred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tool did not respond to requests for comment on the allegations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Acalanes Union High School District Superintendent John Nickerson did not comment on the claims against Tool, but said in an email to KQED, “All disclosable records were released in response to your [California Public Records Act request] regarding Tool. A formal investigation was completed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Billie-Jo Grant, chief operating officer of McGrath Training Solutions, which provides training to improve safety in schools, said complaints against school employees should be thoroughly investigated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Abuse and misconduct is not something that happens all of a sudden,” Grant said. “That power relationship between a teacher and a student doesn’t go away the day that they graduate as well as the grooming or bread crumbs that would have been in place prior to that graduation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Grant said schools can investigate how the relationship developed or occurred to prevent it from happening to other students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What was the culture that allowed this to occur, and do we have good policies in place? Have we done proper training for our staff and our students and our administrative team?” Grant said, citing questions schools can ask when similar complaints are made.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The records shared with KQED in response to a public record request with the school district also include an email from another alum, expressing disappointment in the way the school handled “the allegations behind … Tool’s release as head coach.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was no effort to contact past athletes, and I therefore heard the news through rumor weeks after it had occurred,” the alum wrote. “It hurts those who have suffered to not have the truth out there. This cannot be swept under the rug.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is not the first time the Acalanes Union High School District has had to contend with allegations of misconduct by employees. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11935859/a-shot-at-justice-lawsuits-mount-over-sexual-abuse-in-california-schools-as-end-of-year-deadline-approaches\">In December, the school and district were sued\u003c/a> by three former students who say the school failed to investigate reports of harassment and assault against an English teacher, Mark Christopher Litton, more than a decade ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Litton was sentenced to prison in 2010 after pleading no contest to sexual abuse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A state law, AB 218, went into effect in 2020 and, among other changes, opened a three-year window for victims of childhood sexual abuse to sue school districts or other institutions regardless of how long ago the alleged abuse occurred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to court filings, an attorney for the district has argued that AB 218 violates the state constitution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The records shared by the school district with KQED also show that an additional alum, who is not a plaintiff in the lawsuit, had complained to the school about Litton’s behavior months before his arrest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In particular he would kiss the top of my head, hug me tightly for extended periods of time and he touched my legs,” the former student wrote in a handwritten note dated April 2009. “At the time I was charmed and flattered. It disturbs me a great deal to write this down.”\u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\n\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11942600\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11942600 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-800x458.png\" alt='An image of a handwritten message that begins, \"I was a student at Miramonte a few years ago and recently graduated.\"' width=\"800\" height=\"458\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-800x458.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-1020x584.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-160x92.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte-1536x880.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Miramonte.png 1540w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A Miramonte High School alum reported inappropriate behavior by English teacher Mark Christopher Litton in April 2009, records obtained by KQED show.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The next hearing related to the civil case is scheduled for April.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s certainly upsetting that the school seems to continue to employ sexual predators,” Jessica Dayton, an attorney representing the plaintiffs in the suit, said after reviewing the records.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dayton added, however, that she was encouraged to see that the school appeared to swiftly address the alum’s complaint against Tool, in contrast to how officials responded to her clients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“From what I could tell, I was pleased to see [the school] received one complaint and they took swift action,” she said. “That was very heartening to see.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "California Colleges Experiment With Restorative Justice in Sexual Assault Cases",
"headTitle": "California Colleges Experiment With Restorative Justice in Sexual Assault Cases | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>When a sexual assault survivor walks into Alexandra Fulcher’s office at Occidental College, it’s the first step in a process fraught with consequences for both the survivor and the accused.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If Fulcher, the school’s Title IX director, launches an official investigation, the survivor could be asked to recount their trauma and cross-examined about it in a live hearing. Their alleged assaulter could be expelled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But for the past year, survivors at Occidental have had another option. They can participate in a restorative justice conference with the person who harmed them, in which that person hears about the impact of their actions, takes responsibility and commits to a plan to help repair the harm — and prevent it from happening again.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Alexandra Fulcher, Title IX director, Occidental College\"]‘This age group, at least at Oxy, is less interested in punitive options.’[/pullquote]The conferences draw on a long tradition of restorative justice, a philosophy that eschews punishment in favor of coming up with collective solutions to address violence and harm within a community.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A handful of California colleges have recently begun using restorative justice in cases of sexual assault and harassment, or are seriously considering it. And Fulcher said it’s a path that an increasing number of survivors at Occidental are choosing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This age group, at least at Oxy, is less interested in punitive options,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One argument for making restorative justice available is that it may encourage more survivors to come forward. An overwhelming majority of survivors of campus sexual violence never file a report, and of those that do, few choose to pursue disciplinary action, said David Karp, director of the Center for Restorative Justice at the University of San Diego.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Title IX rules passed under the Trump administration made the formal complaint process less attractive for sexual assault survivors by requiring that they be cross-examined in live hearings, while at the same time giving schools more flexibility to pursue informal resolutions, Karp said. (The Biden administration has proposed new rules that would give colleges flexibility in whether to require cross-examination.)[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=\"news_11935859,news_11921799,news_11911375\"]Both of those changes helped spur interest in restorative justice, he said — including at his own campus, which is currently in its first year of offering restorative justice for Title IX cases.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It seems pretty clear that there’s student demand and that Title IX administrators are really dissatisfied with the current options and would like to see the options expand,” he said. “There’s some legitimate worry about bad implementation or retraumatization and reasons why we should be careful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/college-beat-higher-education/2022/04/california-state-university-sexual-harassment/\">sexual harassment scandal\u003c/a> at California State University this year that led to the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2022/02/cal-state-chancellor-resigns/\">resignation of the university’s chancellor\u003c/a> and numerous reports of campus administrators \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/newsletter/2022-12-15/sexual-violence-harassment-racism-and-transphobia-csus-maritime-academy-essential-california\">mishandling Title IX cases\u003c/a> has focused attention on \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/college-beat-higher-education/2022/09/sexual-assault-support-advocates/\">how California colleges resolve such cases\u003c/a>. The federal civil rights law, which turned 50 this year, protects students from sex-based discrimination in schools, including sexual violence. Meanwhile, an influential committee of lawmakers and judges earlier this month recommended that the state give all \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2022/12/northern-california-earthquake-safety-debate/\">crime victims the right to participate in restorative justice programs\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Preparing a successful restorative justice conference — also known as a restorative justice circle — can take months, said René Rivera, a facilitator for the Ahimsa Collective, a nonprofit that conducts them for Occidental students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>First, both parties must agree to participate. The facilitators meet separately with both parties, making sure they have support systems in place — therapists, friends, family. The survivor decides what they want the outcome of the circle to be, and the person who acknowledges causing harm starts to face up to what they’ve done. The accused is often asked to write a letter to the survivor, which may never be read to them, but can help the accused sort out their own feelings and take accountability before addressing the survivor face-to-face.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It can take a long time to get to a place where everyone feels ready to meet each other and listen to each other,” said Rivera. “We as facilitators need to feel confident that there will not be more harm in bringing these two people together.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The circle, which usually lasts several hours, is not over until the accused has made an apology and the survivor is able to ask any questions of the accused. The person who’s caused the harm then takes the steps the survivor has requested, which could include things like getting therapy, or quitting an extracurricular activity so the survivor doesn’t have to run into them on campus.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Gabi Jeakle, student, Loyola Marymount University\"]‘What makes restorative justice work is that it’s addressing a deep systemic and historical prejudice that a lot of wrongdoings happen because of systemic oppression.’[/pullquote]Nationally, Rutgers University in New Jersey has been using restorative justice since 2016 — first to treat less-serious incidents such as alcohol violations and later in Title IX cases. Amy Miele, the university’s associate director of student affairs, compliance and Title IX, vividly remembers the first restorative justice conference she organized in a sexual assault case.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The student who had been assaulted chose restorative justice because “she did not want another man of color with a disciplinary record,” Miele said. “She said, ‘I want healing and justice and to be able to move on from this, I have a lot of questions I want answered, and I don’t feel comfortable going up to him on my own.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The parties met in a conference room, Miele said, sitting around a table stocked with water bottles, tissues, drawing paper, pens and snacks. But within a couple minutes, both students erupted with rage as the accused person grappled with the reality of what he had done, and the harmed person confronted her assaulter for the first time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Miele and her team took a pause, allowing both students to calm down and giving them stress balls and water bottles to hold for the rest of the conference. Returning to the circle relaxed and prepared, the accused did something no one was expecting — he said, “I’m signing,” apologized and accepted full responsibility for his actions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In that moment when he looked them in the eyes and said, ‘I’m sorry,’ it was as if we could all breathe again, like the fog lifted,” Miele said. The survivor told Miele the process had restored her faith in humanity, Miele said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Evidence of success\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>While there’s little data available about the effectiveness of restorative justice in preventing future sexual assaults, some studies of youth convicted of other crimes have shown that \u003ca href=\"https://www.capolicylab.org/impacts-of-make-it-right-program-on-recidivism/\">those who participate in restorative justice conferences are less likely to be rearrested\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a survey gauging Rutgers’ students’ satisfaction with the restorative justice process, one student accused of assault said, “The explorations of mine and (survivor’s) perspectives was done very well. I was shocked at times to hear things I had never even thought of.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The conference “showed me a game plan that I could follow to alleviate the harm done to (Complainant) and to better myself,” another wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides having the potential to increase reporting of sexual assaults, restorative justice is also a rejection of a racist criminal justice system in favor of something more equitable, said Domale Dube Keys, a former lecturer at the University of California Los Angeles who wrote a paper recommending that colleges offer restorative justice in Title IX cases.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Alexandra Fulcher, Title IX director, Occidental College\"]‘In terms of the parties’ satisfaction with the (restorative justice) process, it is leaps and bounds more than our typical investigation and hearing process.’[/pullquote]“A restorative justice approach really is a way of recognizing that if we keep on this track of, ‘We need to police, we need to do this law-and-order approach to sexual violence,’ it’s people of color and gender non-conforming people that are going to suffer,” said Keys. “They are going to have less resources to go the legal route, less public support when it comes to believing their stories. It’s a way of recognizing that our system is flawed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some Indigenous tribes have been practicing forms of restorative justice for generations. So when professors on Cal Poly Humboldt’s sexual assault prevention committee were considering using restorative justice for sexual misconduct, they took inspiration from the local Yurok tribe, whose members had experience using the practice to heal after domestic violence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In our community, the connections between us are so thick, when something bad happens to one of us, we all experience it in some way,” Blythe George, a Yurok tribal member and sociology professor at UC Merced, said in a presentation at Cal Poly Humboldt in April.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When a tribal member is banished, she said, “their songs go with them, the teachings that their parents and grandparents took the time to teach them … and that’s why it’s so important for us to have this restorative justice component, because we are actively reclaiming our people from a system that has done nothing but try to take us or kill us for the better part of centuries now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Fair to survivors?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>But critics of using restorative justice for campus sexual assault cases say that the power dynamics are different.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What makes restorative justice work is that it’s addressing a deep systemic and historical prejudice that a lot of wrongdoings happen because of systemic oppression,” said Gabi Jeakle, a student at Loyola Marymount University who has worked to improve the university’s Title IX resources and is herself a survivor. But statistically speaking, she said, much sexual assault happens at the hands of historically privileged people. “It’s oftentimes white men in fraternities harming women. It’s important to look at that context and say that’s not the same argument as someone who has been a victim of the school-to-prison pipeline.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeakle acknowledged that for the colleges that are trying this, survivors get to choose whether to pursue restorative justice or a traditional investigation. But when you’ve recently undergone trauma, she said, “it can be difficult to know what you need.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11936490\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11936490\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A young white woman with brown braided hair wearing a sweater looks at the camera.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy.jpg 1568w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Loyola Marymount University student Gabi Jeakle poses for a portrait at her home in Seattle, Washington on Dec. 23, 2022. \u003ccite>(David Ryder/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Federal law bars restorative justice in cases where a professor has assaulted or harassed a student. And potential power differentials between survivor and accused have also surfaced as an issue at Cal Poly Humboldt, where Maxwell Schnurer, a communications professor who chairs the university’s sexual assault prevention committee, said he’s concerned that restorative justice could lead to a “survivor being asked to take care of someone who had harmed them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Committee members have received training in restorative justice but said they haven’t yet decided whether it could work on their campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At UC Berkeley, restorative justice advocates were developing a separate pathway for handling cases outside the university’s Title IX office, said Julie Shackford-Bradley, director of the university’s Restorative Justice Center.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But they soon ran into a pitfall: A key tenet of restorative justice conferences is confidentiality. But most university employees — including those who would be running the conferences — are mandatory reporters, meaning that by law, they must tell the Title IX coordinator if they hear of any sexual harassment or assault happening on campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The center ended up scrapping the plan, Shackford-Bradley said, at least until the legal issues can be resolved.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mandatory reporting has not been an issue at Occidental, said Fulcher, since any cases that are referred to the Ahimsa Collective have already been reported to the university’s Title IX office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In terms of the parties’ satisfaction with the (restorative justice) process, it is leaps and bounds more than our typical investigation and hearing process,” Fulcher said — in part because restorative justice gives both survivor and respondent more control over the outcome.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Amy Miele, associate director of student affairs, Occidental College\"]‘In that moment when he looked them in the eyes and said, ‘I’m sorry,’ it was as if we could all breathe again, like the fog lifted.’[/pullquote]Rivera, the facilitator, said that Occidental’s experiment with restorative justice shows that “there’s an alternative (to punishment) and the alternative is to have a conversation that is actually as healing [as] possible for both parties, and where the person who has caused the harm is gonna be treated as a full human being in that process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s something that personally gives me a lot of hope. If we can do that on college campuses, it feels so much more possible to start to have those kinds of alternatives in other areas.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even at California campuses where restorative justice conferences aren’t taking place, advocates for survivors are going beyond traditional Title IX investigations, finding ways to redress harm, involve the community and prevent future assaults.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC Berkeley offers survivor circles, in which students can share their stories and build community with other sexual assault survivors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And at Loyola Marymount, Jeakle is getting fraternities to contribute to a fund that supports survivors of sexual assault who need help with travel and medical expenses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You don’t want to forgive the entire institution because one individual apologizes,” she said. “Asking people to be part of a cultural shift is more important.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Some California colleges are responding to campus sexual assault and harassment with restorative justice: a process that brings together the student who was harmed, the person who harmed them and the community to seek solutions.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>When a sexual assault survivor walks into Alexandra Fulcher’s office at Occidental College, it’s the first step in a process fraught with consequences for both the survivor and the accused.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If Fulcher, the school’s Title IX director, launches an official investigation, the survivor could be asked to recount their trauma and cross-examined about it in a live hearing. Their alleged assaulter could be expelled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But for the past year, survivors at Occidental have had another option. They can participate in a restorative justice conference with the person who harmed them, in which that person hears about the impact of their actions, takes responsibility and commits to a plan to help repair the harm — and prevent it from happening again.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The conferences draw on a long tradition of restorative justice, a philosophy that eschews punishment in favor of coming up with collective solutions to address violence and harm within a community.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A handful of California colleges have recently begun using restorative justice in cases of sexual assault and harassment, or are seriously considering it. And Fulcher said it’s a path that an increasing number of survivors at Occidental are choosing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This age group, at least at Oxy, is less interested in punitive options,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One argument for making restorative justice available is that it may encourage more survivors to come forward. An overwhelming majority of survivors of campus sexual violence never file a report, and of those that do, few choose to pursue disciplinary action, said David Karp, director of the Center for Restorative Justice at the University of San Diego.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Title IX rules passed under the Trump administration made the formal complaint process less attractive for sexual assault survivors by requiring that they be cross-examined in live hearings, while at the same time giving schools more flexibility to pursue informal resolutions, Karp said. (The Biden administration has proposed new rules that would give colleges flexibility in whether to require cross-examination.)\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Both of those changes helped spur interest in restorative justice, he said — including at his own campus, which is currently in its first year of offering restorative justice for Title IX cases.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It seems pretty clear that there’s student demand and that Title IX administrators are really dissatisfied with the current options and would like to see the options expand,” he said. “There’s some legitimate worry about bad implementation or retraumatization and reasons why we should be careful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/college-beat-higher-education/2022/04/california-state-university-sexual-harassment/\">sexual harassment scandal\u003c/a> at California State University this year that led to the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2022/02/cal-state-chancellor-resigns/\">resignation of the university’s chancellor\u003c/a> and numerous reports of campus administrators \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/newsletter/2022-12-15/sexual-violence-harassment-racism-and-transphobia-csus-maritime-academy-essential-california\">mishandling Title IX cases\u003c/a> has focused attention on \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/college-beat-higher-education/2022/09/sexual-assault-support-advocates/\">how California colleges resolve such cases\u003c/a>. The federal civil rights law, which turned 50 this year, protects students from sex-based discrimination in schools, including sexual violence. Meanwhile, an influential committee of lawmakers and judges earlier this month recommended that the state give all \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2022/12/northern-california-earthquake-safety-debate/\">crime victims the right to participate in restorative justice programs\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Preparing a successful restorative justice conference — also known as a restorative justice circle — can take months, said René Rivera, a facilitator for the Ahimsa Collective, a nonprofit that conducts them for Occidental students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>First, both parties must agree to participate. The facilitators meet separately with both parties, making sure they have support systems in place — therapists, friends, family. The survivor decides what they want the outcome of the circle to be, and the person who acknowledges causing harm starts to face up to what they’ve done. The accused is often asked to write a letter to the survivor, which may never be read to them, but can help the accused sort out their own feelings and take accountability before addressing the survivor face-to-face.