![]() I really do.”Ĭonti says she went to the elders – the typically six to eight men who compose each congregation's leadership – a decade ago to urge them to set "Megan's law" alerts for automatic notices when convicted child molesters move into a new congregation, which would give leadership in the new Kingdom Hall a photo of the person. Growing emotional, Conti continued: “And I am so sorry to everyone behind me and to everybody who's fighting right now… I wish – I wish above all else – that they could have that same validation that I did. Having the jury not only say that they believe you, that they know that this happened, but that the organization was in the wrong in the first place,” Conti said. ![]() "There's a strange validation that came from that. In a headline-making decision, a California jury awarded her $28 million, the largest verdict against the organization at the time. "I'm a survivor,” Conti declared during a joint television interview with 12 other people who grew up in the religion and allege they were abused as children, many of whom were sharing their accusations publicly for the first time.Ĭonti refused to initially settle her case seeking damages against Watchtower, her congregation, and a fellow Jehovah's Witness for sexual abuse and negligence. ![]() One of the longest-running court battles involved Candace Conti. The Jehovah's Witnesses organization, which goes by several names including Watchtower Bible and Tract Society and the Christian Congregation and is headquartered northwest of New York City, has fought and settled cases coast to coast. The findings are contained in a three-part Hearst Television series of reports called “Silent No More” and shed new light on the growing number of people accusing the religious organization of systemic shortcomings in the protection of children. Rancho Cucamonga senior Darius Riley, running individually in Division I, placed 12th in 15:27.0.Īyala junior Mikaela Ramirez placed 13th in the Division I girls race in 18:07.8, while Chino Hills freshman Jacqueline Duarte was 21st in 18:19.9.Īnd in Division II, Serrano’s girls, led by sophomore Maribel Aguilar (21st, 18:38.9), placed fifth with 166 points behind Claremont, Saugus, Livermore Granada and Capistrano Valley.The Nunez case is one of dozens tallied by the Hearst Television National Investigative Unit as part of a yearlong investigation that uncovered new allegations of child sexual abuse and decadeslong cover-ups inside the Jehovah’s Witnesses religious organization in the United States.Īs reported Monday by Hearst Television, the allegations span congregations, states and generations. “But it was worth it, because now I feel good about the result.”įour other San Bernardino County runners competed Saturday with good results. “Kicking that long, it took a lot out of me,” Opsahl said. Francis’ Shyam Kumar (15:23.0), who placed third. He did just that, powering to the lead and finishing three seconds ahead of Danforth (15:19.7) and seven ahead of Mountain View St. I might as well put myself up the front and give myself the best chance at a kick.” Then going to that third mile, I was like, ‘All right, I have what it takes to finish this off. “That second mile, I was like, “Man, this is really where I spent myself last year. “I’ve been lucky enough to have success, a team behind me and great coaches,” he added, “but to finally have a result, and a fun race where you can kind of relax the whole race and really only feel the pain in the last mile - that’s my favorite kind of race.” “I was feeling the pain of the moment, but I’m also feeling the redemption of what this season has been and what last year has been. On Saturday, he became the sixth San Bernardino County boy to win an individual title. And that success culminated Saturday with a CIF-State Championship after the Redlands East Valley senior outkicked Canyon Country Canyon’s Ethan Danforth to win the state’s Division II cross country championship in 15 minutes, 16.9 seconds at Fresno’s Woodward Park.Ī year ago, Opsahl was running second well into the third mile at the state meet before fading badly to a 36th-place finish. The disappointment that was the end of his 2016 cross country season fed the success of 2017. FRESNO - The moment he crossed the finish line Saturday, Elias Opsahl raised his arms triumphantly in the air with exhilaration a year in the making.
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