Tuesday, February 27, 2001

Case of Margie Shabat and Danny Shabat

Case of Margie Shabat and Danny Shabat
(West Rogers Park) Chicago, IL  

Allegations made of child sexual abuse of a teen student that boarded in their home Over the years there have been mumblings throughout West Rogers Park about the following case. It is believed that the same people in Chicago that have been protecting Yosef Meystel that have been silencing the victims in this case. 

If anyone has any information please forward it to The Awareness Center.

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Disclaimer: 
Inclusion in this website does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement. Individuals must decide for themselves if the resources meet their own personal needs.

Table of Contents

2001
  1. Let me tell you what the pedophiles did to me (02/27/2001)

2013 

  1. Danny Shabat's Summary  - Linkedin (01/15/2013)Margie Shabat's Summary  - Linkedin (01/15/2013)

Also see:

  1. Case of Yosef Meystel 

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Let me tell you what the pedophiles did to me
Project Truth.org - February 27, 2001


My Inaugural Letter

Welcome! On February 27, 2001, I sent (with my Dad's help and moral support) the following letter - by direct, First Class mail - to the thousands of members of the Chicago Jewish Community listed in the Chicago Acheinu Directory, thereby inaugurating Project Truth .So there will be no misunderstanding, please read my posted "Statement of Goals".
 
February 27, 2001

Dear Chicago Jewish Community Member,

LET ME TELL YOU WHAT THE PEDOPHILES DID TO ME

It’s important to a childhood sexual abuse victim to be heard, even if you’ll never understand how much it hurts. Thank you for reading this letter, and taking it to heart, mind, and action .

I’m trying to be polite, but the truth is, the whole community should be ashamed. The molesters were leaders, and still are. And now your rabbinic and lay leaders are protecting the molesters, and continuing to hurt the victims.

DANNY AND MARGIE SHABAT: PERVERTED SEXUAL ABUSE

I’m over twenty now, but it seems like yesterday that I was a sixteen-year-old, Israeli student at Telshe Yeshiva High School in Chicago. That’s when I fell into the clutches of Margie and Danny Shabat. Margie sexually molested me dozens and dozens of times. I’m sure Danny knew about it the whole time. He had to. When you hear and see the evidence on the website, you will be too.

A month after I came to Telshe to get a solid education, I went home to Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) for a week to mourn “shiva” for my five-year-old brother who was hit by a car on Simchas Torah. I came back to Chicago and nobody but Margie knew how I felt. I was re-experiencing the death of my twin-sister when we were three-years-old. Margie made me believe that she was the embodiment of my lost sister. Margie had me call her “Ima”; secretly . At the time, I loved Margie more than anything else in the world - she bought me all kinds of gifts (and promised me the world) and we went on all kinds of adventures together; secretly (except for Danny - he knew about the gifts and excursions).

Then Margie and Danny tricked my parents into authorizing Danny and Margie to be my overseas “extended-parents”, and I moved out of the yeshiva dorm into their house at (Address Removed), Peterson Park, Chicago 60659. Almost every night (for some reason, on Shabbos she didn’t do it to me) Margie would leave her and Danny’s bedroom and come down to my basement bedroom at about 1:00a.m. and spend about four naked hours in bed with me. This happened more than fifty times.

Now when we went on “trips” together, Margie would make me do sexual things to her in the woods and on the beach - even on the plane!

I can’t tell you in this short letter all the things Margie taught and trained me to do to her - four hours every night - but it took a lot of physical stamina. I had become her sex-slave. But soon the whole truth will be told, so other children won’t fall prey to people like the Shabats. My Dad and I, are opening Project Truth, and our website ProjectTruth.org is already up and running (although it needs further development).

I’m sure that a lot of other boys who spent time at the Shabat House (it is a very popular spot) were also victims, but so far, no one wants to admit it. Their denials are very suspicious. With community support, they’ll come forward. Maybe you’ll discover the other pedophiles in your community that are endangering the children. Are you going to continue to pretend they don’t exist? It’s your kids ?! They belong to the Jewish nation. You don’t have the right to be sympathetic to molesters.

