Former Butte pastor pleads guilty to embezzling $288k | Crime & Courts | missoulian.com

A longtime Butte pastor and former official of the Pentecostal church's regional district pleaded guilty Thursday to embezzling more than $250,000 from the church.

Kenneth Hogue was charged in U.S. District Court this week with federal wire fraud for siphoning $288,757.94 from the Rocky Mountain District of the United Pentecostal Church from June 2012 until July 18, 2016.

The court filings charging Hogue were accompanied by a plea agreement setting out the terms for his guilty plea. Hogue has agreed to pay the embezzled amount back but nothing more, while Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim Racicot said during the Thursday hearing that the Rocky Mountain District of the Pentecostal church may seek additional restitution.

Former Butte pastor pleads guilty to embezzling $288k | Crime & Courts | missoulian.com

Montana removes 27 children from youth treatment ranch, alleging 'egregious' abuse

Authorities have removed 27 children from a youth treatment facility in northwest Montana, citing "consistent and chronic allegations" of medical neglect and physical and psychological abuse.

The state Department of Public Health and Human Services said it had suspended the license of the Ranch for Kids in Rexford, in Lincoln County near Kootenai National Forest along the Canadian border, "to prevent future abuse."

"The 27 children that were removed are now at a safe location," the agency said in a statement on Tuesday. "They are receiving medical care. The details of their care and condition are confidential."

Montana removes 27 children from youth treatment ranch, alleging 'egregious' abuse

Butte psychiatrist with troubled past faces new suit alleging negligence | Local | mtstandard.com

Bennett Braun was an integral part in the narrative of the Satanic Panic and the highly questionable organization International Society for the Study of Trauma & Dissociation (ISSTD).

A lawsuit from a Kalispell woman alleges that a Butte psychiatrist's improper drug treatment has left her with an incurable physical ailment.

The psychiatrist, Dr. Bennett Braun, has settled multiple lawsuits for millions after former patients said he convinced them in therapy that they had engaged in cannibalism, child abuse, satanic rituals and even consumed meat loaf made of human flesh.

 Braun, 78, never admitted wrongdoing when he was sued 11 times for claims such as that he put women into an Illinois psychiatric hospital, put them on high dosages of drugs not always tested on animals and hypnotized them a couple of decades ago. Braun faced some disciplinary action in Illinois as a result, but was back in good standing by the time he relocated to Montana.

Butte psychiatrist with troubled past faces new suit alleging negligence | Local | mtstandard.com

UPDATED::Ex-Lourdes priest to be formally charged with receipt of child porn

UPDATE:: Retired Montana priest intends to plead guilty to receipt of child porn charge

Lothar Konrad Krauth of Great Falls intends to plead guilty to a receipt of child pornography charge.

Court documents filed on March 22 indicate Krauth, a retired Catholic priest, plans to change his plea to guilty at a hearing next week.

Court documents state Homeland Security agents received a cyber report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on Oct. 10, 2018.

The report showed a user with an IP address in Great Falls had uploaded an image of a nude prepubescent male child.

A summons to the internet service provider identified the IP address as assigned to Krauth, according to court documents.

Lothar Konrad Krauth, a former priest at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Great Falls, will be formally charged with receipt of child pornography Tuesday in federal court.

Krauth, 80, appeared on a criminal complaint before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston on Nov. 9 and was released from custody pending an indictment after a hearing Nov. 14.

The complaint alleged that Krauth's computer contained approximately 400 images of child pornography, including children engaging in sexual acts with both adults and other children.

Some of the children depicted were as young as 2 or 3 years old, according to the complaint.

Ex-Lourdes priest to be formally charged with receipt of child porn

Jehovah's Witnesses ordered by jury to pay $35M to abuse survivor

The Jehovah's Witnesses must pay $35 million to a woman who says the church's national organization ordered Montana clergy members not to report her sexual abuse as a child at the hands of a congregation member, a jury ruled in a verdict.

A judge must review the penalty, and the Jehovah's Witnesses' national organization — Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York — plans to appeal.

Still, the 21-year-old woman's attorneys said Wednesday's verdict sends a message to the church to report child abuse to outside authorities.

"Hopefully that message is loud enough that this will cause the organization to change its priorities in a way that they will begin prioritizing the safety of children so that other children aren't abused in the future," said attorney Neil Smith Thursday.

Jehovah's Witnesses ordered by jury to pay $35M to abuse survivor

Pastor pleads no contest to bilking fellow Christian out of $150,000 | Local News | ravallirepublic.com

A pastor who helped bilk a fellow Christian out of $150,000 has until Dec. 18 to repay his portion of restitution, or face a 10-year commitment to the Montana Department of Corrections, with five years suspended.

