On Friday, a report in Vice News detailed a shocking cover up in the Mormon Church. According to the report, the Mormon Church has failed to properly address the issue of sexual assault. The church even covered up abuse cases to save themselves from legal issue.
In one instance a sexual assault helplines were created to protect the church from sexually assault cases.
"Mormon leaders have long insisted that the helpline’s sole purpose is to advise bishops about compliance with local abuse reporting laws. But court testimony, as well as other documents reviewed by VICE News, suggests that the system serves a very different purpose: to shield the Mormon Church from potential lawsuits that pose a financial threat to the Church," the report said.
Adding, "The church also uses secrecy to mask the system’s effectiveness. It has never disclosed the number of abuse-related calls made annually to its helpline or what percentage of those calls are referred to child protection authorities."
Eric Hawkins, a Mormon Church spokesman, failed to provide further details about the hotline.
“The Church does not share information about the helpline," he told VICE News.
The report went on to explain how the helplines work and how they are connected to other institutions with the purpose of protecting the Church and not the victim.
"Helpline calls are not immediately transferred to authorities so they can take action. Instead, they are funneled into a law firm closely tied to the Mormon Church. As it turns out, the same firm that created the Mormon Church’s abuse reporting system in 1995 now defends it in abuse-related lawsuits," the report said.
Read the full report here.