MARGIE AND HASHEM: One of the weird things is how Margie talked to me about Hashem. She would always say that “Hashem likes what we’re doing, even though no human could understand”. She also said a lot of other things. She was very manipulative.

MY DAD: One thing she really convinced me of, was that my father was my biggest enemy. Eventually I sort of became ( _______ ) Shabat, instead of ( _______ ) Thomas - (that’s my real name). This really disappointed my Dad. I didn’t speak to him for three years. When I was nineteen, I came back to Israel to fight for my country, and we got back together. That’s when I told my Dad about the molesters (there’s also a Jerusalem perpetrator on the loose; see the web-site), and we started doing something about all this.

Dad has really had his hands full here in Chicago, trying to get the Shabats into the Chicago Rabbinical Council Beit Din. Since they wouldn’t come, the C.R.C. Beit Din gave him permission to sue in Circuit Court. He’s doing the whole thing pro se (do-it-yourself litigation). What makes it so hard for my Dad is that nobody appreciates (people are actually upset at) his insistence on dealing forthrightly with my molesters - which is the only way to deal with molesters. Even worse, the leaders of Chicago have been actually helping the pedophiles, and hurting Dad.

MY SILENCE : This brings us to why I’m writing to you even though Danny Shabat recently started to pay me yearly money in return for my silence. Let me explain why several weeks ago I dared my Dad that he should go ahead and report to the community. And when I saw Dad actually writing his report, I said, “Move aside Dad, I’m takin’ over”.

About a year ago, while my Dad was still wasting his time trying to corral the Shabats into Beit Din (regarding Dad’s claim), my attorney was pursuing my claim in civil court (at this point, I don’t have much faith in Rabbis or Beit Din). It was time for me to start taking depositions and talking in depth about all the molestations - and I was scared. I didn’t want to relive the horrors. (You probably are wondering what “horrors” are there in a boy being coerced into so many naked sexual hours with a good-looking blond. Well, I also didn’t feel sick at first. For now, let it suffice to say that there is huge difference between “sex” and “sex-slaving”. Cancer also doesn’t hurt at the beginning. It just slowly but surely eats you up. Slow burn.)

I also had a desperate need to lessen my financial pressures - I support myself, and go to college, and it’s not easy. The idea of “cashing in” was very enticing. But I really wanted the Shabats to get their “day of reckoning” and be exposed. Seeing Dad’s determination, I knew that “day” would come in any case. I asked Dad if he minded me “bowing out”. Dad understood. I told my attorney to “get me out for whatever you can get - and make sure that whatever confidentiality agreement I have to sign, allows me to testify if subpoenaed in my Dad’s trial”. I refused to sign the Shabats’ first draft, that had me disparaging my father. They deleted that paragraph, and I signed. Problem: I agreed to silence - the manipulators took a lot more. As follows:

PEDOPHILES AND PIGS: It was a good deal for the pedophiles. For a little bit of money, the Shabats neutralized the strongest legal threat. But as it turns out, pedophiles are also pigs. They now distort, exaggerate, and convert my silence, into an acknowledgment that “molester issues” are non-existent; into an acknowledgment that the Shabats have honorably made amends with their exploited victim. This is absolutely false! And I simply agreed to “sit on the sidelines as they engage my Dad in court”.

They are using ME, to ridicule and harass my Dad - which is against the spirit of the contract. The Shabats are saying, “The son has been made honorably whole, but his cruel and crazy father insists on continuing the Civil War.”

Using ME as their hostage and their cover, the pedophile Shabats have mobilized the very people you would expect to be helping Dad, into harassing him. These powerful people are protecting and honoring the pedophile Shabats - as follows.

RABBI SHMUEL FUERST: Even the Rabbis protect my molesters and work against my Dad! Rabbi Shmuel Fuerst - who is the head of Agudath Israel of Illinois - told Dad that this was not a matter that warranted investigation - “it allegedly happened four years ago, and there’s no evidence that it happened to anybody else!” This is the same attitude that was used by the NCSY Board of directors wthey tried to hide a former rabbi/director - Baruch Lanner - that was sexually abusing NCSY children.