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It can take a long time to get to a place where everyone feels ready to meet each other and listen to each other,” said Rivera. “We as facilitators need to feel confident that there will not be more harm in bringing these two people together.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The circle, which usually lasts several hours, is not over until the accused has made an apology and the survivor is able to ask any questions of the accused. The person who’s caused the harm then takes the steps the survivor has requested, which could include things like getting therapy, or quitting an extracurricular activity so the survivor doesn’t have to run into them on campus.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Nationally, Rutgers University in New Jersey has been using restorative justice since 2016 — first to treat less-serious incidents such as alcohol violations and later in Title IX cases. Amy Miele, the university’s associate director of student affairs, compliance and Title IX, vividly remembers the first restorative justice conference she organized in a sexual assault case.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The student who had been assaulted chose restorative justice because “she did not want another man of color with a disciplinary record,” Miele said. “She said, ‘I want healing and justice and to be able to move on from this, I have a lot of questions I want answered, and I don’t feel comfortable going up to him on my own.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The parties met in a conference room, Miele said, sitting around a table stocked with water bottles, tissues, drawing paper, pens and snacks. But within a couple minutes, both students erupted with rage as the accused person grappled with the reality of what he had done, and the harmed person confronted her assaulter for the first time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Miele and her team took a pause, allowing both students to calm down and giving them stress balls and water bottles to hold for the rest of the conference. Returning to the circle relaxed and prepared, the accused did something no one was expecting — he said, “I’m signing,” apologized and accepted full responsibility for his actions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In that moment when he looked them in the eyes and said, ‘I’m sorry,’ it was as if we could all breathe again, like the fog lifted,” Miele said. The survivor told Miele the process had restored her faith in humanity, Miele said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Evidence of success\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>While there’s little data available about the effectiveness of restorative justice in preventing future sexual assaults, some studies of youth convicted of other crimes have shown that \u003ca href=\"https://www.capolicylab.org/impacts-of-make-it-right-program-on-recidivism/\">those who participate in restorative justice conferences are less likely to be rearrested\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a survey gauging Rutgers’ students’ satisfaction with the restorative justice process, one student accused of assault said, “The explorations of mine and (survivor’s) perspectives was done very well. I was shocked at times to hear things I had never even thought of.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The conference “showed me a game plan that I could follow to alleviate the harm done to (Complainant) and to better myself,” another wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides having the potential to increase reporting of sexual assaults, restorative justice is also a rejection of a racist criminal justice system in favor of something more equitable, said Domale Dube Keys, a former lecturer at the University of California Los Angeles who wrote a paper recommending that colleges offer restorative justice in Title IX cases.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“A restorative justice approach really is a way of recognizing that if we keep on this track of, ‘We need to police, we need to do this law-and-order approach to sexual violence,’ it’s people of color and gender non-conforming people that are going to suffer,” said Keys. “They are going to have less resources to go the legal route, less public support when it comes to believing their stories. It’s a way of recognizing that our system is flawed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some Indigenous tribes have been practicing forms of restorative justice for generations. So when professors on Cal Poly Humboldt’s sexual assault prevention committee were considering using restorative justice for sexual misconduct, they took inspiration from the local Yurok tribe, whose members had experience using the practice to heal after domestic violence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In our community, the connections between us are so thick, when something bad happens to one of us, we all experience it in some way,” Blythe George, a Yurok tribal member and sociology professor at UC Merced, said in a presentation at Cal Poly Humboldt in April.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When a tribal member is banished, she said, “their songs go with them, the teachings that their parents and grandparents took the time to teach them … and that’s why it’s so important for us to have this restorative justice component, because we are actively reclaiming our people from a system that has done nothing but try to take us or kill us for the better part of centuries now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Fair to survivors?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>But critics of using restorative justice for campus sexual assault cases say that the power dynamics are different.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What makes restorative justice work is that it’s addressing a deep systemic and historical prejudice that a lot of wrongdoings happen because of systemic oppression,” said Gabi Jeakle, a student at Loyola Marymount University who has worked to improve the university’s Title IX resources and is herself a survivor. But statistically speaking, she said, much sexual assault happens at the hands of historically privileged people. “It’s oftentimes white men in fraternities harming women. It’s important to look at that context and say that’s not the same argument as someone who has been a victim of the school-to-prison pipeline.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeakle acknowledged that for the colleges that are trying this, survivors get to choose whether to pursue restorative justice or a traditional investigation. But when you’ve recently undergone trauma, she said, “it can be difficult to know what you need.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11936490\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11936490\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A young white woman with brown braided hair wearing a sweater looks at the camera.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/122322-gina-jeakle-2-DR-CM-copy.jpg 1568w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Loyola Marymount University student Gabi Jeakle poses for a portrait at her home in Seattle, Washington on Dec. 23, 2022. \u003ccite>(David Ryder/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Federal law bars restorative justice in cases where a professor has assaulted or harassed a student. And potential power differentials between survivor and accused have also surfaced as an issue at Cal Poly Humboldt, where Maxwell Schnurer, a communications professor who chairs the university’s sexual assault prevention committee, said he’s concerned that restorative justice could lead to a “survivor being asked to take care of someone who had harmed them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Committee members have received training in restorative justice but said they haven’t yet decided whether it could work on their campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At UC Berkeley, restorative justice advocates were developing a separate pathway for handling cases outside the university’s Title IX office, said Julie Shackford-Bradley, director of the university’s Restorative Justice Center.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But they soon ran into a pitfall: A key tenet of restorative justice conferences is confidentiality. But most university employees — including those who would be running the conferences — are mandatory reporters, meaning that by law, they must tell the Title IX coordinator if they hear of any sexual harassment or assault happening on campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The center ended up scrapping the plan, Shackford-Bradley said, at least until the legal issues can be resolved.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mandatory reporting has not been an issue at Occidental, said Fulcher, since any cases that are referred to the Ahimsa Collective have already been reported to the university’s Title IX office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In terms of the parties’ satisfaction with the (restorative justice) process, it is leaps and bounds more than our typical investigation and hearing process,” Fulcher said — in part because restorative justice gives both survivor and respondent more control over the outcome.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Rivera, the facilitator, said that Occidental’s experiment with restorative justice shows that “there’s an alternative (to punishment) and the alternative is to have a conversation that is actually as healing [as] possible for both parties, and where the person who has caused the harm is gonna be treated as a full human being in that process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s something that personally gives me a lot of hope. If we can do that on college campuses, it feels so much more possible to start to have those kinds of alternatives in other areas.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even at California campuses where restorative justice conferences aren’t taking place, advocates for survivors are going beyond traditional Title IX investigations, finding ways to redress harm, involve the community and prevent future assaults.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC Berkeley offers survivor circles, in which students can share their stories and build community with other sexual assault survivors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And at Loyola Marymount, Jeakle is getting fraternities to contribute to a fund that supports survivors of sexual assault who need help with travel and medical expenses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You don’t want to forgive the entire institution because one individual apologizes,” she said. “Asking people to be part of a cultural shift is more important.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">When a student makes an allegation of sexual assault, their options for redress are often unsatisfying. Few cases end up in the legal system, and rarely do schools get sued for how they respond to those allegations.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">In one rare, recent case, one student’s allegations did end up in a courtroom — and in front of a jury. The student sued the East Side Union High School District alleging administrators didn’t do enough to protect her from further abuse after an alleged explicit video of her circulated around school. And as it turns out, more students are filing cases against school districts’ handling of such allegations.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Guest: \u003c/b>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Holly McDede, reporter and producer for KQED\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https://playlist.megaphone.fm?e=KQINC5162507073\" width=\"100%\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://bit.ly/3L93lbC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Read the transcript.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Recommended listening: \u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11907261/s-f-students-are-still-pushing-for-a-reckoning-with-sexual-abuse\">SF Students Are Still Pushing for a Reckoning With Sexual Abuse\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">When a student makes an allegation of sexual assault, their options for redress are often unsatisfying. Few cases end up in the legal system, and rarely do schools get sued for how they respond to those allegations.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">In one rare, recent case, one student’s allegations did end up in a courtroom — and in front of a jury. The student sued the East Side Union High School District alleging administrators didn’t do enough to protect her from further abuse after an alleged explicit video of her circulated around school. And as it turns out, more students are filing cases against school districts’ handling of such allegations.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Guest: \u003c/b>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Holly McDede, reporter and producer for KQED\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https://playlist.megaphone.fm?e=KQINC5162507073\" width=\"100%\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://bit.ly/3L93lbC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Read the transcript.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Recommended listening: \u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11907261/s-f-students-are-still-pushing-for-a-reckoning-with-sexual-abuse\">SF Students Are Still Pushing for a Reckoning With Sexual Abuse\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "jugo-con-la-mente-de-la-gente-un-sacerdote-de-fresno-dejo-un-rastro-de-acusaciones-de-abuso-sexual",
"title": "'Jugó con las mentes de las personas': Un sacerdote de Fresno dejó un rastro de acusaciones de abuso sexual",
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"headTitle": "‘Jugó con las mentes de las personas’: Un sacerdote de Fresno dejó un rastro de acusaciones de abuso sexual | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>Advertencia al lector: Algunos relatos de las denuncias de agresión sexual en esta historia contienen detalles explícitos y lenguaje fuerte que a algunas personas les pudieran incomodar o resultar ofensivos.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11825276/he-played-with-peoples-minds-fresno-priest-left-a-trail-of-sexual-abuse-allegations\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Read in English\u003c/a>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Actualización, 8 de agosto de 2021:\u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Desde la publicación de esta historia, varios ex feligreses que hablaron con KQED presentaron una demanda en contra del sacerdote de Fresno, Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna, y la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín, alegando que Castañeda los había agredido sexualmente. La demanda se resolvió.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Otras diez personas entablaron \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21012428-20210602094804722\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">otra demanda\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) en contra del sacerdote y su antiguo empleador en abril de 2021, alegando que el religioso los agredió sexualmente, o lo intentó. Una de ellas dice que era una menor de edad cuando esto sucedió.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda continúa predicando a sus seguidores en Fresno, ya sea a través de Facebook Live o en persona en eventos privados según antiguos miembros de la iglesia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Desde finales de junio, seguía perteneciendo a World Communion of Christian Celtic Convergence Churches, una organización religiosa con sede en el Reino Unido, que lo aceptó como sacerdote en enero de 2018.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“El estatus del padre Antonio no ha cambiado. Estamos esperando que concluya el proceso legal debido en este caso”, dijo Bruce Taylor, arzobispo del grupo en Norteamérica.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda sigue en libertad bajo fianza, a la espera de un juicio previsto para marzo de 2022. Su abogado defensor, Ralph Torres, se negó a hacer comentarios sobre la demanda presentada a principios de este año. Más intentos de contactar a Castañeda no tuvieron éxito.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Historia Original:\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Luis dijo que él no le podía decir a la doctora lo que en verdad había pasado.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ya habían transcurrido varios días desde que notó sangre en su orina y los moretones en el área de la ingle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El hombre de 40 años, oriundo de Jalisco, México, se había estado reuniendo con un popular sacerdote local en Fresno, Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna, quien era conocido con el nombre de padre Antonio. Su familia lo había presentado con el padre Antonio con la esperanza de que el sacerdote le pudiera ayudar a Luis a mejorar su vida, ya que había batallado con la adicción a las metanfetaminas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Venía mucha gente a buscarlo”, dijo Luis, este no es su verdadero nombre. KQED no está utilizando los verdaderos nombres de los supuestos sobrevivientes al abuso sexual en esta historia. “Según los otros, era algo… un don de Dios que él tenía”, agregó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En aquel entonces, el padre Antonio era el pastor principal de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, una congregación que ofrece servicios en español de la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín. El carismático liderazgo del sacerdote atrajo a cientos de personas de la comunidad latina de Fresno y se rumoraba que por sus supuestos dotes de sanación se había ganado el sobrenombre de “el padrecito que hace milagros”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Durante las sesiones en la oficina del padre Antonio, las cuales dice Luis que se llevaron a cabo durante varios años, él se acostaba en un banco o mesa para masajes vestido solo con su calzoncillo bóxer mientras el padre Antonio oraba y le frotaba aceite en la piel. La intensidad del masaje era tan brusca que el sacerdote con frecuencia le dejaba moretones, según testificó Luis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=]‘Una investigación de KQED descubrió que Castañeda había sido acusado anteriormente y que se había trasladado de la Iglesia Católica a la Iglesia Anglicana y luego a otro grupo religioso sin someterse a una revisión completa de sus antecedentes, o a ninguna.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Él les dijo a su mamá y a su novia que se había lastimado en su trabajo de construcción. Era una explicación que le parecía más fácil, dijo él. Y ahora, en la clínica, el doctor le hizo más preguntas – preguntas que Luis dijo, no se sentía cómodo en contestar.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No le dije (al doctor) que alguien me había tocado”, dijo Luis a KQED en noviembre de 2019. “Es difícil que un hombre toque otro… un adulto… toque a otro adulto. Entonces, con qué cara yo iba a decir, pues, me tocó, o…? Es un poco ridículo. Pero (…) porque la gente no iba a creerme lo que yo les iba a decir”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Con el tiempo, Luis les dijo a las autoridades que fue durante esos masajes – que según el sacerdote eran necesarios para expulsar la ‘maldición’ de su cuerpo – que el padre Antonio abusó de él sexualmente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11826082\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11826082 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luis fue uno de los al menos dos hombres que declararon ante los funcionarios de la iglesia anglicana que el padre Antonio Castañeda les había agredido sexualmente durante años, durante unos rituales de curación que incluían oraciones y masajes que, según el sacerdote, podían curarles de sus pecados sexuales. (Luis es un seudónimo. KQED no está utilizando los nombres reales de los presuntos supervivientes de agresiones sexuales en esta historia). \u003ccite>(Alexandra Hall/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Una cura para maldiciones y pecados sexuales\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nEn 2017, varios hombres se presentaron con alegatos de que Castañeda había abusado sexualmente de los feligreses durante unos masajes que él les había dicho los curaría física o espiritualmente, dijo el obispo Eric Menees de la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Todas las víctimas con las que me reuní al principio eran hombres indocumentados, así que acudir a la policía era algo que les daba miedo”, dijo Meneses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero a principios de 2018, Luis y otros hombres estuvieron de acuerdo en ser entrevistados por detectives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>La otra supuesta víctima dijo a la policía que Castañeda le dijo que se masturbara frente a él en múltiples ocasiones, de acuerdo con información en una declaración a un investigador de la policía de Fresno para respaldar una orden de arresto. Él dijo que el sacerdote le dijo que tenía que ver su semen para determinar la ‘maldición’ exacta o la supuesta enfermedad que lo afligía. En una ocasión, el hombre dijo que Castañeda lo abrazó y le dijo que lo amaba “como un hombre ama a una mujer”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda fue arrestado en febrero de 2019 y fue puesto en libertad bajo fianza al siguiente día. Más de 40 feligreses les dijeron a los funcionarios de la iglesia que ellos o alguien a quien ellos conocían había sido víctima de abuso por parte de Castañeda, dijo Menees a KQED por correo electrónico.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hasta ahora, nueve personas – ocho hombres, incluyendo Luis, y una mujer – están en una lista de supuestas víctimas en el proceso penal, de acuerdo con los testimonios ante el juzgado. La policía dijo que la mayoría de las personas que se han presentado son indocumentadas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda se enfrenta a \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6951672-AC-UPDATED-COMPLAINT.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">22 cargos\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) de agresión, agresión sexual, intento de agresión sexual e intento de disuadir a un testigo. Se esperaba que el juicio de su caso iniciara este año, pero se ha retrasado debido a la pandemia del coronavirus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Una investigación realizada por KQED encontró que Castañeda se cambió de la Iglesia Católica a la Iglesia Anglicana y, después, a otro grupo religioso, sin pasar por una revisión completa de antecedentes o alguna revisión en lo absoluto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mientras está en espera de su juicio, Castañeda ya abrió una nueva iglesia donde sigue dirigiendo los servicios.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda ha negado todos los cargos a través de su abogado, Ralph Torres, quien dijo que los acusadores del sacerdote han malinterpretado una forma, según él, de sanación tradicional aceptada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Esto es algo cultural”, dijo Torres. “Este tipo de masajes de sanación pasa en todo Latinoamérica, México y los Estados Unidos. No hay nada inusual en cuanto a eso. Puede haber un malentendido, y fue algo que no apreciaron”, agregó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Torres dijo que su cliente nunca abusó sexualmente de los feligreses y que “la verdad saldrá en el juicio”. Además declinó la solicitud de KQED de entrevistar a su cliente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Las personas que testificaron en una \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11781717/fresno-priest-accused-of-sexual-abuse-of-immigrant-parishioners-to-stand-trial\">\u003cu>audiencia preliminar\u003c/u>\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) en el otoño de 2019 dijeron que el sacerdote les dijo que estaban maldecidos, les frotó los genitales con aceite o los convenció de que se masturbaran frente a él para que se curaran.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11825816\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11825816 size-medium\" style=\"font-weight: bold;background-color: transparent;color: #767676\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Una de las presuntas víctimas en el caso penal declaró que acudió a esta oficina en Fresno con su ex mujer para recibir asesoramiento del padre Antonio Castañeda y que fue llevado a una sala de conferencias y abusado por el sacerdote. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Algunos dijeron que ellos buscaron la guía de Castañeda durante tiempos difíciles en sus vidas: el fin de una relación, adicción al alcohol o a las drogas y, en un caso, la muerte de un hijo, según información de testimonio en el juzgado. Con frecuencia avergonzados y confusos sobre las sesiones en su oficina, pero con la esperanza de que los pudiera ayudar, algunos feligreses dijeron que ellos regresaron a Castañeda una y otra vez durante años. Otros mantuvieron el supuesto abuso escondido de sus propios familiares, de quienes después se enteraron que también fueron supuestas víctimas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El caso plantea la problemática sobre la vulnerabilidad de los adultos, incluyendo inmigrantes indocumentados, al abuso sexual en la Iglesia, y revela cómo las instituciones religiosas están batallando por responder – décadas después de que saliera a la luz el encubrimiento sistemático de abuso sexual en la Iglesia católica.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Uno se siente como que – ¿acaso todavía soy hombre? ¿O tan siquiera soy lo suficientemente hombre?”, una supuesta víctima en el caso le dijo a KQED. “Yo dejé que otro hombre me tocara. Uno siente como si le hubieran robado su identidad”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Vengo a buscar al padrecito que hace milagros\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nAlgunos exfeligreses le dijeron a KQED que ellos creían que Castañeda en verdad sanaba a la gente, razón por la cual muchos han batallado en aceptar las acusaciones.