James “Jeb” Bryant, 57, pleaded no contest Tuesday to three felony charges in connection with a 2008 securities scam that involved a fake structural panel business in Mexico.

Bryant’s partner, Harris Himes, who was pastor of the Big Sky Christian Center in Hamilton, was convicted in 2013 on felony securities fraud charges for his role in the case. Himes served 90 days in jail as part of a 10-year-suspended sentence and was ordered to repay his congregant, Geoff Serata.

Pastor pleads no contest to bilking fellow Christian out of $150,000 | Local News | ravallirepublic.com

Hamilton man faces three felony rape charges | Local News | ravallirepublic.com

A 30-year-old Hamilton man who allegedly sought assistance from his church for his “sexual predatorial behavior” is facing three felony charges of sexual intercourse without consent.

Seth Wirick also is charged with felony partner/family member assault. He was jailed Wednesday in lieu of a $75,000 bond, with an initial appearance in Justice Court set for Jan. 3.
,,,

Later that month, she was contacted by one of the pastors “who told her he was sorry for the situation, and referred to defendant as a ‘sex addict’ and told her that they are working with defendant to get help for his problem,” Ravalli Deputy County Attorney Meghann Paddock wrote in an affidavit. “The pastor then asked for all the details of their sex life and specific instances where defendant forced himself on her. Female 1 reported that the pastor urged her not to make any reports to law enforcement, tell other members of the church, or defendant’s place of employment.”

The wife of the pastor also allegedly called the woman. The affidavit, which did not identify the church, said the pastor’s wife was “irate” and told her to stop contacting people about the incident.

Hamilton man faces three felony rape charges | Local News | ravallirepublic.com

Sex abuse allegations have rocked the polygamous church of ‘Sister Wives,’ causing rift from Utah to Montana - The Salt Lake Tribune

She had dated a boy her age off and on for years. They discussed getting married. Then, in fall 2014, a dispute erupted in their church — the Apostolic United Brethren, a so-called Mormon fundamentalist group that believes in polygamy.

A daughter and two nieces accused Lynn Thompson, the AUB president, of fondling or molesting them as girls. Some in Pinesdale — a community so small with so few surnames that they call one another by their first names — continued following Lynn, now 77 years old, either because they still believe he was a prophet of God or that the allegations against him weren’t true or they just didn’t want to risk dividing their families.

Sex abuse allegations have rocked the polygamous church of ‘Sister Wives,’ causing rift from Utah to Montana - The Salt Lake Tribune

'Big Mountain Jesus' gets OK from 9th Circuit Court of Appeals

This is one of those First Amendment cases that I just don't get the ruling handed down by the Court.  Seriously, how hard can it be.  There is a religious statue on publicly funded land, it needs to go.  As FFRF notes,

FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor called it "phony" and a "sham" to pretend that a "giant Jesus" is secular, thereby ignoring the Knights of Columbus' stated purpose. The Catholic men's club has "leased" at no cost the prominent parcel of land on the federal ski slope to display its Catholic shrine. "That means federal taxpayers are subsidizing religious speech, in this case Catholic," Gaylor said. She added that devout religionists should be offended at a decision that purports that a sacred image of a god is not religious.

But yet,,, 

“Big Mountain Jesus” is staying put.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday ruled that a 12-foot statue of Jesus at Whitefish Mountain Resort “did not sprout from the minds of (government) officials and was not funded from (the government’s) coffers.”

The Ninth Circuit upheld a 2013 decision by U.S. District Court Judge Dana Christensen, who dismissed a lawsuit by the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation objecting to the statue.

“Big Mountain Jesus” is located on public land that the U.S. Forest Service leases to a private organization.

“Thank goodness for common sense,” said Eric Baxter, senior counsel of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, who argued on behalf of the statue that has stood on a mountain at the ski resort for 61 years. “Today’s decision rejects the idea that history and the First Amendment ought to be enemies.”

As Simon Brown, writing for American's United states, "This is hardly a win for religion. The Knights of Columbus may have gotten what they wanted, but this is a hollow victory if ever there were one."

Essentially, the court justified its bad decision on the basis that an overtly religious statue is not really religious because a lot of people make fun of it. Seriously? That’s all they could come up with?

This is an embarrassment. Regardless of who paid for the statue, it’s clearly a religious symbol on federal land. Since that land is not an open forum, its placement gives the impression that the federal government endorses Christianity over all other viewpoints. Until others may place their own symbols next to Big Mountain Jesus, this will be a constitutional violation.  

And worst of all, the court makes the curious argument that the statue has somehow become secularized because people often poke fun at it. How is this a good thing for religion? If anything, the flap over Big Mountain Jesus only shows the depths to which some people will descend to keep a sectarian symbol on public land. They’ll go so far as to deny that it’s religious and sign off on people making fun of it – anything to keep it there.