But get this! For a year now, Rabbi Fuerst has been harassing my Dad, insisting that the C.R.C. didn’t have the right to permit a civil lawsuit. A couple of months ago, Rabbi Fuerst put together a kangaroo Beit Din, and Excommunicated my Dad for suing the Shabats! See the details of that on the website.

Riddle : What is Rabbi Fuerst’s motive for acting so? Hearsay Answer : Remember the Orthodox Day School teacher that molested his students? Rumor has it, that Rabbi Fuerst knew of his propensity for sexual abuse and nevertheless helped get him his Day School teaching job - withholding information about his past. Rumor further has it that Danny Shabat is blackmailing Rabbi Fuerst with leaking this to the authorities, if Rabbi Fuerst doesn’t get Danny and Margie off the hook.

RABBI MOSHE FRANCIS : Rabbi Francis, the head of the Chicago Community Kollel, has been helping the Shabats with their legal-wiggling-out since the beginning. He filed an affidavit on behalf of the Shabats in Circuit Court, and helped their attorney communicate with (or rather, evade) the C.R.C. Beit Din. Two months ago , for the Chicago Community Kollel annual fund-raising Banquet Dinner, Rabbi Francis appointed Margie the Molester to be one of the “Banquet Co-ordinators”, and put her in charge of “Ad Book Solicitation”; Rabbi Francis appointed Danny Shabat to be one of the “Chairmen” of the banquet dinner.

Originally, when My Dad heard that Rabbi Francis was contacting important people in Israel, to protest his lawsuit in civil-court against the Shabats, I was standing right there when Dad called Rabbi Francis to ask about his connection to this “Situation.” Rabbi Francis said that Danny Shabat had “told him what happened.” Rabbi Francis added that he was appalled that a “ben torah” like Aaron Thomas should pursue a civil claim. Dad asked Rabbi Francis if he was outraged when Danny Shabat told him what had transpired. Rabbi Francis admitted that he would not describe his reaction as outrage. Dad suggested to him that his lack of outrage was as if he thought that child sexual abuse was OK in torah law.

I had a question for Rabbi Francis, so Dad passed me the phone. “Rabbi Francis, is Danny Shabat a significant contributor to your institution?” Rabbi Francis acknowledged that he was. “Now I understand”, I said.

It all has to do with money. It’s because the Shabats give a lot of money to the Rabbis. This makes victims like me feel sick, and it’s why victims are scared to report the crimes.

PROJECT SHIELD AND THE HARTMANS: Oh yeh, let me tell you how Project Shield treated my Dad and our “Situation”. Last year Dad was in Chicago pursuing his lawsuit against the Shabats for the extensive molestations against me, that splintered our family. He was ignoring his Jerusalem construction business and was confronting what he also sees as a crime against me - and against Jewry at Large - and he needed help keeping bread on the Jerusalem table. The people who you might expect to help, felt it would be more Jewish to forget about what happened (to me). I think he was ready to give up.

Then suddenly, the Chicago Jewish community was abuzz. The philanthropists, Robbie and Debbie Hartman, (when I was “Naftali Shabat” - Danny, Margie, and I used to get together with them every Shabbos) and Debbie’s sister, Jo Bruck launched Project Shield with the published exposure of two child sexual abuse perpetrators.

The purpose of Project Shield was to rid the community of pedophilia, of which one of the founding sisters’ family had been a victim. The Hartmans proclaimed that we must get tough with PEDOPHILES and that Project Shield will be “a place for victims and their families to come”. They decried the situation where “the rabbis have failed ...perpetrators lead a double life...the perpetrator gets away with his crime and the victims pay even more...the rabbi (pedophile) is being protected to see that he stays out of jail and his story out of the newspapers...but says Hartman, first and foremost are the victims...”