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda vino a Fresno alrededor del 2007 y empezó a prepararse para ser un sacerdote anglicano. Los feligreses dijeron que él practicaba la sanación que incluía poner las manos en el cuerpo para curar enfermedades y hacía rituales de ‘limpiezas’ que incluían velas, sábanas y frotar aceite y sal en el cuerpo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bajo la dirección de Castañeda, los feligreses de Nuestra Señora dijeron que ellos fueron testigos de fenómenos que todavía no pueden explicar: hubo una historia de un paciente moribundo al que según ellos el padre logró sacar de asistencia médica para seguir con vida, el hombre que los feligreses dicen que se elevó del piso mientras ellos oraban por él en lo que parecía un exorcismo dirigido por el sacerdote, y la mujer cuyo cáncer Castañeda dijo que había curado – supuestamente al remover una masa de su cuerpo – enfrente de toda la congregación.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Rosalina Rodriguez, ex feligresa de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe\"]‘Jugaba con la mente de la gente. Decía: ‘Tienes cáncer’ o ‘Tienes esta enfermedad, tienes esto o aquello’. Y siempre le ponía enfermedades a la gente para poder curarla.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En las misas de sanación, Castañeda colocaba las manos sobre la cabeza de los feligreses y ellos caían al piso o “descansaban en el espíritu” – habiendo sido sobrecogidos por el Espíritu Santo, dijeron exfeligreses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En una ocasión, en una venta de artículos de segunda mano que hizo la iglesia, una exfeligresa, Rosalina Rodríguez, dijo que ella se acuerda que una mujer dijo: “Vengo a buscar el padrecito que hace milagros”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rodríguez dijo que ella escuchó a Castañeda contestar: “Aquí no hay ningún padrecito que hace milagros. Los hace Dios”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Si un feligrés necesitaba sanación, Castañeda lo veía en privado en su oficina, dijeron varios exmiembros de la congregación.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Reynaga dijo que ella y otros feligreses con frecuencia acompañaban a Castañeda a las casas para que él pudiera orar por las personas. Ella dijo que el sacerdote les dijo que algunos hombres necesitaban sanación porque una exesposa o una exnovia los había maldecido.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Decía que sus partes íntimas estaban ‘atadas’ por lo que tenía que masajearlas”, dijo Reynaga, añadiendo que el sacerdote le pedía que saliera de la habitación en un momento determinado de la oración. Dijo que nunca lo vio tocar indebidamente a nadie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11825818\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11825818 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rosa Reynaga, antigua asistente del padre Antonio Castañeda, dijo que ella y otros feligreses le acompañaban a menudo a las casas de la gente para que pudiera rezar por ellos. El sacerdote le pedía que saliera de la habitación en un momento determinado de la oración. Dice que nunca le vio tocar indebidamente a nadie. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Algunas supuestas víctimas dijeron que Castañeda tenía a otra persona en el cuarto ayudándole durante los supuestos masajes de oración. Personas que presenciaron los rituales de Castañeda dijeron que el sacerdote alegaba haber sacado sustancias amarillas o negras de los cuerpos de la gente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Algunos feligreses dijeron que Castañeda también les dijo que él era un psicólogo autorizado. Fueron infructuosos los intentos por encontrar algún registro de que Castañeda estuviera autorizado para ejercer la psicología.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Jugaba con la mente de las personas”, dijo Rodríguez. “Y les decía, usted tiene cáncer, o tiene esta enfermedad, tiene esta o aquella. Y siempre estaba poniendo enfermedades a las personas, para después tratar de curarlas”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Los registros del juzgado muestran que un exfeligrés, José Magaña, le dijo a la policía que, en 2015, Castañeda le pidió que lo acompañara mientras oraba por un hombre joven que sufría de drogadicción. Magaña dijo que él vio que Castañeda metió la mano por uno de los huecos del calzoncillo bóxer del hombre y haló sus genitales mientras el hombre gritaba. Magaña le dijo a la policía que él se fue confuso y afectado espiritualmente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Magaña dijo que él después le contó el incidente a sus compañeros feligreses. “Y les dije, ¿saben qué?, pasó eso, eso. (Y ellos dijeron), o no te preocupes, es que si lo hace pero es parte de la oración”, dijo Magaña. “Y dije, ‘pero es que no era necesario’”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Prof. Kristy Nabhan-Warren, Directora de Estudios Católicos, Universidad de Iowa\"]‘La gente podría decir, bueno, es un problema sólo de la Iglesia Católica. Yo diría que es un problema de concentración de poder y falta de supervisión.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En las tradiciones pentecostés y católica carismática es común que un líder de la fe se anuncie como un instrumento de Dios, dijo la profesora Kristy Nabhan-Warren, presidenta de estudios católicos en la Universidad de Iowa.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Cada vez que estás ante un patriarcado fuerte o una concentración intensa de poder en alguna institución (…) tendrás abuso”, dijo. “La gente puede decir, bueno, es un problema que solo se da en la Iglesia Católica. Diría que es un problema de concentración de poder y falta de supervisión”, explicó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Una acusación anterior\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nAños antes de que alguien hiciera una denuncia en Fresno, la Iglesia Católica en el estado de Washington había lidiado con una acusación de mala conducta en contra de Castañeda. Los registros que obtuvo KQED muestran que un exvoluntario de la iglesia alegó que Castañeda lo había tocado de manera inapropiada cuando Castañeda era pastor en la parroquia San Juan Diego, en Cowiche, a 20 minutos al noroeste de Yákima, Washington, de 2003 a 2005.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En 2007, cuando la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín estaba considerando contratar a Castañeda, ellos solicitaron los servicios de Oxford Document Management Company para realizar una revisión de antecedentes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>La compañía mandó un cuestionario a la Diócesis Católica de Yákima, el anterior empleador de Castañeda, haciendo preguntas que incluyeron si él, en alguna vez, había tenido contacto sexual en un contexto profesional.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El obispo Carlos A. Sevilla de la Diócesis de Yákima \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6957627-Diocese-Corr-AC-May-24-2007-Re-AC-Questionaire.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">contestó\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés), diciendo que él no podía responder el cuestionario, pero que Castañeda había sido dado de baja de su puesto clerical en la Iglesia Católica por “razones significativas y graves”. Una \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6957642-Fax-and-Memo.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">carta de seguimiento\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) dio detalles adicionales: Castañeda había violado el sello de confesión.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sin embargo, Castañeda fue ordenado por la Diócesis Anglicana en 2008.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://cdn.knightlab.com/libs/timeline3/latest/embed/index.html?source=1NIcyRVlsmmpiyWx6vL-KLy28B0W5ofcPeMBvMv-Hwa4&font=Default&lang=en&initial_zoom=2&height=650\" width=\"100%\" height=\"650\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Con el tiempo, la Diócesis Católica prestó atención a la acusación del voluntario de la iglesia, según un memorándum interno que obtuvo KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6952052-Yakima-Investigator-Memo-4.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">documento\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés), al que se le han eliminado muchas partes, hace un resumen de la conversación telefónica entre una investigadora privada y el hombre, quien dijo que le tenía miedo a Castañeda porque “había tenido una mala experiencia” con él. Él le dijo a la investigadora que Castañeda había “abusado de su poder” y a veces era “sexualmente agresivo” con él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El hombre dijo que Castañeda le había pedido examinarlo después de haberle dicho al sacerdote que había descubierto un tumor en uno de sus testículos.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“La víctima le dijo que ya había ido al doctor a lo cual el padre Castañeda declaró: ‘Yo soy doctor y soy responsable de tu salud. Tienes que dejarme verlo’”, dice el documento. “La víctima dijo: ‘el padre Castañeda empezó a tocarme y a decirme que lo dejara revisar mis testículos’”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cuando la investigadora le preguntó si Castañeda había tocado el pene del hombre, él dijo, “Sí, allí y toda el área de mis testículos y luego él dijo que todo se veía bien”, de acuerdo con el documento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El hombre dijo que él se molestó mucho con Castañeda y “le preguntó si ya estaba feliz”, dice el documento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Después de la entrevista de la investigadora con el ex voluntario de la iglesia, la Diócesis Católica en Yákima \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6929503-Informing-of-Allegation.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">notificó\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) sobre la acusación a la Diócesis Anglicana de Fresno en agosto de 2009.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero el obispo anglicano de aquel entonces, John-David Schofield, \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6954448-Corr-W-Anglicans-Re-AC-July-Sept-2009-4.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">respondió\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) diciendo que él había entrevistado a Castañeda y que, “en la medida de mis capacidades, me parece que el Padre Antonio ha sido acusado falsamente”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No está claro si los funcionarios diocesanos en Fresno en alguna ocasión dieron a conocer la acusación a los feligreses de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. Hay 15 feligreses actuales y anteriores – de los 23 entrevistados para este reportaje – que dijeron que a ellos nunca se les informó que se había registrado una acusación anterior en contra de Castañeda. Los ocho feligreses restantes no respondieron a las llamadas de seguimiento sobre si se les había informado.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cuando se preguntó si los feligreses habían sido notificados de la acusación, el actual obispo de la diócesis, Menees, dijo en un correo electrónico: “Debido al proceso penal y civil pendiente, los abogados me han aconsejado que no haga comentario”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Luis (Luis es un seudónimo. KQED no utiliza los nombres reales de los presuntos supervivientes de agresiones sexuales en este reportaje.)\"]‘Empecé a darme cuenta de que, bueno, esto no estaba bien. No tenía ni idea de cuántas personas estaban pasando por lo mismo que yo.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tres personas también levantaron una demanda legal en contra de Castañeda y de la Diócesis Anglicana. Ellos alegan que Castañeda abusó sexualmente de ellos y que el sacerdote y la iglesia violaron su confianza. En la demanda legal se alega que la iglesia fue negligente al contratar y supervisar a Castañeda, lo cual resultó en imposición de estrés emocional.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El año pasado, cuando la Diócesis de Yákima publicó su \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6774404-Yakima-Diocese-Abuse-Disclosure-List-07-09-19.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">lista de sacerdotes acusados con fundamento\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés), Castañeda no estaba incluido. El monseñor Robert Siler explicó que eso se debe a que Castañeda nunca fue acusado de abusar de un menor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Yo creo que nuestro sistema legal reconoce que los adultos tienen más capacidad de decir, ‘no,’ y de hacer reportes y de presentarse”, dijo él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero Siler dijo que la responsabilidad de no volver a cometer la ofensa queda en Castañeda – no en una iglesia que anteriormente lo empleó – y que “hicimos tanto como pudimos” para advertir a la Diócesis Anglicana.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No me puedo imaginar que la Diócesis de Yákima tuviera los recursos para andar siguiéndolo con un anuncio que dijera, por ejemplo, ‘No se acerquen a este hombre’”, dijo él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“Yo quería estar bien, así que regresé”\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nDe regreso en Fresno, Luis pensó que por fin estaba ganándose la confianza de su familia de nuevo al estar involucrado con la iglesia y al ir a la oficina de Castañeda para los masajes de oración.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Luis dijo que el sacerdote le dijo que como él había estado con tantas mujeres, él estaba maldito y que, para saber cómo es que tenía que ser sanado, tenía que ver su semen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“El estaba en la oficina y me dijo: ‘Es que yo tengo que verlo, mi muchacho, yo tengo que sanarlo de eso que usted tiene. Y necesito verlo. Y yo le decía no’”, dijo Luis a KQED, añadiendo que el sacerdote empezó a pedirle que se quitara su calzoncillo bóxer para las sesiones.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Durante un masaje, Luis testificó, Castañeda colocó una toalla en su regazo y metió la mano por debajo de la toalla – jalándole fuerte de repente el pene. Luis dijo que él se tuvo que doblar repentinamente del dolor y trató de agarrar a Castañeda, pero no pudo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Él le dijo a Castañeda que no le tocara allí.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cuando Luis salió de la oficina, dijo que su calzoncillo bóxer estaba manchado de sangre. Luis dijo que sintió que Castañeda lo había manipulado a él y a otros feligreses que estaban “puros ansiosos de estar bien en nuestras vidas”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11826162\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11826162 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luis había luchado contra la adicción a la metanfetamina y esperaba poder ganarse de nuevo la confianza de su familia si seguía participando en la iglesia y acudía al despacho del padre Antonio Castañeda para recibir masajes de oración. Luis dijo que el sacerdote le dijo que, por haber estado con tantas mujeres, estaba maldito. Para saber cómo tenía que curarse, dijo que el sacerdote le dijo que tenía que ver su semen. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Luis después testificó que las sesiones con el padre Antonio se llevaron a cabo durante el curso de varios años, comenzando aproximadamente en 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Entonces, me metí esa espinita de que estoy mal o estoy cayendo otra vez en lo mismo. Entonces, yo no quería eso. Yo quería estar bien”, dijo Luis. “Volví a ir otra vez a sus sesiones”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero el estar libre de drogas también le ha dado a Luis un sentido de claridad.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Hasta que poco a poco, me fui dando cuenta de que pues, en realidad, no estaba bien lo que estaba pasando”, dijo él. “Yo no tenía ni idea de cuántas personas estaban pasando lo mismo que yo”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Expulsado del sacerdocio de nuevo\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nEn el otoño de 2017, después de que varios feligreses de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe contaron al obispo Menees de la Diócesis Anglicana sobre el ministerio de sanación del Padre Antonio, Menees dijo que él confrontó a Castañeda sobre las alegaciones.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Su respuesta inmediata fue decir: ‘Sí, yo aprendí este ministerio de sanación en India’”, Menees dijo en una entrevista de junio de 2019 antes de declinar hacer más comentarios. “Y yo simplemente dije: ‘No, no lo hiciste’”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Menees dijo que los sacerdotes con frecuencia ungen a los feligreses al hacer la señal de la cruz en la frente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“El tocar cualquier otro lugar – y ciertamente quitarles la ropa – siempre sería absolutamente prohibido”, añadió él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Aunque es común en algunos países de América Latina y en comunidades latinas en los Estados Unidos consultar a un sanador tradicional que usa masajes, el contacto es más para ayudar con músculos tensos o una torcedura, y nunca tiene que ver con tocar los genitales, dijo Mario González, subdirector de Centro la Familia, una organización sin fines de lucro que ayuda a víctimas de crímenes y trabaja con la Oficina del Fiscal del Distrito del Condado de Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Yo no veo la razón por la que un (sanador) tuviera contacto con esa parte privada”, dijo González.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Es porque no existe una razón, dijo el profesor de psicología de UCLA, Paul R. Abramson, quien trabaja como testigo experto en casos de abuso sexual civiles y penales.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Si tiene que ver con los genitales, la intención es sexual. Él está enfocándose en la gente que no va a ir a la policía”, dijo él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Después de que los hombres se presentaron con la acusación, la Diócesis Anglicana suspendió de inmediato a Castañeda de sus obligaciones sacerdotales. Menees dijo que Castañeda firmó una declaración admitiendo algo de lo que se alegó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Los registros del juzgado muestran que otro sacerdote de la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín dijo a la policía que Castañeda estuvo de acuerdo con hacer un anuncio haciéndose responsable de sus acciones en una próxima misa de domingo, pero no se presentó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Él fue removido permanentemente de la Iglesia Anglicana poco después de eso, dijo Menees, añadiendo que Castañeda después se retractó de su declaración.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>La policía de Fresno investigó a Castañeda durante más de un año y lo arrestó en febrero de 2019. El siguiente día, la policía y los fiscales llevaron a cabo una conferencia de prensa urgiendo a que más víctimas se presentaran.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Las víctimas con quienes se ha hecho contacto hasta ahora (son) hispanohablantes en su mayoría, y son indocumentados”, dijo Jerry Dyer, jefe de la policía de Fresno en aquel entonces. “Parece que son ellos de quien él está abusando.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En la conferencia de prensa, Dyer dijo que los detectives creen que Castañeda ha abusado sexualmente de cientos de personas. Los oficiales obtuvieron ese cálculo al ver la cantidad de gente que se había presentado hasta ese entonces, y multiplicando la cantidad de años que Castañeda ha estado activo como sacerdote en California y en Washington, dijo Dyer después en una entrevista.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El feligrés Magaña dijo que él habló con varios hombres que le revelaron que ellos fueron víctimas de abuso después de que se hicieron públicas las acusaciones contra Castañeda.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Les dije, ¿cómo permitieron?” dijo Magaña. “Querían sanar. Ellos estaban enfermos, querían sanar y así era. Así fue”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11825821\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11825821 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luis es una de las al menos nueve personas que figuran como presuntas víctimas en la causa penal contra Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna, o Padre Antonio Castañeda. Castañeda enfrenta a 22 cargos de agresión, agresión sexual, intento de agresión sexual e intento de disuadir a un testigo. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>El sacerdote reinventado\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nVarios meses después de que Castañeda saliera de la cárcel bajo fianza, él llevó a cabo una misa de domingo dentro de un espacio rentado en Fresno en su nueva iglesia, Iglesia del Espíritu Santo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Después de haber sido expulsado de las iglesias católica y anglicana, él fue ordenado como ministro por la World Communion of Christian Celtic Convergence Churches, con sede en el Reino Unido. El \u003ca href=\"http://www.celticconvergencechurch.org/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">sitio de Internet\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) de la organización dice que está abierta a los obispos, sacerdotes y diáconos ordenados que “han fallado anteriormente en liderazgo de la iglesia”, independientemente de su “historia, estatus y daño”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Menees dijo que muchos exmiembros de Nuestra Señora siguieron a Castañeda a su nueva iglesia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Él nunca tocó a nadie”, dijo Flor Hernández, quien, junto con su esposo, Javier Hernández, dejaron la iglesia anglicana para seguirlo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hernández, quien ha recolectado cartas de apoyo para el sacerdote, dijo que ella estuvo en el cuarto una o dos veces cuando Castañeda tuvo sesión personal con feligreses y nunca vio abuso.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Cuando él hacía la misa, el lugar estaba repleto”, dijo ella mientras mostraba una fotografía de una iglesia llena hasta su capacidad y Castañeda sosteniendo sus manos sobre la cabeza de una mujer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Durante la audiencia de juicio preliminar del sacerdote en el otoño de 2019, sus simpatizantes asistieron y se les oyó reírse, burlarse y sacudir la cabeza durante el testimonio de los testigos.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Para mí, todo esto que sucedió fue celos, envidia”, dijo la feligresa Imelda Cruz después de uno de los servicios de domingo de Castañeda.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Los simpatizantes de Castañeda en repetidas ocasiones han señalado que algunos de los acusadores en un tiempo fueron los aliados más allegados del sacerdote y le ayudaron con su ministerio de sanación.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bruce Taylor, el arzobispo para Norteamérica de la actual iglesia de Castañeda, dijo que la organización no hizo una revisión de antecedentes de Castañeda antes de contratarlo ya que él ya había sido ordenado y revisado por otras dos diócesis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taylor dijo que Castañeda se sometió a una evaluación psicológica y él exigió que el sacerdote fuera entrevistado por tres mujeres que, dijo él, fueron víctimas de abuso sexual durante la infancia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Las mujeres que tienen ese tipo de historial tiene un sexto sentido, dijo Taylor. “Ellas me llamaron y me dijeron: ‘No, él no es así. No, él no pudo haber hecho esto’”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taylor sugirió que los acusadores del sacerdote pudieran estar haciendo acusaciones falsas para obtener estatus legal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Los inmigrantes ilegales pueden llegar a obtener estatus legal si se comete un crimen en su contra. Esto pudiera ser un factor que motive las acusaciones falsas en contra del Padre Antonio”, dijo Taylor a KQED en correo electrónico.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Torres, el abogado de Castañeda, también les preguntó a los testigos en el juzgado si ellos hicieron solicitud para cambiar su estatus legal a cambio de testificar.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No está claro cuántas de las supuestas víctimas hayan solicitado la visa U – para víctimas de crímenes que cooperan con las agencias de ley en investigaciones o en proceso legal en casos penales. Pero los defensores comunitarios y la policía han retrocedido, diciendo que al presentarse los acusadores se ponen todavía bajo más escrutinio por parte de las autoridades federales.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“¿Quién inventaría tal mentira solo para obtener un documento? ¿Quién se expondrá a sí mismo ante casos de juzgado, a revisión de antecedentes penales, al criterio de USCIS (Servicio de Ciudadanía e Inmigración de Estados Unidos)?”, dijo González del Centro la Familia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mientras tanto, los feligreses de Castañeda siguieron acudiendo a sus servicios. Desde que la orden de California de quedarse en casa impuso restricciones temporales a los servicios religiosos en persona, el sacerdote ha estado dando sus sermones a los feligreses que asisten tanto en persona como virtualmente por Facebook Live.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Tenemos fe en que la verdad va a salir”, dijo Flor Hernández.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>¿Tienes información o casos para posibles historias que quieras compartir con nosotros? Puedes enviar un correo electrónico a la reportera: \u003ca href=\"mailto:ahall@kqed.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ahall@kqed.org | \u003c/a>Twitter \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/chalexhall\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@chalexhall\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Este artículo fue traducido por Raquel Arciniega y la periodista \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/soytapatia?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">María Peña \u003c/a>del equipo de KQED en Español. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Un sacerdote de Fresno, California, ha sido acusado de haber tocado de manera sexual mientras realizaba rituales de curación a por lo menos nueve adultos latinos exmiembros de su parroquia. Aseguraba que los curaría de supuestos ‘males’ y ‘pecados sexuales’. ¿Cómo sigue dirigiendo una congregación y por qué muchos seguidores todavía creen en su mensaje? ",
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"title": "'Jugó con las mentes de las personas': Un sacerdote de Fresno dejó un rastro de acusaciones de abuso sexual | KQED",