'Big Mountain Jesus' gets OK from 9th Circuit Court of Appeals

GOPer Whose Foundation Backed Creationist Dinosaur Museum Explores Run For Governor

Greg Gianforte, a tech entrepreneur whose foundation donated to a creationist dinosaur museum, filed paperwork this week for an exploratory campaign to run for governor of Montana.
 

Gianforte, who could be among the Republicans seeking to unseat Gov. Steve Bullock (D) next year, sold his software company RightNow Technologies to Oracle for about $1.5 billion in 2012. Since then, he has pushed his Better Montana Jobs initiative, which aims to promote high-wage employment.

In 2006, he established the Gianforte Family Foundation with his wife "in response to God's great goodness to them." The foundation focuses on "improving education, lifting people out of poverty, protecting the unborn, and Christian outreach." According to its website, last year's grantees included groups against gay marriage, such as the Family Research Council and Focus on the Family, as well as the Fellowship of Christian Cowboys, which aims to show "the adventure of receiving [Jesus Christ] as Savior and Lord."  

The foundation donated the T. rex and Acrocanthosaurus exhibit to the $1.5 million Glendive Dinosaur and Fossil Museum, which opened in 2009. The Billings Gazette noted at the time that it was "the largest donation for a specific exhibit."

GOPer Whose Foundation Backed Creationist Dinosaur Museum Explores Run For Governor

Student trip to Glendive creationist museum canceled over legal concerns

Glendive third-graders will no longer visit their town's creationist museum amid concerns that the annual school trip to learn about dinosaurs violates the constitutional separation of church and state.

School district administrators had authorized this year's field trip to the Glendive Dinosaur and Fossil Museum but reversed course last week after receiving a letter from a Washington, D.C., advocacy group calling the school-sponsored event illegal. Their decision dashed the hopes of many of the children, some parents said.

The Glendive Dinosaur and Fossil Museum is the second-largest dinosaur museum in Montana and the only to assert a literal, biblical view of world history in which humans and dinosaurs are said to have coexisted. Alongside full animal skeletons, its exhibit halls include a biblical history room, a reconstruction of Noah's Ark and dioramas showing humans together with dinosaurs.

One hundred or so third-grade students in the Glendive School District were invited to the field trip, originally to be held Thursday during school hours. Parents were required to sign permission slips and pay the museum entrance fee in order for their children to attend.

Student trip to Glendive creationist museum canceled over legal concerns

See also:

Please Think Of The Children: Mont. Public School Had No Business Sending Kids To Creationist Attraction

Youngsters' dino museum trip dashed by atheists

UPDATE::Army War College Revokes Senator John Walsh's Degree After Plagiarism Investigation

An update to this story from July,,,

U.S. Sen. John Walsh of Montana says the U.S. Army War College has revoked his master's degree after an investigation into plagiarism allegations.

The Carlisle, Pennsylvania, college launched the probe in August after The New York Times published a story showing Walsh borrowed heavily from other sources for a research paper he wrote in 2007.

Walsh's office released a statement Friday saying the Army War College has revoked his status as a graduate. The statement says the senator disagrees with the findings but accepts the decision.

Army War College Revokes Senator John Walsh's Degree After Plagiarism Investigation

Sen. John Walsh Drops Out Of Senate Race

Sen. John Walsh (D-MT) has decided to drop out of the race for U.S. Senate, he announced on Thursday.

"I am ending my campaign so that I can focus on fulfilling the responsibility entrusted to me as your U.S. senator," Walsh said. "You deserve someone who will always fight for Montana, and I will."

Walsh's decision follows a report in The New York Times in July which said that Walsh plagiarized significant parts of his master's thesis.

Since then Walsh had reportedly been trying to decide whether to continue running in the race or not. Even before the plagiarism story broke Walsh had an uphill battle to victory and faced a formidable challenge in Rep. Steve Daines, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate.

According to National Journal, Walsh announced his decision to drop out in a call with staffers. His wife was "openly sobbing" while she thanked members of Walsh's campaign, National Journal said.

Sen. John Walsh Drops Out Of Senate Race

John Walsh, Democrat, Confronts Questions of Plagiarism - NYTimes.com

Something I pondered as I read through various articles concerning this incident, "Questions have previously been raised about Mr. Walsh’s résumé and conduct, though they were comparatively minor."

In an interview outside his Capitol Hill office on Tuesday, after he was presented with multiple examples of identical passages from his paper and the Carnegie and Harvard essays, Mr. Walsh said he did not believe he had done anything wrong.

“I didn’t do anything intentional here,” he said, adding that he did not recall using the Carnegie and Harvard sources.

Asked directly if he had plagiarized, he responded: “I don’t believe I did, no.”