Dad was excited. He thought his isolation was over. With Project Shield’s declaration of identification, Dad’s potential supporters would understand that Dad’s attitude is the true Jewish response. So Dad called the Hartmans, but they had left town leaving co-founder Jo Bruck in charge. He anonymously told Bruck the entire story leaving out names, and explained his goal - to achieve Project Shield’s identification with his approach to our “Situation”. Persistently, she insisted that Dad give her the names because, per force, these things were still going on, and Project Shield knew how to deal with the “Situation”.

Finally Dad said to Bruck that this would really put the Hartmans to the test, because the name is Danny and Margie Shabat - Robbie and Debbie Hartman’s best friends! Bruck agreed that it would be the test, but that she was positive her sister and brother-in-law would meet their responsibilities in Project Shield (which was seeking public funding, through Shalva). At Bruck’s encouragement, within an hour, Dad delivered fifty pages of documentation detailing the crimes. She read the entire story and was aghast and very sympathetic. “I’ll get in touch with Robbie and Debbie now. Please come back at 8:00 tonight” , she told Dad.

However, when Dad walked back into Bruck’s home that night, he found himself in a lion’s den. In just three-hours, the sympathetic Mrs. Bruck was now hostile. She sternly informed him that she had been in touch with the Hartmans, who have been briefed in this matter by the SHABATS. “They understand that your son has “settled” his matter with the Shabats. You are just the father,” she told him, “Project Shield isn’t designed to help the father. There’s the door. Maybe try Rabbi Fuerst. Get out.” Dad retreated very wounded. You see! Here again, my agreement to “stay out of the litigation” was portrayed as somehow exonerating the perpetrators.

PROJECT SHIELD, SHIELDS MOLESTERS : Project Shield is guilty of violating its own rules! They are now actively protecting child sexual abusers - IN MY NAME. By hiding the sex offenders from the public, they are allowing the sexual abuse to continue. This behavior helps the sex offender to find new victims. Perpetuation of the “secretiveness” of child sexual abuse only fosters further abuse.

(That same night, Danny Shabat - having been warned by their “friends” at Project Shield, the Hartmans - called my grandfather in Memphis. Zaidee interpreted Danny’s phone call to be a possible threat of physical violence against my Dad. Zaidee told Dad to be careful, and “don’t go anywhere by yourself!”)

BE WARNED : Originally when I insisted to Dad that The Shabats have to be exposed for the benefit of the “other children”; Dad would counter that the most effective medium to expose, is through formal “procedures” in a court of law. However, it’s taking too long (and anyway, financial pressures are jeopardizing those legal “procedures”), and I can no longer remain silent as the unguarded pedophiles rally corrupt community and rabbinic support against my Dad. So I’m taking over - I invite you to join me.

Excuse my shouting, but I have to warn this community: IT’S ONLY BECAUSE THERE ARE “MOLESTER PROTECTORS” LIKE RABBI FUERST, RABBI FRANCIS, AND ROBBIE HARTMAN - THAT MAKES IT POSSIBLE FOR THERE TO BE A SHABAT COUPLE TO MOLEST ME AND OTHER KIDS, SO THAT WE VICTIMS HAVE TO THEN SPEND THE REST OF OUR LIVES TRYING TO SHAKE A FILTHY (you’re not a victim - that’s why you think the expression is too harsh) MARGIE AND DANNY SHABAT OFF OUR BACKS.

Signed: ( ______ ) Thomas

Project Truth
Memphis, Tennessee
www.ProjectTruth.org

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To contact the molesters and their protectors :
Danny and Margie Shabat
Chicago, Illinois 60659
home-Removed
office-Removed

Robbie and Debbie Hartman
Chicago, Illinois 60659
home-Removed

Rabbi Shmuel Fuerst
6100 N. Drake Ave.
Chicago, Illinois 60659
773-539-4241
773-463-7738

Rabbi Moshe Francis
6604 N. Richmond St.
Chicago, Illinois 60645
773-262-7151

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Danny Shabat's Summary

A Profile of Business Leader Danny Shabat
Linkedin - January 15, 2013
http://www.linkedin.com/in/dannyshabat
With more than 30 years of experience in business leadership, Daniel Shabat is the consummate entrepreneur. Today, Danny Shabat utilizes his education and skill as owner and manager of a number of local businesses in his Chicago, Illinois, community, all of which continue to thrive under his operation. The Brooklyn College graduate relocated to Chicago with his family after several years in the fast-paced New York business industry and has lived in Illinois since 1977.