"description": "Un sacerdote de Fresno, California, ha sido acusado de haber tocado de manera sexual mientras realizaba rituales de curación a por lo menos nueve adultos latinos exmiembros de su parroquia. Aseguraba que los curaría de supuestos ‘males’ y ‘pecados sexuales’. ¿Cómo sigue dirigiendo una congregación y por qué muchos seguidores todavía creen en su mensaje? ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>Advertencia al lector: Algunos relatos de las denuncias de agresión sexual en esta historia contienen detalles explícitos y lenguaje fuerte que a algunas personas les pudieran incomodar o resultar ofensivos.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11825276/he-played-with-peoples-minds-fresno-priest-left-a-trail-of-sexual-abuse-allegations\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Read in English\u003c/a>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Actualización, 8 de agosto de 2021:\u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Desde la publicación de esta historia, varios ex feligreses que hablaron con KQED presentaron una demanda en contra del sacerdote de Fresno, Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna, y la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín, alegando que Castañeda los había agredido sexualmente. La demanda se resolvió.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Otras diez personas entablaron \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21012428-20210602094804722\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">otra demanda\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) en contra del sacerdote y su antiguo empleador en abril de 2021, alegando que el religioso los agredió sexualmente, o lo intentó. Una de ellas dice que era una menor de edad cuando esto sucedió.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda continúa predicando a sus seguidores en Fresno, ya sea a través de Facebook Live o en persona en eventos privados según antiguos miembros de la iglesia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Desde finales de junio, seguía perteneciendo a World Communion of Christian Celtic Convergence Churches, una organización religiosa con sede en el Reino Unido, que lo aceptó como sacerdote en enero de 2018.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“El estatus del padre Antonio no ha cambiado. Estamos esperando que concluya el proceso legal debido en este caso”, dijo Bruce Taylor, arzobispo del grupo en Norteamérica.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda sigue en libertad bajo fianza, a la espera de un juicio previsto para marzo de 2022. Su abogado defensor, Ralph Torres, se negó a hacer comentarios sobre la demanda presentada a principios de este año. Más intentos de contactar a Castañeda no tuvieron éxito.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Historia Original:\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Luis dijo que él no le podía decir a la doctora lo que en verdad había pasado.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ya habían transcurrido varios días desde que notó sangre en su orina y los moretones en el área de la ingle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El hombre de 40 años, oriundo de Jalisco, México, se había estado reuniendo con un popular sacerdote local en Fresno, Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna, quien era conocido con el nombre de padre Antonio. Su familia lo había presentado con el padre Antonio con la esperanza de que el sacerdote le pudiera ayudar a Luis a mejorar su vida, ya que había batallado con la adicción a las metanfetaminas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Venía mucha gente a buscarlo”, dijo Luis, este no es su verdadero nombre. KQED no está utilizando los verdaderos nombres de los supuestos sobrevivientes al abuso sexual en esta historia. “Según los otros, era algo… un don de Dios que él tenía”, agregó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En aquel entonces, el padre Antonio era el pastor principal de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, una congregación que ofrece servicios en español de la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín. El carismático liderazgo del sacerdote atrajo a cientos de personas de la comunidad latina de Fresno y se rumoraba que por sus supuestos dotes de sanación se había ganado el sobrenombre de “el padrecito que hace milagros”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Durante las sesiones en la oficina del padre Antonio, las cuales dice Luis que se llevaron a cabo durante varios años, él se acostaba en un banco o mesa para masajes vestido solo con su calzoncillo bóxer mientras el padre Antonio oraba y le frotaba aceite en la piel. La intensidad del masaje era tan brusca que el sacerdote con frecuencia le dejaba moretones, según testificó Luis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘Una investigación de KQED descubrió que Castañeda había sido acusado anteriormente y que se había trasladado de la Iglesia Católica a la Iglesia Anglicana y luego a otro grupo religioso sin someterse a una revisión completa de sus antecedentes, o a ninguna.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Él les dijo a su mamá y a su novia que se había lastimado en su trabajo de construcción. Era una explicación que le parecía más fácil, dijo él. Y ahora, en la clínica, el doctor le hizo más preguntas – preguntas que Luis dijo, no se sentía cómodo en contestar.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No le dije (al doctor) que alguien me había tocado”, dijo Luis a KQED en noviembre de 2019. “Es difícil que un hombre toque otro… un adulto… toque a otro adulto. Entonces, con qué cara yo iba a decir, pues, me tocó, o…? Es un poco ridículo. Pero (…) porque la gente no iba a creerme lo que yo les iba a decir”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Con el tiempo, Luis les dijo a las autoridades que fue durante esos masajes – que según el sacerdote eran necesarios para expulsar la ‘maldición’ de su cuerpo – que el padre Antonio abusó de él sexualmente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11826082\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11826082 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/RS41170_IMG_6437-qut_v2.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luis fue uno de los al menos dos hombres que declararon ante los funcionarios de la iglesia anglicana que el padre Antonio Castañeda les había agredido sexualmente durante años, durante unos rituales de curación que incluían oraciones y masajes que, según el sacerdote, podían curarles de sus pecados sexuales. (Luis es un seudónimo. KQED no está utilizando los nombres reales de los presuntos supervivientes de agresiones sexuales en esta historia). \u003ccite>(Alexandra Hall/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Una cura para maldiciones y pecados sexuales\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nEn 2017, varios hombres se presentaron con alegatos de que Castañeda había abusado sexualmente de los feligreses durante unos masajes que él les había dicho los curaría física o espiritualmente, dijo el obispo Eric Menees de la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Todas las víctimas con las que me reuní al principio eran hombres indocumentados, así que acudir a la policía era algo que les daba miedo”, dijo Meneses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero a principios de 2018, Luis y otros hombres estuvieron de acuerdo en ser entrevistados por detectives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>La otra supuesta víctima dijo a la policía que Castañeda le dijo que se masturbara frente a él en múltiples ocasiones, de acuerdo con información en una declaración a un investigador de la policía de Fresno para respaldar una orden de arresto. Él dijo que el sacerdote le dijo que tenía que ver su semen para determinar la ‘maldición’ exacta o la supuesta enfermedad que lo afligía. En una ocasión, el hombre dijo que Castañeda lo abrazó y le dijo que lo amaba “como un hombre ama a una mujer”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda fue arrestado en febrero de 2019 y fue puesto en libertad bajo fianza al siguiente día. Más de 40 feligreses les dijeron a los funcionarios de la iglesia que ellos o alguien a quien ellos conocían había sido víctima de abuso por parte de Castañeda, dijo Menees a KQED por correo electrónico.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hasta ahora, nueve personas – ocho hombres, incluyendo Luis, y una mujer – están en una lista de supuestas víctimas en el proceso penal, de acuerdo con los testimonios ante el juzgado. La policía dijo que la mayoría de las personas que se han presentado son indocumentadas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda se enfrenta a \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6951672-AC-UPDATED-COMPLAINT.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">22 cargos\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) de agresión, agresión sexual, intento de agresión sexual e intento de disuadir a un testigo. Se esperaba que el juicio de su caso iniciara este año, pero se ha retrasado debido a la pandemia del coronavirus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Una investigación realizada por KQED encontró que Castañeda se cambió de la Iglesia Católica a la Iglesia Anglicana y, después, a otro grupo religioso, sin pasar por una revisión completa de antecedentes o alguna revisión en lo absoluto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mientras está en espera de su juicio, Castañeda ya abrió una nueva iglesia donde sigue dirigiendo los servicios.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda ha negado todos los cargos a través de su abogado, Ralph Torres, quien dijo que los acusadores del sacerdote han malinterpretado una forma, según él, de sanación tradicional aceptada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Esto es algo cultural”, dijo Torres. “Este tipo de masajes de sanación pasa en todo Latinoamérica, México y los Estados Unidos. No hay nada inusual en cuanto a eso. Puede haber un malentendido, y fue algo que no apreciaron”, agregó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Torres dijo que su cliente nunca abusó sexualmente de los feligreses y que “la verdad saldrá en el juicio”. Además declinó la solicitud de KQED de entrevistar a su cliente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Las personas que testificaron en una \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11781717/fresno-priest-accused-of-sexual-abuse-of-immigrant-parishioners-to-stand-trial\">\u003cu>audiencia preliminar\u003c/u>\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) en el otoño de 2019 dijeron que el sacerdote les dijo que estaban maldecidos, les frotó los genitales con aceite o los convenció de que se masturbaran frente a él para que se curaran.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11825816\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11825816 size-medium\" style=\"font-weight: bold;background-color: transparent;color: #767676\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/016_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Una de las presuntas víctimas en el caso penal declaró que acudió a esta oficina en Fresno con su ex mujer para recibir asesoramiento del padre Antonio Castañeda y que fue llevado a una sala de conferencias y abusado por el sacerdote. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Algunos dijeron que ellos buscaron la guía de Castañeda durante tiempos difíciles en sus vidas: el fin de una relación, adicción al alcohol o a las drogas y, en un caso, la muerte de un hijo, según información de testimonio en el juzgado. Con frecuencia avergonzados y confusos sobre las sesiones en su oficina, pero con la esperanza de que los pudiera ayudar, algunos feligreses dijeron que ellos regresaron a Castañeda una y otra vez durante años. Otros mantuvieron el supuesto abuso escondido de sus propios familiares, de quienes después se enteraron que también fueron supuestas víctimas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El caso plantea la problemática sobre la vulnerabilidad de los adultos, incluyendo inmigrantes indocumentados, al abuso sexual en la Iglesia, y revela cómo las instituciones religiosas están batallando por responder – décadas después de que saliera a la luz el encubrimiento sistemático de abuso sexual en la Iglesia católica.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Uno se siente como que – ¿acaso todavía soy hombre? ¿O tan siquiera soy lo suficientemente hombre?”, una supuesta víctima en el caso le dijo a KQED. “Yo dejé que otro hombre me tocara. Uno siente como si le hubieran robado su identidad”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Vengo a buscar al padrecito que hace milagros\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nAlgunos exfeligreses le dijeron a KQED que ellos creían que Castañeda en verdad sanaba a la gente, razón por la cual muchos han batallado en aceptar las acusaciones.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda vino a Fresno alrededor del 2007 y empezó a prepararse para ser un sacerdote anglicano. Los feligreses dijeron que él practicaba la sanación que incluía poner las manos en el cuerpo para curar enfermedades y hacía rituales de ‘limpiezas’ que incluían velas, sábanas y frotar aceite y sal en el cuerpo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bajo la dirección de Castañeda, los feligreses de Nuestra Señora dijeron que ellos fueron testigos de fenómenos que todavía no pueden explicar: hubo una historia de un paciente moribundo al que según ellos el padre logró sacar de asistencia médica para seguir con vida, el hombre que los feligreses dicen que se elevó del piso mientras ellos oraban por él en lo que parecía un exorcismo dirigido por el sacerdote, y la mujer cuyo cáncer Castañeda dijo que había curado – supuestamente al remover una masa de su cuerpo – enfrente de toda la congregación.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘Jugaba con la mente de la gente. Decía: ‘Tienes cáncer’ o ‘Tienes esta enfermedad, tienes esto o aquello’. Y siempre le ponía enfermedades a la gente para poder curarla.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En las misas de sanación, Castañeda colocaba las manos sobre la cabeza de los feligreses y ellos caían al piso o “descansaban en el espíritu” – habiendo sido sobrecogidos por el Espíritu Santo, dijeron exfeligreses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En una ocasión, en una venta de artículos de segunda mano que hizo la iglesia, una exfeligresa, Rosalina Rodríguez, dijo que ella se acuerda que una mujer dijo: “Vengo a buscar el padrecito que hace milagros”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rodríguez dijo que ella escuchó a Castañeda contestar: “Aquí no hay ningún padrecito que hace milagros. Los hace Dios”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Si un feligrés necesitaba sanación, Castañeda lo veía en privado en su oficina, dijeron varios exmiembros de la congregación.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Reynaga dijo que ella y otros feligreses con frecuencia acompañaban a Castañeda a las casas para que él pudiera orar por las personas. Ella dijo que el sacerdote les dijo que algunos hombres necesitaban sanación porque una exesposa o una exnovia los había maldecido.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Decía que sus partes íntimas estaban ‘atadas’ por lo que tenía que masajearlas”, dijo Reynaga, añadiendo que el sacerdote le pedía que saliera de la habitación en un momento determinado de la oración. Dijo que nunca lo vio tocar indebidamente a nadie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11825818\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11825818 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/025_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rosa Reynaga, antigua asistente del padre Antonio Castañeda, dijo que ella y otros feligreses le acompañaban a menudo a las casas de la gente para que pudiera rezar por ellos. El sacerdote le pedía que saliera de la habitación en un momento determinado de la oración. Dice que nunca le vio tocar indebidamente a nadie. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Algunas supuestas víctimas dijeron que Castañeda tenía a otra persona en el cuarto ayudándole durante los supuestos masajes de oración. Personas que presenciaron los rituales de Castañeda dijeron que el sacerdote alegaba haber sacado sustancias amarillas o negras de los cuerpos de la gente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Algunos feligreses dijeron que Castañeda también les dijo que él era un psicólogo autorizado. Fueron infructuosos los intentos por encontrar algún registro de que Castañeda estuviera autorizado para ejercer la psicología.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Jugaba con la mente de las personas”, dijo Rodríguez. “Y les decía, usted tiene cáncer, o tiene esta enfermedad, tiene esta o aquella. Y siempre estaba poniendo enfermedades a las personas, para después tratar de curarlas”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Los registros del juzgado muestran que un exfeligrés, José Magaña, le dijo a la policía que, en 2015, Castañeda le pidió que lo acompañara mientras oraba por un hombre joven que sufría de drogadicción. Magaña dijo que él vio que Castañeda metió la mano por uno de los huecos del calzoncillo bóxer del hombre y haló sus genitales mientras el hombre gritaba. Magaña le dijo a la policía que él se fue confuso y afectado espiritualmente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Magaña dijo que él después le contó el incidente a sus compañeros feligreses. “Y les dije, ¿saben qué?, pasó eso, eso. (Y ellos dijeron), o no te preocupes, es que si lo hace pero es parte de la oración”, dijo Magaña. “Y dije, ‘pero es que no era necesario’”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘La gente podría decir, bueno, es un problema sólo de la Iglesia Católica. Yo diría que es un problema de concentración de poder y falta de supervisión.’",
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"citation": "Prof. Kristy Nabhan-Warren, Directora de Estudios Católicos, Universidad de Iowa",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En las tradiciones pentecostés y católica carismática es común que un líder de la fe se anuncie como un instrumento de Dios, dijo la profesora Kristy Nabhan-Warren, presidenta de estudios católicos en la Universidad de Iowa.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Cada vez que estás ante un patriarcado fuerte o una concentración intensa de poder en alguna institución (…) tendrás abuso”, dijo. “La gente puede decir, bueno, es un problema que solo se da en la Iglesia Católica. Diría que es un problema de concentración de poder y falta de supervisión”, explicó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Una acusación anterior\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nAños antes de que alguien hiciera una denuncia en Fresno, la Iglesia Católica en el estado de Washington había lidiado con una acusación de mala conducta en contra de Castañeda. Los registros que obtuvo KQED muestran que un exvoluntario de la iglesia alegó que Castañeda lo había tocado de manera inapropiada cuando Castañeda era pastor en la parroquia San Juan Diego, en Cowiche, a 20 minutos al noroeste de Yákima, Washington, de 2003 a 2005.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En 2007, cuando la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín estaba considerando contratar a Castañeda, ellos solicitaron los servicios de Oxford Document Management Company para realizar una revisión de antecedentes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>La compañía mandó un cuestionario a la Diócesis Católica de Yákima, el anterior empleador de Castañeda, haciendo preguntas que incluyeron si él, en alguna vez, había tenido contacto sexual en un contexto profesional.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El obispo Carlos A. Sevilla de la Diócesis de Yákima \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6957627-Diocese-Corr-AC-May-24-2007-Re-AC-Questionaire.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">contestó\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés), diciendo que él no podía responder el cuestionario, pero que Castañeda había sido dado de baja de su puesto clerical en la Iglesia Católica por “razones significativas y graves”. Una \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6957642-Fax-and-Memo.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">carta de seguimiento\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) dio detalles adicionales: Castañeda había violado el sello de confesión.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sin embargo, Castañeda fue ordenado por la Diócesis Anglicana en 2008.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://cdn.knightlab.com/libs/timeline3/latest/embed/index.html?source=1NIcyRVlsmmpiyWx6vL-KLy28B0W5ofcPeMBvMv-Hwa4&font=Default&lang=en&initial_zoom=2&height=650\" width=\"100%\" height=\"650\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Con el tiempo, la Diócesis Católica prestó atención a la acusación del voluntario de la iglesia, según un memorándum interno que obtuvo KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6952052-Yakima-Investigator-Memo-4.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">documento\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés), al que se le han eliminado muchas partes, hace un resumen de la conversación telefónica entre una investigadora privada y el hombre, quien dijo que le tenía miedo a Castañeda porque “había tenido una mala experiencia” con él. Él le dijo a la investigadora que Castañeda había “abusado de su poder” y a veces era “sexualmente agresivo” con él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El hombre dijo que Castañeda le había pedido examinarlo después de haberle dicho al sacerdote que había descubierto un tumor en uno de sus testículos.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“La víctima le dijo que ya había ido al doctor a lo cual el padre Castañeda declaró: ‘Yo soy doctor y soy responsable de tu salud. Tienes que dejarme verlo’”, dice el documento. “La víctima dijo: ‘el padre Castañeda empezó a tocarme y a decirme que lo dejara revisar mis testículos’”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cuando la investigadora le preguntó si Castañeda había tocado el pene del hombre, él dijo, “Sí, allí y toda el área de mis testículos y luego él dijo que todo se veía bien”, de acuerdo con el documento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El hombre dijo que él se molestó mucho con Castañeda y “le preguntó si ya estaba feliz”, dice el documento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Después de la entrevista de la investigadora con el ex voluntario de la iglesia, la Diócesis Católica en Yákima \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6929503-Informing-of-Allegation.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">notificó\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) sobre la acusación a la Diócesis Anglicana de Fresno en agosto de 2009.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero el obispo anglicano de aquel entonces, John-David Schofield, \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6954448-Corr-W-Anglicans-Re-AC-July-Sept-2009-4.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">respondió\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) diciendo que él había entrevistado a Castañeda y que, “en la medida de mis capacidades, me parece que el Padre Antonio ha sido acusado falsamente”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No está claro si los funcionarios diocesanos en Fresno en alguna ocasión dieron a conocer la acusación a los feligreses de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. Hay 15 feligreses actuales y anteriores – de los 23 entrevistados para este reportaje – que dijeron que a ellos nunca se les informó que se había registrado una acusación anterior en contra de Castañeda. Los ocho feligreses restantes no respondieron a las llamadas de seguimiento sobre si se les había informado.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cuando se preguntó si los feligreses habían sido notificados de la acusación, el actual obispo de la diócesis, Menees, dijo en un correo electrónico: “Debido al proceso penal y civil pendiente, los abogados me han aconsejado que no haga comentario”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘Empecé a darme cuenta de que, bueno, esto no estaba bien. No tenía ni idea de cuántas personas estaban pasando por lo mismo que yo.’",
