Latest news with #SexuallyViolentPersonsCommitmentAct
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Yahoo
Jury finds Danville man to be Sexually Violent Person
A Danville man has been found to be a Sexually Violent Person by a Vermilion County jury. Otis Arrington, 66, was committed to the custody of the Illinois Department of Human Services following his recent court case. The case was prosecuted by the office of Attorney General Kwame Raoul. Arrington had been detained in the IDHS Treatment and Detention Facility awaiting his trial. 'This offender's violent history indicates his release would pose a threat to women in the community,' Raoul said. 'I am committed to protecting Illinois families and communities from offenders who have been deemed sexually violent by the court.' Arrington was convicted in Indiana in 1978 of rape and burglary and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Just four months after his 1989 release and while on parole, Arrington committed aggravated criminal sexual assault, home invasion, residential burglary, armed violence and armed robbery in Danville. He was convicted and sentenced to 60 years in prison for those charges in 1990. Under the Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act, Raoul's office files cases seeking to commit offenders to the custody of IDHS. To be committed under the act, a person must have been convicted of a sexually violent offense and suffer from a mental disorder. The Attorney General's office must also prove that the offender is likely to commit future acts of sexual violence if released from custody. Once committed to IDHS, offenders are reevaluated on a regular basis to determine if they continue to meet the criteria for commitment as a sexually violent person. Senior Assistant Attorney General Nicole Bartell and Deputy Chief William Bryant handled the case for Raoul's Sexually Violent Persons Bureau.
Miami Herald
27-03-2025
- Miami Herald
Men file false sex abuse claims against ex-priest in racketeering scheme, IL suit says
A Catholic archdiocese has filed a lawsuit accusing a group of men of submitting dozens of false sex abuse claims against a defrocked priest to get millions in settlement payments. 'I got to get on the money train,' a man said during a phone call in state prison in 2013 to an unnamed man involved in the scheme, according to the lawsuit. He also asked the man how much money he got from a settlement payment from the archdiocese, the suit said. The 38-page lawsuit, filed by the Archdiocese of Chicago on March 24, cites more recorded phone conversations between different men talking about how 'easy' it would be to bring claims against the Catholic Church. The men are all referred to as John Does in accordance with court orders. Associated by gang affiliation, friendship or family, the web of men was recruited, bribed, paid and coached on how to successfully pursue false claims of sex abuse in exchange for a part in the anticipated settlement, according to the lawsuit. The lawsuit says the false claims have diverted 'resources devoted to real victims' and reduced the ability to 'expeditiously resolve claims by real victims.' 'We trust and believe people when they come forward with abuse claims,' James Geoly, general counsel for the archdiocese, said in a news release. 'These individuals have violated that trust and have attempted to take advantage of it.' Defrocked Illinois priest Illinois has a grim history of child sex abuse by members of the Catholic clergy. In May 2023, Attorney General Kwame Raoul published a 696-page report, which found that over about seven decades, at least 1,997 children have been abused by 451 Catholic clerics and religious brothers across the state's dioceses. One of the 'most infamous' child abusers in the state is former priest Daniel McCormack, who has more than 100 accusations of sex abuse against him and was committed under the Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act in 2017, according to the Attorney General's Office. McCormack is accused of abuse in each of the false claims, with many saying the abuse happened in connection with a basketball team he coached, according to the lawsuit. False claims The lawsuit says three John Does, who all received settlements in 2012 and 2013, 'quickly exhausted' the money, giving them a reason to call on others to bring false claims for profit. Once more men received settlements, they used the money on trips to Miami and Las Vegas, parties, and lavish cars and clothing, according to the lawsuit. Two cases based on similar accusations have been ruled as fraud, and more than a dozen other claims have been abandoned, the lawsuit states. The Archdiocese of Chicago is seeking injunctive relief for the claims filed by the group as well as monetary damages, according to the lawsuit. 'While we cannot erase the past, including the misconduct of priests who committed real harms, we can try to ease the pain and suffering of survivors through accountability and support,' Geoly said. 'False claims make it necessary to investigate all claims more aggressively, which places a greater burden on true survivors.'