On Wednesday, a campaign aide for Mr. Walsh did not contest the apparent plagiarism but suggested that it be viewed in the context of the senator’s long career. She said Mr. Walsh had been going through a difficult period at the time he wrote the paper, noting that one of the members of his unit from Iraq had committed suicide in 2007, weeks before the assignment was due.

The aide said Mr. Walsh, who served in Iraq from November 2004 to November 2005, had “dealt with the experience of post-deployment,” but said he had not sought treatment.

Later, the senator, in an interview with The Associated Press, contradicted the aide, saying that he was being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder when he used the authors’ work without credit, and that he would consider apologizing to the scholars for doing so. He said he was currently taking antidepressant medication.

John Walsh, Democrat, Confronts Questions of Plagiarism - NYTimes.com

Investigation: Bakken Oil Waste Threatens Montana Farms And Local Water Supply

The 200 or so people who call Lindsay, Mont., home likely never imagined they would find themselves in the middle of an environmental battle fueled by radioactive waste. But that’s exactly what happened in the small community of farmers and ranchers in Eastern Montana after a local farmer opened a landfill and started collecting naturally occurring radioactive waste materials generated by the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota.

Known as Oaks Disposal Services landfill, the dump site is the creation of Ross Oakland and his wife, Tara. The duo are Montana-based farmers who have been growing wheat, peas and lentils on their farm in Lindsay since 1992.

In an interview with MintPress, Oakland said he got the idea to build a landfill on his property after an oil company began to drill on land adjacent to his farmland. Oakland, who worked as a driller in the 1980s after graduating from high school, noticed the oil company didn’t have a pit to dump the waste materials, so he asked a “company man” what was being done with the materials.

“Back when I was a driller, everything went into a pit on location and (we) just buried (the materials),” Oakland recalled. “Now they are environmentally friendly.”

[,,,]
To ensure that the waste material doesn’t seep into the ground and, more importantly, the town’s water supply, Oakland said he created a “state-of-the-art facility” that includes two “top of the line” liners, an 18-inch layer of gravel, four monitoring walls around the perimeter of the landfill, a basal layer, as well as a leachate solution system. MintPress was unable to independently verify this.

Some of Oakland’s neighbors say they are concerned about the toxic materials being brought into their town from North Dakota. They claim that Oakland’s landfill is ruining the local land, air and water, and it’s only a matter of time before disaster strikes, which could result in a polluted water supply or health effects similar to those reported after prolonged exposure to radioactive and toxic waste materials in WWII-era Hiroshima.

Given that the landfill has already spilled or overflowed at least three times, Montana could be in the beginning stages of its own environmental and health disaster.

Investigation: Bakken Oil Waste Threatens Montana Farms And Local Water Supply

Montana bill mutates | NCSE

 Montana's version,,,

The draft bill now produced in response to Fiscus's request contains a preamble, which invokes "academic freedom," the lack of scientific agreement, and "critical thinking" in support of the bill's provisions, and five sections, of which the first is the most substantive. Claiming that "some teachers may be unsure of the expectations concerning how they should present information on these subjects," the bill in its first section encourages state and local education administrators "to assist teachers in finding effective ways to present the science curriculum as it addresses scientific controversies" and forbids them to prohibit teachers from presenting "the scientific strengths and weaknesses of existing scientific theories covered in the course being taught." The remaining sections of the bill integrate it with existing state code and provide that it will take effect on passage and approval.

Montana bill mutates | NCSE

Anti-Science Bills Weighed in Four States : Discovery News

Anti-science bills are popping up like daisies after a spring shower. Five bills in four states have been introduced with the opening of state legislatures across the United States. All of the bills are aimed at undermining the teaching of biology and physical science — specifically, evolution and climate change — in public schools. Oklahoma has two bills in the hopper, Colorado, Missouri and Montana have one each.

[,,,]
"It is almost identical language in all of the bills," said Rosenau. "It's a package of bills that we've been tracking since the 2004 'Academic Freedom' bill." That bill, which was passed into law, was based on language generated by the Discovery Institute, which has long pushed for the inclusion of biblical creationism and pseudo-scientific "intelligent design" into science classes in public schools.

[,,,]
On the other hand the bills would create problems for administrators and teachers, said Eric Feaver, president of the Montana Education Association and the Montana Federation of Teachers.

“It affects the supervisors of the schools,” said Feaver, because they would not be able to stop the teaching of religion disguised as science. “Teachers who teach creationism would be immune to punishment.” That basically undermines school supervisors, he said

[,,,]
A federal court ruled in 2005 that the teaching of intelligent design was in violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Since that time, efforts to undermine public school science have been forced to attempt the "academic freedom" subterfuge, explained Eugenie C. Scott, executive director of the NCSE.


Anti-Science Bills Weighed in Four States : Discovery News