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"citation": "Luis (Luis es un seudónimo. KQED no utiliza los nombres reales de los presuntos supervivientes de agresiones sexuales en este reportaje.)",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tres personas también levantaron una demanda legal en contra de Castañeda y de la Diócesis Anglicana. Ellos alegan que Castañeda abusó sexualmente de ellos y que el sacerdote y la iglesia violaron su confianza. En la demanda legal se alega que la iglesia fue negligente al contratar y supervisar a Castañeda, lo cual resultó en imposición de estrés emocional.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El año pasado, cuando la Diócesis de Yákima publicó su \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6774404-Yakima-Diocese-Abuse-Disclosure-List-07-09-19.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">lista de sacerdotes acusados con fundamento\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés), Castañeda no estaba incluido. El monseñor Robert Siler explicó que eso se debe a que Castañeda nunca fue acusado de abusar de un menor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Yo creo que nuestro sistema legal reconoce que los adultos tienen más capacidad de decir, ‘no,’ y de hacer reportes y de presentarse”, dijo él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero Siler dijo que la responsabilidad de no volver a cometer la ofensa queda en Castañeda – no en una iglesia que anteriormente lo empleó – y que “hicimos tanto como pudimos” para advertir a la Diócesis Anglicana.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No me puedo imaginar que la Diócesis de Yákima tuviera los recursos para andar siguiéndolo con un anuncio que dijera, por ejemplo, ‘No se acerquen a este hombre’”, dijo él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“Yo quería estar bien, así que regresé”\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nDe regreso en Fresno, Luis pensó que por fin estaba ganándose la confianza de su familia de nuevo al estar involucrado con la iglesia y al ir a la oficina de Castañeda para los masajes de oración.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Luis dijo que el sacerdote le dijo que como él había estado con tantas mujeres, él estaba maldito y que, para saber cómo es que tenía que ser sanado, tenía que ver su semen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“El estaba en la oficina y me dijo: ‘Es que yo tengo que verlo, mi muchacho, yo tengo que sanarlo de eso que usted tiene. Y necesito verlo. Y yo le decía no’”, dijo Luis a KQED, añadiendo que el sacerdote empezó a pedirle que se quitara su calzoncillo bóxer para las sesiones.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Durante un masaje, Luis testificó, Castañeda colocó una toalla en su regazo y metió la mano por debajo de la toalla – jalándole fuerte de repente el pene. Luis dijo que él se tuvo que doblar repentinamente del dolor y trató de agarrar a Castañeda, pero no pudo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Él le dijo a Castañeda que no le tocara allí.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cuando Luis salió de la oficina, dijo que su calzoncillo bóxer estaba manchado de sangre. Luis dijo que sintió que Castañeda lo había manipulado a él y a otros feligreses que estaban “puros ansiosos de estar bien en nuestras vidas”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11826162\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11826162 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/011_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_BW_05232020.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luis había luchado contra la adicción a la metanfetamina y esperaba poder ganarse de nuevo la confianza de su familia si seguía participando en la iglesia y acudía al despacho del padre Antonio Castañeda para recibir masajes de oración. Luis dijo que el sacerdote le dijo que, por haber estado con tantas mujeres, estaba maldito. Para saber cómo tenía que curarse, dijo que el sacerdote le dijo que tenía que ver su semen. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Luis después testificó que las sesiones con el padre Antonio se llevaron a cabo durante el curso de varios años, comenzando aproximadamente en 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Entonces, me metí esa espinita de que estoy mal o estoy cayendo otra vez en lo mismo. Entonces, yo no quería eso. Yo quería estar bien”, dijo Luis. “Volví a ir otra vez a sus sesiones”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero el estar libre de drogas también le ha dado a Luis un sentido de claridad.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Hasta que poco a poco, me fui dando cuenta de que pues, en realidad, no estaba bien lo que estaba pasando”, dijo él. “Yo no tenía ni idea de cuántas personas estaban pasando lo mismo que yo”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Expulsado del sacerdocio de nuevo\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nEn el otoño de 2017, después de que varios feligreses de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe contaron al obispo Menees de la Diócesis Anglicana sobre el ministerio de sanación del Padre Antonio, Menees dijo que él confrontó a Castañeda sobre las alegaciones.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Su respuesta inmediata fue decir: ‘Sí, yo aprendí este ministerio de sanación en India’”, Menees dijo en una entrevista de junio de 2019 antes de declinar hacer más comentarios. “Y yo simplemente dije: ‘No, no lo hiciste’”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Menees dijo que los sacerdotes con frecuencia ungen a los feligreses al hacer la señal de la cruz en la frente.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“El tocar cualquier otro lugar – y ciertamente quitarles la ropa – siempre sería absolutamente prohibido”, añadió él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Aunque es común en algunos países de América Latina y en comunidades latinas en los Estados Unidos consultar a un sanador tradicional que usa masajes, el contacto es más para ayudar con músculos tensos o una torcedura, y nunca tiene que ver con tocar los genitales, dijo Mario González, subdirector de Centro la Familia, una organización sin fines de lucro que ayuda a víctimas de crímenes y trabaja con la Oficina del Fiscal del Distrito del Condado de Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Yo no veo la razón por la que un (sanador) tuviera contacto con esa parte privada”, dijo González.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Es porque no existe una razón, dijo el profesor de psicología de UCLA, Paul R. Abramson, quien trabaja como testigo experto en casos de abuso sexual civiles y penales.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Si tiene que ver con los genitales, la intención es sexual. Él está enfocándose en la gente que no va a ir a la policía”, dijo él.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Después de que los hombres se presentaron con la acusación, la Diócesis Anglicana suspendió de inmediato a Castañeda de sus obligaciones sacerdotales. Menees dijo que Castañeda firmó una declaración admitiendo algo de lo que se alegó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Los registros del juzgado muestran que otro sacerdote de la Diócesis Anglicana de San Joaquín dijo a la policía que Castañeda estuvo de acuerdo con hacer un anuncio haciéndose responsable de sus acciones en una próxima misa de domingo, pero no se presentó.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Él fue removido permanentemente de la Iglesia Anglicana poco después de eso, dijo Menees, añadiendo que Castañeda después se retractó de su declaración.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>La policía de Fresno investigó a Castañeda durante más de un año y lo arrestó en febrero de 2019. El siguiente día, la policía y los fiscales llevaron a cabo una conferencia de prensa urgiendo a que más víctimas se presentaran.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Las víctimas con quienes se ha hecho contacto hasta ahora (son) hispanohablantes en su mayoría, y son indocumentados”, dijo Jerry Dyer, jefe de la policía de Fresno en aquel entonces. “Parece que son ellos de quien él está abusando.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En la conferencia de prensa, Dyer dijo que los detectives creen que Castañeda ha abusado sexualmente de cientos de personas. Los oficiales obtuvieron ese cálculo al ver la cantidad de gente que se había presentado hasta ese entonces, y multiplicando la cantidad de años que Castañeda ha estado activo como sacerdote en California y en Washington, dijo Dyer después en una entrevista.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El feligrés Magaña dijo que él habló con varios hombres que le revelaron que ellos fueron víctimas de abuso después de que se hicieron públicas las acusaciones contra Castañeda.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Les dije, ¿cómo permitieron?” dijo Magaña. “Querían sanar. Ellos estaban enfermos, querían sanar y así era. Así fue”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11825821\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11825821 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2020/06/060_KQED_Fresno_RestinSpirit_05232020.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luis es una de las al menos nueve personas que figuran como presuntas víctimas en la causa penal contra Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna, o Padre Antonio Castañeda. Castañeda enfrenta a 22 cargos de agresión, agresión sexual, intento de agresión sexual e intento de disuadir a un testigo. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>El sacerdote reinventado\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nVarios meses después de que Castañeda saliera de la cárcel bajo fianza, él llevó a cabo una misa de domingo dentro de un espacio rentado en Fresno en su nueva iglesia, Iglesia del Espíritu Santo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Después de haber sido expulsado de las iglesias católica y anglicana, él fue ordenado como ministro por la World Communion of Christian Celtic Convergence Churches, con sede en el Reino Unido. El \u003ca href=\"http://www.celticconvergencechurch.org/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">sitio de Internet\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés) de la organización dice que está abierta a los obispos, sacerdotes y diáconos ordenados que “han fallado anteriormente en liderazgo de la iglesia”, independientemente de su “historia, estatus y daño”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Menees dijo que muchos exmiembros de Nuestra Señora siguieron a Castañeda a su nueva iglesia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Él nunca tocó a nadie”, dijo Flor Hernández, quien, junto con su esposo, Javier Hernández, dejaron la iglesia anglicana para seguirlo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hernández, quien ha recolectado cartas de apoyo para el sacerdote, dijo que ella estuvo en el cuarto una o dos veces cuando Castañeda tuvo sesión personal con feligreses y nunca vio abuso.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Cuando él hacía la misa, el lugar estaba repleto”, dijo ella mientras mostraba una fotografía de una iglesia llena hasta su capacidad y Castañeda sosteniendo sus manos sobre la cabeza de una mujer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Durante la audiencia de juicio preliminar del sacerdote en el otoño de 2019, sus simpatizantes asistieron y se les oyó reírse, burlarse y sacudir la cabeza durante el testimonio de los testigos.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Para mí, todo esto que sucedió fue celos, envidia”, dijo la feligresa Imelda Cruz después de uno de los servicios de domingo de Castañeda.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Los simpatizantes de Castañeda en repetidas ocasiones han señalado que algunos de los acusadores en un tiempo fueron los aliados más allegados del sacerdote y le ayudaron con su ministerio de sanación.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bruce Taylor, el arzobispo para Norteamérica de la actual iglesia de Castañeda, dijo que la organización no hizo una revisión de antecedentes de Castañeda antes de contratarlo ya que él ya había sido ordenado y revisado por otras dos diócesis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taylor dijo que Castañeda se sometió a una evaluación psicológica y él exigió que el sacerdote fuera entrevistado por tres mujeres que, dijo él, fueron víctimas de abuso sexual durante la infancia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Las mujeres que tienen ese tipo de historial tiene un sexto sentido, dijo Taylor. “Ellas me llamaron y me dijeron: ‘No, él no es así. No, él no pudo haber hecho esto’”.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taylor sugirió que los acusadores del sacerdote pudieran estar haciendo acusaciones falsas para obtener estatus legal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Los inmigrantes ilegales pueden llegar a obtener estatus legal si se comete un crimen en su contra. Esto pudiera ser un factor que motive las acusaciones falsas en contra del Padre Antonio”, dijo Taylor a KQED en correo electrónico.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Torres, el abogado de Castañeda, también les preguntó a los testigos en el juzgado si ellos hicieron solicitud para cambiar su estatus legal a cambio de testificar.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No está claro cuántas de las supuestas víctimas hayan solicitado la visa U – para víctimas de crímenes que cooperan con las agencias de ley en investigaciones o en proceso legal en casos penales. Pero los defensores comunitarios y la policía han retrocedido, diciendo que al presentarse los acusadores se ponen todavía bajo más escrutinio por parte de las autoridades federales.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“¿Quién inventaría tal mentira solo para obtener un documento? ¿Quién se expondrá a sí mismo ante casos de juzgado, a revisión de antecedentes penales, al criterio de USCIS (Servicio de Ciudadanía e Inmigración de Estados Unidos)?”, dijo González del Centro la Familia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mientras tanto, los feligreses de Castañeda siguieron acudiendo a sus servicios. Desde que la orden de California de quedarse en casa impuso restricciones temporales a los servicios religiosos en persona, el sacerdote ha estado dando sus sermones a los feligreses que asisten tanto en persona como virtualmente por Facebook Live.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Tenemos fe en que la verdad va a salir”, dijo Flor Hernández.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>¿Tienes información o casos para posibles historias que quieras compartir con nosotros? Puedes enviar un correo electrónico a la reportera: \u003ca href=\"mailto:ahall@kqed.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ahall@kqed.org | \u003c/a>Twitter \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/chalexhall\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@chalexhall\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Este artículo fue traducido por Raquel Arciniega y la periodista \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/soytapatia?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">María Peña \u003c/a>del equipo de KQED en Español. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "how-generations-of-berkeley-high-students-forced-a-reckoning-about-sexual-abuse",
"title": "How Generations of Berkeley High Students Forced a Reckoning About Sexual Abuse",
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"content": "\u003cp>The Women’s Student Union at Berkeley High School \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.com/2021/03/11/womens-student-union-at-berkeley-high-sues-dept-of-ed-to-overturn-trump-era-sexual-misconduct-rules\">sued the U.S. Department of Education earlier this month\u003c/a> over Title IX rules adopted during the Trump administration that govern how schools respond to cases of sexual harassment and assault.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those rules, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/05/06/851733630/federal-rules-give-more-protection-to-students-accused-of-sexual-assault\">announced last May and implemented in August under former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos \u003c/a>, offer more protections for students who are accused of sexual misconduct. They apply to colleges as well as K-12 schools. The Women’s Student Union – a student-founded and student-led group that advocates for policies to reduce sexual harassment on Berkeley High’s campus – argued in its \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20517245-20210308-doc-1-complaint\">lawsuit\u003c/a> that the policy discourages students from reporting harassment and schools from investigating complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This latest action by students comes more than a year after victims and advocates at Berkeley High organized a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11801840/reckoning-with-sexual-assault-at-berkeley-high-school\">walkout\u003c/a> in February 2020 to demand changes over how misconduct was handled on their own campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Ayisha Friedman, Berkeley High alum\"]‘I was always seeing somebody who had done something or experienced something or a hallway where something had been done. It’s always on your mind and it’s always breaking your heart.’[/pullquote]“We were realizing that a lot of the issues that students at Berkeley High were facing stemmed from national policies,” said Ava, a junior at Berkeley High and one of the students who filed the lawsuit. “And if we could change national policies, we could help people at every school in the United States, not just Berkeley High.” KQED is identifying Ava by only her first name over fears she could face harassment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the year since the walkout, the Berkeley Unified School District has adopted some changes in response to students’ demands. In December, the district \u003ca href=\"https://berkeleyhighjacket.com/2020/features/busd-implements-title-ix-reform-demanded-by-students/\">announced\u003c/a> they had hired a full-time Title IX coordinator and investigator, and set up a committee of mostly Berkeley High School students to lead some of the changes around consent education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not the first time the district’s students and adult advocates have demanded changes in how their schools handle misconduct complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>A History of Activism at Berkeley High\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>In 2014, Berkeley High alum Liana Thomason and her classmates \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/10392296/berkeley-high-students-trying-to-change-schools-sexual-harassment-policy\">started the group BHS Stop Harassing\u003c/a>. She said they founded the group after comments made during a school assembly seemed to blame harassment on the ways students dressed. But Thomason said the need was about more than just those comments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The unofficial story is that there had just been this culture of harassment in Berkeley High and middle school. There was Slap Ass Friday where boys would slap the girls’ asses on Friday,” Thomason said. “And it was just like, ‘This is what the world is like. That’s fine.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After the assembly, Thomason invited a group of female friends to her house to talk about what they saw as a culture of unchecked harassment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We realized that we had to say something. We had to let the school know that it was not OK,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Maha Ibrahim, attorney with Equal Rights Advocates\"]‘Not only was there an assumption that students wouldn’t face these issues at school, but there was a resistance to admit it could possibly be a problem. It was sort of like, ‘Well, this can’t be us. We’re Berkeley.”[/pullquote]Berkeley High students had also \u003ca href=\"https://www.dailycal.org/2015/10/02/berkeley-unified-school-district-inadequately-handles-sexual-harassment/\">created\u003c/a> an Instagram account on which some female students were referred to as “sluts” alongside degrading photos of them. Thomason was also motivated to address these issues after her sister was sexually assaulted at a middle school bike cage in 2014. She said the school responded by setting up a restorative justice circle that traumatized her sister even more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Thomason’s mother, Heidi Goldstein, became an adviser for BHS Stop Harassing and is still working on these issues today.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I started researching Title IX and school district policies,” Goldstein said. “And that’s where I came to the conclusion that the whole system was just in disarray. There was no system and there really was no process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11865854\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11865854\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Liana Thomason, right, a Berkeley High alum, founded the group BHS Stop Harassing. Her mother Heidi Goldstein continues to be an adult adviser for the group. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Goldstein filed a \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/OCR-Letter-1-14-2015.pdf\">complaint\u003c/a> with the U.S Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights about how the school handled misconduct complaints, prompting an investigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Members of BHS Stop Harassing began showing up at school board meetings to demand better policies around sexual harassment and more training for teachers as well as education for students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Berkeley Public School District places an immense value on student safety and well-being,” former BUSD Superintendent Donald Evans and BUSD Board President Judy Appel wrote in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Sexual-Harrassment-Letter-v4c-1-7-.pdf\">letter\u003c/a> to district families at the time. “Based on student, teacher, and community feedback about this and other related issues, we have come to realize that there is an urgent need to work on developing a culture focused on prevention of sexual harassment, not simply reacting to it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>The Wild West of Title IX Regulations\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Maha Ibrahim, an attorney with Equal Rights Advocates, a nonprofit that advocates for gender equity in schools, has worked with Berkeley High students. She said few schools do a sufficient job responding to sexual harassment or assault claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The federal rules and regulations for Title IX have been written for universities – and schools K-12 were an afterthought,” Ibrahim said. “It’s like the Wild West. It’s a lot of individual adults who are shooting from the hip when approached with difficult or traumatic experiences of their students.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=news_11859164 hero='https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/02/RS46527_003_SanFrancisco_LowellHS_01092021-qut-1038x576.jpg']According to a new \u003ca href=\"https://www.knowyourix.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Know-Your-IX-2021-Report-Final-Copy.pdf\">report\u003c/a> from the advocacy group Know Your IX, a survey of more than 100 students found that 20% of students who reported sexual violence to their school transferred schools, and nearly 10% dropped out entirely.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But she said Berkeley’s progressive image also made it difficult for some to acknowledge that some students felt unsafe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Not only was there an assumption that students wouldn’t face these issues at school, but there was a resistance to admit it could possibly be a problem,” Ibrahim said. “It was sort of like, ‘Well, this can’t be us. We’re Berkeley.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In response to demands from students made in 2014, the district \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyschools.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/ActionStepstoAddressSexualHarassment3.8.17.docx-1.pdf\">said\u003c/a> it expanded an advisory committee to create a comprehensive sexual harassment policy, held restorative justice circles for students who were targeted by sexual harassment and established a Title IX coordinator and compliance officer position.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>A Lawsuit and a Sexual Assault Reported on Campus\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>But students say the problems continued. The district was sued by a student over its handling of a sexual assault allegation last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges a student was sexually assaulted by another student during school hours in an unlocked classroom at Berkeley High in 2019. It claims the district failed to take steps to adequately ensure the victim’s safety. KQED is identifying the student as “Faith” to protect her identity over concerns for her safety. In the lawsuit, she is identified as “Jane Doe.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Faith said she kept seeing her assailant on campus after the assault, and that he continued to sexually harass her. She said she had meltdowns for months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Usually, I’m a happy, goofy person. My teachers were just worried, and they would always just look at me and they’re like, ‘You look so sad,’ ” Faith said. “They would try to help me get back to how I used to be. And it was just hard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11865919\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11865919\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Faith sits with hands on knees, only legs and shoes visible\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Faith, a former Berkeley High student, sued the district in January 2020 over its handling of her sexual assault allegations against a fellow student. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Eventually, Faith and her parents decided it was too much, and she transferred into an independent studies program. Attorneys for the district argued in a court filing that administrators worked with Faith to make sure she was safe, and they tried to limit the potential for contact between the two students. They said district personnel were responsive to Faith’s complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Faith \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/RG20052743-Doe-VS-Berkeley-Unified-School-District.pdf\">sued the district\u003c/a> in January 2020 before she left Berkeley High the next month, and she said students at the school began talking about the case, trying to guess the identity of Jane Doe. She said it was scary, but that she also felt resilient knowing she had helped spark a larger conversation about safety on campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I just want there to be a change, especially being a person of color. I became a person of color who was also assaulted,” Faith said. “It was just something I had to speak up on, because my voice is not heard by a lot of people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>The Names on the Bathroom Stall\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Some Berkeley High students had already thought the school had a culture where sexual misconduct was swept under the rug, but the lawsuit Faith filed seemed to break something open.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Days after the lawsuit was filed, a group of Berkeley High students began writing the names of alleged perpetrators on a bathroom stall. In black ink, they wrote “Boys To Watch Out 4,” followed by several names and the words “rapist” and “abuser.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11864779\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11864779\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/IMG_0893-e1616451221449.jpg\" alt=\"Ayisha Friedman sitting outside, arms crossed\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1440\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ayisha Friedman organized a walkout over sexual harassment and assault at Berkeley High in February 2020. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Ayisha Friedman)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Ayisha Friedman, a senior at Berkeley High during this time, said she saw the list during first or second period. Reading the list, Friedman thought about her friends who’d been harassed or assaulted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was always seeing somebody who had done something or experienced something or a hallway where something had been done. It’s always on your mind and it’s always breaking your heart,” Friedman said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Friedman said a lot of the boys were popular and known for inappropriate behavior around young women. She said the list was impossible to ignore. By the end of the school day, a picture of the stall had been shared on Instagram, and it felt like everyone in the school had seen it and had something to say.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And that goes both ways. That goes people who were defending these women and who are saying, ‘I believe you, I am here for you,’ ” Friedman said. “And then people on the other side who were like, ‘Anybody could have written this. And this is a lie.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>A Walkout Gets the District’s Attention\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Several students who spoke to KQED described a climate at the high school where victims who reported their assaults to administrators were questioned or doubted by their peers. Students wanted the school district to do more to support victims and keep them safe on campus. Friedman and others began organizing a walkout.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mia Redmond, one of the organizers, reported her own sexual assault about a week before the walkout in February 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This was in the midst of a really hard situation. But we were all coming together and working on something that we really cared about,” Redmond said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said she found a supportive community during a time when others were gossiping about her experience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was so tense,” said Sophia Kerievsky, another organizer and friend of Redmond. “I remember people were pointing at me in the courtyard, and just really attacking my character, and especially her character. It was this strange energy. It was a lot of girls who were standing up for her, and then a huge group of boys standing by his side.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11864969\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11864969\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/BHS_Rape_Walkout-17-1-1-scaled-e1616451482414.jpg\" alt=\"BHS students behind podium during walkout\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1353\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Berkeley High School students organized a walkout in February 2020 to address sexual harassment and assault on campus. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Mia Redmond)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The day of the walkout, Redmond wasn’t sure how many people would show up. So when she looked out at the courtyard, she was stunned by the support, and said the entire courtyard was filled with students, staff and administration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It made me feel like I wasn’t alone in it. At the time I was feeling a lot of lack of understanding,” Redmond said. “And it definitely gave me a group of people who I was like, ‘I can trust these people. These people support me, and I want to support these people.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>A Practical and Philosophical Set of Demands\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>The students drafted up specific demands, such as more resources for the Title IX office handling misconduct complaints, expanded consent education and policies stating that perpetrators found to be guilty by the school would be suspended from school-sanctioned events. They wanted to create a culture where victims could heal, and for the school to continue the conversation long after they had graduated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Superintendent Brent Stephens had begun working for the district less than a year before the walkout, and he said many of the students’ requests were practical, and that change felt necessary. There had also been high turnover in the district’s Title IX coordinator role, with at least six different people working in that position from 2015 to 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The students, he said, had done their homework, and met with teachers, staff and adult advocates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And so when they came with a set of demands, they were sort of philosophical in nature, but they were very pragmatic as well,” Stephens said. “It was … a political moment, but it resonated with what I and many others saw as legitimate needs of the district.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>The Conversation Continues Online\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Just weeks after the walkout, schools shut down because of COVID-19. And as everyone focused on the pandemic, the momentum began to fade.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, Annette Kwon, a former Berkeley High student now at Branham High School in San Jose, decided to find another way to restart the conversation. Over the summer, she made a TikTok video showing the faces of alleged perpetrators at Berkeley High and Lowell High School in San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11865849\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11865849\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/IMG_6669.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"537\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/IMG_6669.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/IMG_6669-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Annette Kwon, a former Berkeley High student, created a TikTok video to continue a public conversation around sexual harassment and assault in high school. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Annette Kwon)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“When the quarantine started, everything died down,” she said. “And I just felt like it was necessary that the topic stays relevant, because if it had faded out once again, nothing would change.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The video received over 100,000 views, and soon students throughout the Bay Area launched Instagram accounts for people to post their experiences of harassment and assault anonymously.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mia Redmond remembered seeing dozens of stories of harassment and assault posted on an Instagram account called BHS Protectors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It just felt like everyone was coming together again, and addressing the issue again that we had done in February,” Redmond said. “It was powerful to see not only so many people at Berkeley High being able to tell their stories, that they couldn’t talk about before, but also other schools following that, too.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label='Education Coverage' tag='education']But for others, the account was also overwhelming, especially during a pandemic that left so many people isolated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of people were like, ‘I’m in a pandemic, I’m in my room 24/7. This is already messing with my mental health. And everyday I open my Instagram and I’m reminded of my own trauma,’ ” said Ayisha Friedman, another walkout organizer, of people she knew who had seen the account. “Where does the conversation go? You’re stuck in your room with no support.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trish McDermott, a spokesperson for the Berkeley Unified School District, said in a statement that administrators reached out to those who posted about incidents of sexual harm, discrimination or racism, and those who were named in the posts. She said administrators also informed police and Child Protective Services about the account and specific allegations that could be traced to any students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The account has since been removed, and now students who participated in the walkout are hoping some of the cultural shifts inspired by their organizing will last when the pandemic is over.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>District Announces Changes, and the Culture Begins to Shift\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Ultraviolet Schneider-Dwyer, a senior at Berkeley High, said that before the walkout a lot of the incidents of harassment and assault occurred during parties where young people were too intoxicated to consent. She’s hopeful her peers will no longer tolerate that culture after so many students shared their experiences of abuse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There will be more social consequences than there are administrative or academically,” she said. “At the same time, I’m just making sure that they’re not doing it out of fear of not being accepted, but they’re doing it because it’s the right thing to do.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, Mia Redmond is a part of a committee to give students a chance to provide the school with input on issues like harassment and consent education. She feels like the district is taking students’ demands seriously. She’s graduating this year and plans to continue her advocacy after high school. And she said it will be up to future generations of Berkeley High students as well as administrators to make sure the changes she and others started will last.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I can’t say for certain whether [the walkout] changed the culture at Berkeley High, but it definitely brought up a conversation that wasn’t being had before,” Redmond said. “It was such a monumental thing in Berkeley High history that everyone who experienced it, they’re not going to forget about it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://revealnews.org/podcast/protecting-kids-from-abuse/\">This story\u003c/a> was reported in collaboration with Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX. It was produced as a project for the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism Impact Fund.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The Women’s Student Union at Berkeley High School \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.com/2021/03/11/womens-student-union-at-berkeley-high-sues-dept-of-ed-to-overturn-trump-era-sexual-misconduct-rules\">sued the U.S. Department of Education earlier this month\u003c/a> over Title IX rules adopted during the Trump administration that govern how schools respond to cases of sexual harassment and assault.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those rules, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/05/06/851733630/federal-rules-give-more-protection-to-students-accused-of-sexual-assault\">announced last May and implemented in August under former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos \u003c/a>, offer more protections for students who are accused of sexual misconduct. They apply to colleges as well as K-12 schools. The Women’s Student Union – a student-founded and student-led group that advocates for policies to reduce sexual harassment on Berkeley High’s campus – argued in its \u003ca href=\"https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20517245-20210308-doc-1-complaint\">lawsuit\u003c/a> that the policy discourages students from reporting harassment and schools from investigating complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This latest action by students comes more than a year after victims and advocates at Berkeley High organized a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11801840/reckoning-with-sexual-assault-at-berkeley-high-school\">walkout\u003c/a> in February 2020 to demand changes over how misconduct was handled on their own campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘I was always seeing somebody who had done something or experienced something or a hallway where something had been done. It’s always on your mind and it’s always breaking your heart.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“We were realizing that a lot of the issues that students at Berkeley High were facing stemmed from national policies,” said Ava, a junior at Berkeley High and one of the students who filed the lawsuit. “And if we could change national policies, we could help people at every school in the United States, not just Berkeley High.” KQED is identifying Ava by only her first name over fears she could face harassment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the year since the walkout, the Berkeley Unified School District has adopted some changes in response to students’ demands. In December, the district \u003ca href=\"https://berkeleyhighjacket.com/2020/features/busd-implements-title-ix-reform-demanded-by-students/\">announced\u003c/a> they had hired a full-time Title IX coordinator and investigator, and set up a committee of mostly Berkeley High School students to lead some of the changes around consent education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not the first time the district’s students and adult advocates have demanded changes in how their schools handle misconduct complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>A History of Activism at Berkeley High\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>In 2014, Berkeley High alum Liana Thomason and her classmates \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/10392296/berkeley-high-students-trying-to-change-schools-sexual-harassment-policy\">started the group BHS Stop Harassing\u003c/a>. She said they founded the group after comments made during a school assembly seemed to blame harassment on the ways students dressed. But Thomason said the need was about more than just those comments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The unofficial story is that there had just been this culture of harassment in Berkeley High and middle school. There was Slap Ass Friday where boys would slap the girls’ asses on Friday,” Thomason said. “And it was just like, ‘This is what the world is like. That’s fine.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After the assembly, Thomason invited a group of female friends to her house to talk about what they saw as a culture of unchecked harassment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We realized that we had to say something. We had to let the school know that it was not OK,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘Not only was there an assumption that students wouldn’t face these issues at school, but there was a resistance to admit it could possibly be a problem. It was sort of like, ‘Well, this can’t be us. We’re Berkeley.”",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Berkeley High students had also \u003ca href=\"https://www.dailycal.org/2015/10/02/berkeley-unified-school-district-inadequately-handles-sexual-harassment/\">created\u003c/a> an Instagram account on which some female students were referred to as “sluts” alongside degrading photos of them. Thomason was also motivated to address these issues after her sister was sexually assaulted at a middle school bike cage in 2014. She said the school responded by setting up a restorative justice circle that traumatized her sister even more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Thomason’s mother, Heidi Goldstein, became an adviser for BHS Stop Harassing and is still working on these issues today.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I started researching Title IX and school district policies,” Goldstein said. “And that’s where I came to the conclusion that the whole system was just in disarray. There was no system and there really was no process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11865854\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11865854\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47860_015_Berkeley_LianaThomason_03162021-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Liana Thomason, right, a Berkeley High alum, founded the group BHS Stop Harassing. Her mother Heidi Goldstein continues to be an adult adviser for the group. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Goldstein filed a \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/OCR-Letter-1-14-2015.pdf\">complaint\u003c/a> with the U.S Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights about how the school handled misconduct complaints, prompting an investigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Members of BHS Stop Harassing began showing up at school board meetings to demand better policies around sexual harassment and more training for teachers as well as education for students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Berkeley Public School District places an immense value on student safety and well-being,” former BUSD Superintendent Donald Evans and BUSD Board President Judy Appel wrote in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Sexual-Harrassment-Letter-v4c-1-7-.pdf\">letter\u003c/a> to district families at the time. “Based on student, teacher, and community feedback about this and other related issues, we have come to realize that there is an urgent need to work on developing a culture focused on prevention of sexual harassment, not simply reacting to it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>The Wild West of Title IX Regulations\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Maha Ibrahim, an attorney with Equal Rights Advocates, a nonprofit that advocates for gender equity in schools, has worked with Berkeley High students. She said few schools do a sufficient job responding to sexual harassment or assault claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The federal rules and regulations for Title IX have been written for universities – and schools K-12 were an afterthought,” Ibrahim said. “It’s like the Wild West. It’s a lot of individual adults who are shooting from the hip when approached with difficult or traumatic experiences of their students.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>According to a new \u003ca href=\"https://www.knowyourix.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Know-Your-IX-2021-Report-Final-Copy.pdf\">report\u003c/a> from the advocacy group Know Your IX, a survey of more than 100 students found that 20% of students who reported sexual violence to their school transferred schools, and nearly 10% dropped out entirely.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But she said Berkeley’s progressive image also made it difficult for some to acknowledge that some students felt unsafe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Not only was there an assumption that students wouldn’t face these issues at school, but there was a resistance to admit it could possibly be a problem,” Ibrahim said. “It was sort of like, ‘Well, this can’t be us. We’re Berkeley.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In response to demands from students made in 2014, the district \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyschools.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/ActionStepstoAddressSexualHarassment3.8.17.docx-1.pdf\">said\u003c/a> it expanded an advisory committee to create a comprehensive sexual harassment policy, held restorative justice circles for students who were targeted by sexual harassment and established a Title IX coordinator and compliance officer position.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>A Lawsuit and a Sexual Assault Reported on Campus\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>But students say the problems continued. The district was sued by a student over its handling of a sexual assault allegation last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lawsuit alleges a student was sexually assaulted by another student during school hours in an unlocked classroom at Berkeley High in 2019. It claims the district failed to take steps to adequately ensure the victim’s safety. KQED is identifying the student as “Faith” to protect her identity over concerns for her safety. In the lawsuit, she is identified as “Jane Doe.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Faith said she kept seeing her assailant on campus after the assault, and that he continued to sexually harass her. She said she had meltdowns for months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Usually, I’m a happy, goofy person. My teachers were just worried, and they would always just look at me and they’re like, ‘You look so sad,’ ” Faith said. “They would try to help me get back to how I used to be. And it was just hard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11865919\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11865919\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Faith sits with hands on knees, only legs and shoes visible\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/RS47697_008_Berkeley_AnonymousFormerStudent_03122021-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Faith, a former Berkeley High student, sued the district in January 2020 over its handling of her sexual assault allegations against a fellow student. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Eventually, Faith and her parents decided it was too much, and she transferred into an independent studies program. Attorneys for the district argued in a court filing that administrators worked with Faith to make sure she was safe, and they tried to limit the potential for contact between the two students. They said district personnel were responsive to Faith’s complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Faith \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/RG20052743-Doe-VS-Berkeley-Unified-School-District.pdf\">sued the district\u003c/a> in January 2020 before she left Berkeley High the next month, and she said students at the school began talking about the case, trying to guess the identity of Jane Doe. She said it was scary, but that she also felt resilient knowing she had helped spark a larger conversation about safety on campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I just want there to be a change, especially being a person of color. I became a person of color who was also assaulted,” Faith said. “It was just something I had to speak up on, because my voice is not heard by a lot of people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>The Names on the Bathroom Stall\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Some Berkeley High students had already thought the school had a culture where sexual misconduct was swept under the rug, but the lawsuit Faith filed seemed to break something open.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Days after the lawsuit was filed, a group of Berkeley High students began writing the names of alleged perpetrators on a bathroom stall. In black ink, they wrote “Boys To Watch Out 4,” followed by several names and the words “rapist” and “abuser.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11864779\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11864779\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/IMG_0893-e1616451221449.jpg\" alt=\"Ayisha Friedman sitting outside, arms crossed\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1440\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ayisha Friedman organized a walkout over sexual harassment and assault at Berkeley High in February 2020. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Ayisha Friedman)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Ayisha Friedman, a senior at Berkeley High during this time, said she saw the list during first or second period. Reading the list, Friedman thought about her friends who’d been harassed or assaulted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was always seeing somebody who had done something or experienced something or a hallway where something had been done. It’s always on your mind and it’s always breaking your heart,” Friedman said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Friedman said a lot of the boys were popular and known for inappropriate behavior around young women. She said the list was impossible to ignore. By the end of the school day, a picture of the stall had been shared on Instagram, and it felt like everyone in the school had seen it and had something to say.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And that goes both ways. That goes people who were defending these women and who are saying, ‘I believe you, I am here for you,’ ” Friedman said. “And then people on the other side who were like, ‘Anybody could have written this. And this is a lie.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>A Walkout Gets the District’s Attention\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Several students who spoke to KQED described a climate at the high school where victims who reported their assaults to administrators were questioned or doubted by their peers. Students wanted the school district to do more to support victims and keep them safe on campus. Friedman and others began organizing a walkout.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mia Redmond, one of the organizers, reported her own sexual assault about a week before the walkout in February 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This was in the midst of a really hard situation. But we were all coming together and working on something that we really cared about,” Redmond said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said she found a supportive community during a time when others were gossiping about her experience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was so tense,” said Sophia Kerievsky, another organizer and friend of Redmond. “I remember people were pointing at me in the courtyard, and just really attacking my character, and especially her character. It was this strange energy. It was a lot of girls who were standing up for her, and then a huge group of boys standing by his side.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11864969\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11864969\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/BHS_Rape_Walkout-17-1-1-scaled-e1616451482414.jpg\" alt=\"BHS students behind podium during walkout\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1353\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Berkeley High School students organized a walkout in February 2020 to address sexual harassment and assault on campus. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Mia Redmond)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The day of the walkout, Redmond wasn’t sure how many people would show up. So when she looked out at the courtyard, she was stunned by the support, and said the entire courtyard was filled with students, staff and administration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It made me feel like I wasn’t alone in it. At the time I was feeling a lot of lack of understanding,” Redmond said. “And it definitely gave me a group of people who I was like, ‘I can trust these people. These people support me, and I want to support these people.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>A Practical and Philosophical Set of Demands\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>The students drafted up specific demands, such as more resources for the Title IX office handling misconduct complaints, expanded consent education and policies stating that perpetrators found to be guilty by the school would be suspended from school-sanctioned events. They wanted to create a culture where victims could heal, and for the school to continue the conversation long after they had graduated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Superintendent Brent Stephens had begun working for the district less than a year before the walkout, and he said many of the students’ requests were practical, and that change felt necessary. There had also been high turnover in the district’s Title IX coordinator role, with at least six different people working in that position from 2015 to 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The students, he said, had done their homework, and met with teachers, staff and adult advocates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And so when they came with a set of demands, they were sort of philosophical in nature, but they were very pragmatic as well,” Stephens said. “It was … a political moment, but it resonated with what I and many others saw as legitimate needs of the district.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>The Conversation Continues Online\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Just weeks after the walkout, schools shut down because of COVID-19. And as everyone focused on the pandemic, the momentum began to fade.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, Annette Kwon, a former Berkeley High student now at Branham High School in San Jose, decided to find another way to restart the conversation. Over the summer, she made a TikTok video showing the faces of alleged perpetrators at Berkeley High and Lowell High School in San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11865849\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11865849\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/IMG_6669.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"537\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/IMG_6669.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/IMG_6669-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Annette Kwon, a former Berkeley High student, created a TikTok video to continue a public conversation around sexual harassment and assault in high school. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Annette Kwon)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“When the quarantine started, everything died down,” she said. “And I just felt like it was necessary that the topic stays relevant, because if it had faded out once again, nothing would change.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The video received over 100,000 views, and soon students throughout the Bay Area launched Instagram accounts for people to post their experiences of harassment and assault anonymously.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mia Redmond remembered seeing dozens of stories of harassment and assault posted on an Instagram account called BHS Protectors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It just felt like everyone was coming together again, and addressing the issue again that we had done in February,” Redmond said. “It was powerful to see not only so many people at Berkeley High being able to tell their stories, that they couldn’t talk about before, but also other schools following that, too.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>But for others, the account was also overwhelming, especially during a pandemic that left so many people isolated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of people were like, ‘I’m in a pandemic, I’m in my room 24/7. This is already messing with my mental health. And everyday I open my Instagram and I’m reminded of my own trauma,’ ” said Ayisha Friedman, another walkout organizer, of people she knew who had seen the account. “Where does the conversation go? You’re stuck in your room with no support.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trish McDermott, a spokesperson for the Berkeley Unified School District, said in a statement that administrators reached out to those who posted about incidents of sexual harm, discrimination or racism, and those who were named in the posts. She said administrators also informed police and Child Protective Services about the account and specific allegations that could be traced to any students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The account has since been removed, and now students who participated in the walkout are hoping some of the cultural shifts inspired by their organizing will last when the pandemic is over.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>District Announces Changes, and the Culture Begins to Shift\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Ultraviolet Schneider-Dwyer, a senior at Berkeley High, said that before the walkout a lot of the incidents of harassment and assault occurred during parties where young people were too intoxicated to consent. She’s hopeful her peers will no longer tolerate that culture after so many students shared their experiences of abuse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There will be more social consequences than there are administrative or academically,” she said. “At the same time, I’m just making sure that they’re not doing it out of fear of not being accepted, but they’re doing it because it’s the right thing to do.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, Mia Redmond is a part of a committee to give students a chance to provide the school with input on issues like harassment and consent education. She feels like the district is taking students’ demands seriously. She’s graduating this year and plans to continue her advocacy after high school. And she said it will be up to future generations of Berkeley High students as well as administrators to make sure the changes she and others started will last.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I can’t say for certain whether [the walkout] changed the culture at Berkeley High, but it definitely brought up a conversation that wasn’t being had before,” Redmond said. “It was such a monumental thing in Berkeley High history that everyone who experienced it, they’re not going to forget about it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://revealnews.org/podcast/protecting-kids-from-abuse/\">This story\u003c/a> was reported in collaboration with Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX. It was produced as a project for the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism Impact Fund.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"disqusTitle": "Fresno Priest Accused of Sexual Abuse of Immigrant Parishioners to Stand Trial",
"title": "Fresno Priest Accused of Sexual Abuse of Immigrant Parishioners to Stand Trial",
"headTitle": "The California Report | KQED News",
"content": "\u003cp>A former Anglican priest accused of sexually abusing some of his adult immigrant parishioners in Fresno, under the guise of a supposed spiritual healing ritual, will stand trial, a judge ruled Wednesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna walked out of the courtroom flanked by his supporters, who hugged him in the hallway as he left. Fresno County Superior Court Judge Jane A. Cardoza ruled the case will go to trial on all charges. Castañeda has been charged with 22 counts of battery, sexual battery, attempted sexual battery and attempt to dissuade a witness from prosecuting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='A man who accused Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna of sexual abuse']'You start confusing God and a human being and you have trouble making the distinction between what’s good and what’s bad.'[/pullquote]Cardoza’s ruling came after nine days of testimony by nine alleged victims, most of them adult men who said the priest massaged their genitals under the pretext of a “prayer” or “healing” ritual.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The court finds that the witnesses were authentic and credible,\" said Cardoza. \"Indeed, I was taken by the tone of their testimony, being humbled, quite baffled by the defendant's actions and ultimately disillusioned by him.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda, through his attorney, has maintained his innocence. Defense attorney Ralph Torres said the alleged sexual abuse never happened and he thought they would prevail at trial.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"This type of healing massage happens all over Latin America, Mexico and in the United States. Nothing unusual about that,\" he said after Cardoza's ruling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The alleged victims described visiting Castañeda’s office to receive healing for physical ailments and personal issues such as drug or alcohol abuse, separation from a spouse, or the death of a child. Most said they were referred by other congregants who claimed the priest possessed spiritual gifts and the ability to heal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the eight men and one woman who testified, Castañeda told them that they had been cursed by previous wives or girlfriends, or were possessed by a demon and needed spiritual healing. (The witnesses were named in court, but KQED is not disclosing their identities because they are alleged victims of sexual abuse.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The witnesses said Castañeda instructed them to strip down to their underwear, lay on a bench or massage table, and receive “healing” or “prayer” massages that they described as very painful. One man reported he had visible bruises for days after the massages. Prosecutor Kelly Smith presented photos showing the man’s neck with red marks, which the witness said a family member took after one of the prayer massages.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The massages often ended in the priest touching parishioners’ genitals, the witnesses testified. In some cases, they described a grazing that could have been accidental. In others, they said, Castañeda grabbed their penis or testicles through their underwear or attempted to masturbate them. Sometimes the priest claimed to have removed a black or yellow substance from their penis, the men said. The woman said Castañeda touched her breasts while making the sign of the cross on her chest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11782043\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-medium wp-image-11782043\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-800x581.jpg\" alt=\"Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna preaches to parishioners of his new church, Iglesia del Espíritu Santo, or Holy Spirit Church. Castañeda has been charged with 22 counts of battery, sexual battery, attempted sexual battery and attempt to prevent a witness/victim from prosecuting.\" width=\"800\" height=\"581\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-800x581.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-160x116.jpg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-1020x741.jpg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-1200x871.jpg 1200w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna preaches to parishioners of his new church, Iglesia del Espíritu Santo, or Holy Spirit Church. Castañeda has been charged with 22 counts of battery, sexual battery, attempted sexual battery and attempt to prevent a witness/victim from prosecuting. \u003ccite>(Alexandra Hall/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The alleged victims described leaving the meetings shocked, ashamed and confused. Some said the events forever altered their trust in priests. The witnesses said the meetings took place at different times in recent years: The first accounts of the abuse date back to 2014 and the most recent to 2017.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Bruce Taylor, U.S.-based archbishop of the World Communion of Christian Celtic Convergence Churches']'This is not some banana republic. This is the United States of America. We have due process. And everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty.'[/pullquote]One man alleged Castañeda told him the priest needed to see his semen to determine how he should be treated. Another man said Castañeda yanked on his penis so abruptly that he heard a popping noise and urinated blood for two to three days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another witness said one prayer massage ended with Castañeda masturbating him and telling him that he was in love with him. The man, who was a parishioner and church volunteer, said the experience led him to attempt suicide.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You start confusing God and a human being and you have trouble making the distinction between what’s good and what’s bad,” the man testified in Spanish through an interpreter. “And you realize that what’s happening to you isn’t right.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When defense attorney Torres asked the same man whether he reported the alleged sexual touching to the priest's superiors at the church, the witness replied: “This isn’t something you can just talk about. Because there’s going to be some people who believe you, there’s going to be some people who do not believe you, and I couldn’t talk about it at the time.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11782022\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-medium wp-image-11782022\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The offices of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Fresno, where witnesses testified in court that some of the healing massages took place. \u003ccite>(Alexandra Hall)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Another witness testified that following an incident in which he said Castañeda attempted to masturbate him, he saw the priest at church. The witness said Castañeda patted him on the back and warned, “You better not tell anyone. You know the consequences.” The witness said he took the comment to be a threat that the priest could report his parents to immigration officials if he spoke up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The witnesses faced Castañeda in court, along with his many supporters, all churchgoers who followed the priest after he was removed from the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin because of the allegations, to his new congregation — Iglesia del Espíritu Santo, or Holy Spirit Church in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At different points during the testimony, the priest’s supporters scoffed and chuckled, or glared at witnesses when they exited the courtroom. Others talked under their breath, and smirked or laughed in response to the witness testimony.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an interview at Castañeda's new church before the preliminary hearing began, a supporter of the priest said: \"What they have said is not believable.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"If the father asked me to touch myself ... as an adult I would say, you know what father, this isn't normal,\" said Carolina Perea. \"You can't do this, I won't do it. Because we're not talking about kids here. These are adults.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one point, Judge Cardoza stopped the hearing to chide members of the audience who were making audible noises, telling them they could not interrupt the proceedings. “I can hear you,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Bishop Eric Menees of the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin']'I essentially let him know that the allegations had been made. I did not say who the allegations were from. And his immediate response was to say ‘Yes, I learned this healing ministry in India.''[/pullquote]Defense attorney Torres questioned the alleged victims, asking them if they had applied for U visa, a visa for victims of crimes who cooperate with law enforcement in investigating or prosecuting a criminal case. Defenders of the priest have argued Castañeda's alleged victims are making accusations in an attempt to obtain legal status in the United States. The immigration status of the witnesses isn't clear, but one man said he got help applying for a U visa. Others said they didn’t know about the visa or had not applied.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda led Latino parishioners in Fresno for nearly a decade before allegations surfaced that he had sexually abused parishioners. At the time, Castañeda was pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a Spanish-language congregation of the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2017, Bishop Eric Menees of the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin said three men reported to him that Castañeda had a healing ministry where he told parishioners if he anointed their genitals, he could heal them of their sexual sins. The bishop, who said he considered the allegations to be credible, confronted Castañeda.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I essentially let him know that the allegations had been made. I did not say who the allegations were from. And his immediate response was to say ‘Yes, I learned this healing ministry in India,’ ” Menees said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And I just said, ‘No you didn’t. ... that’s just a lie. It certainly wasn’t a Christian healing ministry,' \" Menees told KQED at his office in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bishop Menees contacted Fresno police in October 2017 and removed Castañeda from his post at the Anglican church the next month. Fresno police began investigating the priest and arrested Castañeda in February 2019.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To date, nine alleged victims have joined the criminal case. Over 40 people told church officials that they or a family member or friend were abused, Menees said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11781960\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg class=\"wp-image-11781960 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-160x107.jpg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">St. Juan Diego Parish in Cowiche, Washington. Castañeda was the pastor of the church in 2005, when an unidentified man has alleged the priest touched him inappropriately. \u003ccite>(Alexandra Hall/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>An Earlier Allegation\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Carolina Perea, a supporter of Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna']'If the father asked me to touch myself ... as an adult I would say, you know what father, this isn't normal. You can't do this, I won't do it. Because we're not talking about kids here. These are adults.'[/pullquote]The allegations in Fresno are not the first to have been lodged against the priest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From 1997-2005, Castañeda was a priest with the Catholic Diocese of Yakima in Washington. In December 2005, he was suspended from the ministry due to allegations he violated the seal of confession, Yakima Diocese Chancellor Msgr. Robert Siler told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At Castañeda’s request, Siler said, he was laicized in December 2007.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Records show that in 2009, the Yakima Diocese notified the Anglican Diocese in Fresno that the priest had allegedly touched the genitals of a young adult man under his care several years earlier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked whether the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin, or the bishop at the time, notified parishioners of Our Lady of Guadalupe of the Yakima allegation, Bishop Menees said Tuesday that, due to the pending criminal and civil proceedings, counsel had advised him not to make any additional comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Menees became the bishop in 2011. The previous head of the diocese, Bishop John-David Schofield, said in a September 2009 letter to the Yakima Diocese that “it appears to me Fr. Antonio has been wrongly accused.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside tag='sexual-assault' label='Related Coverage']Court documents show the man, who said he made the allegation in 2005, was interviewed by a Fresno police detective but did not want to come forward as a victim. In an in-person interview with KQED, the man said he hoped and prayed there would be justice for the alleged victims in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is quite similar, what happened to me, what they are describing,” the man said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a tragedy … that he was able to abuse his power in ministry for 10 years,” Msgr. Siler said. “How do we stop that? I don’t know. I can’t imagine the Diocese of Yakima having the resources to follow him around with a sign, for example, saying, ‘Don’t go near this man.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since his removal from the Anglican church, Castañeda has been re-ordained by the \u003ca href=\"http://www.celticconvergencechurch.org/\">World Communion of Christian Celtic Convergence Churches\u003c/a>, headquartered in the United Kingdom. The U.S.-based archbishop of the church, Bruce Taylor, said he believes Castañeda is innocent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is not some banana republic. This is the United States of America,” Taylor said. “We have due process. And everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked about the allegations stemming from Castañeda’s time in Yakima, Taylor said he was unaware of them. Defense attorney Torres said the Yakima allegation has no relevance to the Fresno case.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If convicted, Castañeda faces up to 23½ years in prison.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A former Anglican priest accused of sexually abusing some of his adult immigrant parishioners in Fresno, under the guise of a supposed spiritual healing ritual, will stand trial, a judge ruled Wednesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna walked out of the courtroom flanked by his supporters, who hugged him in the hallway as he left. Fresno County Superior Court Judge Jane A. Cardoza ruled the case will go to trial on all charges. Castañeda has been charged with 22 counts of battery, sexual battery, attempted sexual battery and attempt to dissuade a witness from prosecuting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Cardoza’s ruling came after nine days of testimony by nine alleged victims, most of them adult men who said the priest massaged their genitals under the pretext of a “prayer” or “healing” ritual.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The court finds that the witnesses were authentic and credible,\" said Cardoza. \"Indeed, I was taken by the tone of their testimony, being humbled, quite baffled by the defendant's actions and ultimately disillusioned by him.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda, through his attorney, has maintained his innocence. Defense attorney Ralph Torres said the alleged sexual abuse never happened and he thought they would prevail at trial.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"This type of healing massage happens all over Latin America, Mexico and in the United States. Nothing unusual about that,\" he said after Cardoza's ruling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The alleged victims described visiting Castañeda’s office to receive healing for physical ailments and personal issues such as drug or alcohol abuse, separation from a spouse, or the death of a child. Most said they were referred by other congregants who claimed the priest possessed spiritual gifts and the ability to heal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the eight men and one woman who testified, Castañeda told them that they had been cursed by previous wives or girlfriends, or were possessed by a demon and needed spiritual healing. (The witnesses were named in court, but KQED is not disclosing their identities because they are alleged victims of sexual abuse.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The witnesses said Castañeda instructed them to strip down to their underwear, lay on a bench or massage table, and receive “healing” or “prayer” massages that they described as very painful. One man reported he had visible bruises for days after the massages. Prosecutor Kelly Smith presented photos showing the man’s neck with red marks, which the witness said a family member took after one of the prayer massages.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The massages often ended in the priest touching parishioners’ genitals, the witnesses testified. In some cases, they described a grazing that could have been accidental. In others, they said, Castañeda grabbed their penis or testicles through their underwear or attempted to masturbate them. Sometimes the priest claimed to have removed a black or yellow substance from their penis, the men said. The woman said Castañeda touched her breasts while making the sign of the cross on her chest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11782043\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-medium wp-image-11782043\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-800x581.jpg\" alt=\"Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna preaches to parishioners of his new church, Iglesia del Espíritu Santo, or Holy Spirit Church. Castañeda has been charged with 22 counts of battery, sexual battery, attempted sexual battery and attempt to prevent a witness/victim from prosecuting.\" width=\"800\" height=\"581\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-800x581.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-160x116.jpg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-1020x741.jpg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut-1200x871.jpg 1200w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/10232019_Castaneda3_crop-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jesús Antonio Castañeda Serna preaches to parishioners of his new church, Iglesia del Espíritu Santo, or Holy Spirit Church. Castañeda has been charged with 22 counts of battery, sexual battery, attempted sexual battery and attempt to prevent a witness/victim from prosecuting. \u003ccite>(Alexandra Hall/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The alleged victims described leaving the meetings shocked, ashamed and confused. Some said the events forever altered their trust in priests. The witnesses said the meetings took place at different times in recent years: The first accounts of the abuse date back to 2014 and the most recent to 2017.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>One man alleged Castañeda told him the priest needed to see his semen to determine how he should be treated. Another man said Castañeda yanked on his penis so abruptly that he heard a popping noise and urinated blood for two to three days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another witness said one prayer massage ended with Castañeda masturbating him and telling him that he was in love with him. The man, who was a parishioner and church volunteer, said the experience led him to attempt suicide.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You start confusing God and a human being and you have trouble making the distinction between what’s good and what’s bad,” the man testified in Spanish through an interpreter. “And you realize that what’s happening to you isn’t right.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When defense attorney Torres asked the same man whether he reported the alleged sexual touching to the priest's superiors at the church, the witness replied: “This isn’t something you can just talk about. Because there’s going to be some people who believe you, there’s going to be some people who do not believe you, and I couldn’t talk about it at the time.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11782022\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-medium wp-image-11782022\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/RS39697_Shaw-office-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The offices of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Fresno, where witnesses testified in court that some of the healing massages took place. \u003ccite>(Alexandra Hall)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Another witness testified that following an incident in which he said Castañeda attempted to masturbate him, he saw the priest at church. The witness said Castañeda patted him on the back and warned, “You better not tell anyone. You know the consequences.” The witness said he took the comment to be a threat that the priest could report his parents to immigration officials if he spoke up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The witnesses faced Castañeda in court, along with his many supporters, all churchgoers who followed the priest after he was removed from the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin because of the allegations, to his new congregation — Iglesia del Espíritu Santo, or Holy Spirit Church in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At different points during the testimony, the priest’s supporters scoffed and chuckled, or glared at witnesses when they exited the courtroom. Others talked under their breath, and smirked or laughed in response to the witness testimony.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an interview at Castañeda's new church before the preliminary hearing began, a supporter of the priest said: \"What they have said is not believable.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"If the father asked me to touch myself ... as an adult I would say, you know what father, this isn't normal,\" said Carolina Perea. \"You can't do this, I won't do it. Because we're not talking about kids here. These are adults.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one point, Judge Cardoza stopped the hearing to chide members of the audience who were making audible noises, telling them they could not interrupt the proceedings. “I can hear you,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "'I essentially let him know that the allegations had been made. I did not say who the allegations were from. And his immediate response was to say ‘Yes, I learned this healing ministry in India.''",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Defense attorney Torres questioned the alleged victims, asking them if they had applied for U visa, a visa for victims of crimes who cooperate with law enforcement in investigating or prosecuting a criminal case. Defenders of the priest have argued Castañeda's alleged victims are making accusations in an attempt to obtain legal status in the United States. The immigration status of the witnesses isn't clear, but one man said he got help applying for a U visa. Others said they didn’t know about the visa or had not applied.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Castañeda led Latino parishioners in Fresno for nearly a decade before allegations surfaced that he had sexually abused parishioners. At the time, Castañeda was pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a Spanish-language congregation of the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2017, Bishop Eric Menees of the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin said three men reported to him that Castañeda had a healing ministry where he told parishioners if he anointed their genitals, he could heal them of their sexual sins. The bishop, who said he considered the allegations to be credible, confronted Castañeda.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I essentially let him know that the allegations had been made. I did not say who the allegations were from. And his immediate response was to say ‘Yes, I learned this healing ministry in India,’ ” Menees said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And I just said, ‘No you didn’t. ... that’s just a lie. It certainly wasn’t a Christian healing ministry,' \" Menees told KQED at his office in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bishop Menees contacted Fresno police in October 2017 and removed Castañeda from his post at the Anglican church the next month. Fresno police began investigating the priest and arrested Castañeda in February 2019.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To date, nine alleged victims have joined the criminal case. Over 40 people told church officials that they or a family member or friend were abused, Menees said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11781960\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg class=\"wp-image-11781960 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-160x107.jpg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2019/10/Cowiche.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">St. Juan Diego Parish in Cowiche, Washington. Castañeda was the pastor of the church in 2005, when an unidentified man has alleged the priest touched him inappropriately. \u003ccite>(Alexandra Hall/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>An Earlier Allegation\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The allegations in Fresno are not the first to have been lodged against the priest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From 1997-2005, Castañeda was a priest with the Catholic Diocese of Yakima in Washington. In December 2005, he was suspended from the ministry due to allegations he violated the seal of confession, Yakima Diocese Chancellor Msgr. Robert Siler told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At Castañeda’s request, Siler said, he was laicized in December 2007.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Records show that in 2009, the Yakima Diocese notified the Anglican Diocese in Fresno that the priest had allegedly touched the genitals of a young adult man under his care several years earlier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked whether the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin, or the bishop at the time, notified parishioners of Our Lady of Guadalupe of the Yakima allegation, Bishop Menees said Tuesday that, due to the pending criminal and civil proceedings, counsel had advised him not to make any additional comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Menees became the bishop in 2011. The previous head of the diocese, Bishop John-David Schofield, said in a September 2009 letter to the Yakima Diocese that “it appears to me Fr. Antonio has been wrongly accused.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Court documents show the man, who said he made the allegation in 2005, was interviewed by a Fresno police detective but did not want to come forward as a victim. In an in-person interview with KQED, the man said he hoped and prayed there would be justice for the alleged victims in Fresno.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is quite similar, what happened to me, what they are describing,” the man said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a tragedy … that he was able to abuse his power in ministry for 10 years,” Msgr. Siler said. “How do we stop that? I don’t know. I can’t imagine the Diocese of Yakima having the resources to follow him around with a sign, for example, saying, ‘Don’t go near this man.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since his removal from the Anglican church, Castañeda has been re-ordained by the \u003ca href=\"http://www.celticconvergencechurch.org/\">World Communion of Christian Celtic Convergence Churches\u003c/a>, headquartered in the United Kingdom. The U.S.-based archbishop of the church, Bruce Taylor, said he believes Castañeda is innocent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is not some banana republic. This is the United States of America,” Taylor said. “We have due process. And everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked about the allegations stemming from Castañeda’s time in Yakima, Taylor said he was unaware of them. Defense attorney Torres said the Yakima allegation has no relevance to the Fresno case.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "Allegation Against Bakersfield Priest Previously Deemed 'Unsubstantiated' Now Under Review By Fresno Diocese",
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"content": "\u003cp>More than 20 years after a man first reported he was abused by a Central Valley priest, the Catholic Diocese of Fresno is revisiting the allegation after several other individuals have come forward accusing the same priest. The diocese and Fresno County law enforcement officials had previously said the claim, first raised in 1998, was unsubstantiated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The man, who has chosen not to disclose his identity, says that Bakersfield priest Monsignor Craig Harrison — who is currently on leave while under investigation for alleged sexual misconduct — inappropriately touched him when he was a teenager in Firebaugh. Harrison denies the allegations, his attorney said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the man’s attorney, Joseph George, the alleged abuse happened over the course of a year from 1992 to 1993 while the man was living at the rectory of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Firebaugh.[aside tag='sexual-abuse-by-priests' label='The Catholic Church in California'] Harrison worked as a priest at St. Joseph from 1992 to 1999.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The man said that Harrison would inspect his genitals each night when he returned home under the pretext of checking to see if the teen had used drugs. He was 16 and 17 years old at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1998, the man filed a report about the alleged abuse with the Firebaugh Police Department and the case was referred to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, George said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesman for the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office said Harrison was questioned but not arrested. The sheriff’s office ultimately declared the allegation “unsubstantiated.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A case against Craig Harrison was submitted to the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office’s sexual assault unit that same year, according to a spokesperson, but no charges were filed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Four years later, the man went to the Fresno Diocese to again report the alleged abuse. Diocesan administrative officials interviewed him at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The interview is curious to say the least,” George said, referring to a transcript he said his client received from diocesan staff when they recently met with him in his home. “It’s biased.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During the interview, George said, the former director of human resources and former chancellor of the Fresno Diocese questioned the man and described his allegations as “harassment.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They also pointed out that the man’s parents had given their son permission to live in the rectory and that Harrison had spoken to the man’s parents. According to the transcript, the man replied that his parents only spoke Spanish, George said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He felt put off,” George said, “and said, ‘at some point I think I’m gonna read about this in The Fresno Bee when other people come forward. […] This happened to others. I’m sure I’m not alone.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California law requires that clergy and church records custodians report suspected abuse or neglect of children to law enforcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s no way that the information that was conveyed to the diocese in 2002 would not create a reasonable suspicion of child abuse,” George said.\u003cbr>\n[ad fullwidth]\u003cbr>\nGeorge said the man also provided diocesan personnel with the names of other potential victims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He said he never — capital ‘N’ — heard back from the diocese until this current flurry of reported allegations,” George said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since mid-April, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11744376/prosecutors-to-audit-fresno-catholic-diocese-files-for-potential-sex-abuse-cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">three other men\u003c/a> have come forward alleging Harrison touched them inappropriately or engaged in other sexual misconduct with them as teenagers. Two allege Harrison inspected their genitals under similar circumstances. Another alleges Harrison pinned him against a wall and rubbed his erect penis against his body through clothing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All of the allegations were reported to have occurred in Firebaugh, Merced and Bakersfield, cities where Harrison worked as a priest at different points in time since the late 1980s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the victims came from low-income, Latino families, according to George.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>‘I believe him’\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>The diocesan review board is now reconsidering the allegation first reported in 1998 and again in 2002, along with an unknown number of \u003ca href=\"https://dioceseoffresno.org/stories/diocese-of-fresno-moves-forward-with-first-phase-of-independent-review/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">other claims\u003c/a> of sexual abuse by Fresno Diocese clergy dating back to 1922.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fresno Diocese chancellor and spokeswoman Teresa Dominguez said she recently visited the man at his home to apologize.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I personally expressed my concern for him; told him that I believe him, and apologized for the pain this matter has caused him. I told him that I will support him and be an advocate for him in any way that I can,” said Dominguez in an email.[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Fresno Diocese chancellor Teresa Dominguez']‘[I] told him that I believe him, and apologized for the pain this matter has caused him. I told him that I will support him and be an advocate in any way that I can.’[/pullquote]Dominguez said current diocesan administrative staff only recently became aware of the man’s allegation from 2002. She said that she was working in a different capacity at a church in Hanford and had no knowledge of the allegation at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Harrison’s attorney, Kyle Humphrey, questioned the credibility of the man who alleged the abuse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This allegation, if it is the one that was previously reported to Firebaugh, was unfounded by the Firebaugh Police Department originally and afterwards,” Humphrey said. “And if it is the same person, we believe we are in possession of interviews that, again, if it is the same person, we believe will establish a complete lack of credibility.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Humphrey also criticized the Fresno Diocese for talking publicly about the report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fact that a member of the diocese would come out and place my client in a false light, and essentially accuse my client of sexual offense, just shows me how little regard this diocese has for priests. Somebody has to stand up for the priest,” Humphrey said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Charges Never Filed\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>It’s unclear what made the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office and prosecutors conclude the allegations made in 1998 were unsubstantiated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside tag='catholic-church-sexual-abuse' label='a Sexual abuse epidemic']“I can’t say why the claim was unsubstantiated because I simply don’t know,” sheriff’s spokesman Tony Botti said, pointing to an absence of information in the report made two decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Maybe the evidence didn’t support the claim? There is always a chance that the victim chose to withdraw their claim or refused to testify. But again, all of these theories would be speculation at best,” Botti said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the earlier investigation, saying it could still be used as evidence in future cases.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office has not moved to reinvestigate the case.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp> Harrison worked as a priest at St. Joseph from 1992 to 1999.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The man said that Harrison would inspect his genitals each night when he returned home under the pretext of checking to see if the teen had used drugs. He was 16 and 17 years old at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1998, the man filed a report about the alleged abuse with the Firebaugh Police Department and the case was referred to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, George said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesman for the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office said Harrison was questioned but not arrested. The sheriff’s office ultimately declared the allegation “unsubstantiated.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A case against Craig Harrison was submitted to the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office’s sexual assault unit that same year, according to a spokesperson, but no charges were filed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Four years later, the man went to the Fresno Diocese to again report the alleged abuse. Diocesan administrative officials interviewed him at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The interview is curious to say the least,” George said, referring to a transcript he said his client received from diocesan staff when they recently met with him in his home. “It’s biased.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During the interview, George said, the former director of human resources and former chancellor of the Fresno Diocese questioned the man and described his allegations as “harassment.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They also pointed out that the man’s parents had given their son permission to live in the rectory and that Harrison had spoken to the man’s parents. According to the transcript, the man replied that his parents only spoke Spanish, George said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He felt put off,” George said, “and said, ‘at some point I think I’m gonna read about this in The Fresno Bee when other people come forward. […] This happened to others. I’m sure I’m not alone.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California law requires that clergy and church records custodians report suspected abuse or neglect of children to law enforcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s no way that the information that was conveyed to the diocese in 2002 would not create a reasonable suspicion of child abuse,” George said.\u003cbr>\n\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cbr>\nGeorge said the man also provided diocesan personnel with the names of other potential victims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He said he never — capital ‘N’ — heard back from the diocese until this current flurry of reported allegations,” George said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since mid-April, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11744376/prosecutors-to-audit-fresno-catholic-diocese-files-for-potential-sex-abuse-cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">three other men\u003c/a> have come forward alleging Harrison touched them inappropriately or engaged in other sexual misconduct with them as teenagers. Two allege Harrison inspected their genitals under similar circumstances. Another alleges Harrison pinned him against a wall and rubbed his erect penis against his body through clothing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All of the allegations were reported to have occurred in Firebaugh, Merced and Bakersfield, cities where Harrison worked as a priest at different points in time since the late 1980s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the victims came from low-income, Latino families, according to George.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>‘I believe him’\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>The diocesan review board is now reconsidering the allegation first reported in 1998 and again in 2002, along with an unknown number of \u003ca href=\"https://dioceseoffresno.org/stories/diocese-of-fresno-moves-forward-with-first-phase-of-independent-review/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">other claims\u003c/a> of sexual abuse by Fresno Diocese clergy dating back to 1922.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fresno Diocese chancellor and spokeswoman Teresa Dominguez said she recently visited the man at his home to apologize.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I personally expressed my concern for him; told him that I believe him, and apologized for the pain this matter has caused him. I told him that I will support him and be an advocate for him in any way that I can,” said Dominguez in an email.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"airtime": "FRI 4:30pm-5pm, 6:30pm-7pm, 11pm-11:30pm",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareportmagazine",
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"order": 10
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz",
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},
"city-arts": {
"id": "city-arts",
"title": "City Arts & Lectures",
"info": "A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/cityartsandlecture-300x300.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.cityarts.net/",
"airtime": "SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
"subscribe": {
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/City-Arts-and-Lectures-p692/",
"rss": "https://www.cityarts.net/feed/"
}
},
"closealltabs": {
"id": "closealltabs",
"title": "Close All Tabs",
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"info": "Close All Tabs breaks down how digital culture shapes our world through thoughtful insights and irreverent humor.",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
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"order": 1
},
"link": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
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"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
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"meta": {
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnByLm9yZy9yc3MvcG9kY2FzdC5waHA_aWQ9NTEwMzEy",
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"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
"airtime": "THU 10pm, FRI 1am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"meta": {
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"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
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}
},
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"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 9
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz",
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"id": "freakonomics-radio",
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"info": "Freakonomics Radio is a one-hour award-winning podcast and public-radio project hosted by Stephen Dubner, with co-author Steve Levitt as a regular guest. It is produced in partnership with WNYC.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/freakonomicsRadio.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
"rss": "https://feeds.feedburner.com/freakonomicsradio"
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},
"fresh-air": {
"id": "fresh-air",
"title": "Fresh Air",
"info": "Hosted by Terry Gross, \u003cem>Fresh Air from WHYY\u003c/em> is the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues. One of public radio's most popular programs, Fresh Air features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.",
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"link": "/radio/program/fresh-air",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/381444908/podcast.xml"
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"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510051/podcast.xml"
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},
"hidden-brain": {
"id": "hidden-brain",
"title": "Hidden Brain",
"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/series/423302056/hidden-brain",
"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "NPR"
},
"link": "/radio/program/hidden-brain",
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},
"how-i-built-this": {
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"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/howIBuiltThis.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this",
"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/3zxy",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510313/podcast.xml"
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},
"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
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"order": 15
},
"link": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
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"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/2p3Fifq96nw9BPcmFdIq0o?si=39209f7b25774f38",
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},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 18
},
"link": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
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}
},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
"meta": {
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},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
}
},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
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"source": "WaitWhat"
},
"link": "/radio/program/masters-of-scale",
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"apple": "http://mastersofscale.app.link/",
"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
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"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/stories-teachers-share",
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}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
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"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1567098962",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"
}
},
"on-the-media": {
"id": "on-the-media",
"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm-3pm, MON 12am-1am",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/onTheMedia.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/otm",
"meta": {
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"source": "wnyc"
},
"link": "/radio/program/on-the-media",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-media/id73330715?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-the-Media-p69/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia"
}
},
"pbs-newshour": {
"id": "pbs-newshour",
"title": "PBS NewsHour",
"info": "Analysis, background reports and updates from the PBS NewsHour putting today's news in context.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PBS-News-Hour-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "pbs"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pbs-newshour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pbs-newshour-full-show/id394432287?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/PBS-NewsHour---Full-Show-p425698/",
"rss": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/show"
}
},
"perspectives": {
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