Danny Shabat took on his first ownership role when he purchased the Royal Gardens Nursing Home, which he led into becoming The Waterford nursing home, a state-of-the-art facility offering long-term assisted living, short-term respite care, and a wide range of medical and social services for Chicago seniors. Shortly after, he purchased the Diplomat Nursing Home and the Heritage Nursing Home Inc.; the assisted-living industry gave Mr. Shabat the opportunity to branch out into other areas of health care, particularly in pharmaceutical companies.

Among his work with The Waterford and the Heritage Nursing Home, Danny Shabat also owns and operates organizations such as LifeScan Laboratory, Inc.; PharMore Drugs, LLC; Micro Innovations Corp.; and Shabat Investments, LLC. Mr. Shabat also previously owned LifeCare Ambulance, Inc.

In addition to his success in business, Daniel Shabat also commits his time and passion to nonprofit organizations, serving as an example to other leaders in the industry. Danny Shabat regularly contributes to charities such as Project Extreme, the Melvin J. Berman Hebrew Academy of Greater Washington, and the National Conference of Synagogue Youth (NCSY). 
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Margie Shabat's Summary 
Linkedin - January 15, 2013
http://www.linkedin.com/in/margieshabat

An inspirational blogger, Margie Shabat explores themes of surviving life’s challenges. She pursues this work in honor of her parents, Samuel and Tamara Rotter, who endured the Holocaust and moved on to lead joyous and meaningful lives. In memory of her parents, Ms. Shabat contributes to a multitude of charities, including Aneinu, Gesher, Chicago Torah Network, Telshe Yeshiva, Jewish Educational Toys, Inc. (JET), Mikor Chaim, Chai Lifeline, and Shalva, as well as the Israeli-based organizations Hatzolah, Connections Israel, and Rabbi Meir Baal Haneis Charity.
After surviving two breast cancer diagnoses, in 1997 and 2001, Margie Shabat immersed herself in the work of helping other women prevent, address, and overcome the illness. Despite cultural barriers against open discussion of breast cancer, she was determined to break the silence, and has provided a voice for women in her community to increase awareness about the disease. In addition to consulting privately with others afflicted by breast cancer, and speaking publicly about her experience as a survivor, Ms. Shabat advertises locally about the importance of mammography and early screening, and donates to organizations including Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

A mother of two sons, Margie Shabat has four grandchildren. Raised in New York City, she received her education at Brooklyn College and Machon Gold in Jerusalem, Israel, She currently holds employed by Da’as Management. When she is not busy with family, service, prayer, and work, Ms. Shabat enjoys biking, swimming, and writing. 


Specialties
The child of an Auschwitz survivor and herself a repeat breast cancer survivor, Margie Shabat has committed her life to helping people endure life’s greatest challenges.

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Friday, February 23, 2001

Case of the Unnamed Jaffa Teenage Serial Sex Offender

Case of the Unnamed Jaffa Teenage Serial Sex Offender
Jaffa, Israel


Arrested and confessed to molesting 20 children aged eight to 12 over the past half year.  

The alleged offender told investigators he would lure the children to his home or isolated locations, such as bomb shelters, yards, or the beach, by inviting them to play cards or other games and then rape, sodomize, and molest them.
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Disclaimer: Inclusion in this website does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement. Individuals must decide for themselves if the resources meet their own personal needs.


Table of Contents:  

2001
 
    1.    Jaffa teen confesses to molesting 20 neighborhood children (02/23/2001)

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Jaffa teen confesses to molesting 20 neighborhood children
By Heidi J. Gleit
The Jerusalem Post - Friday, February 23, 2001

A Jaffa resident has confessed to sexually molesting 20 children from his school and neighborhood, Yiftah precinct chief Lt.-Cmdr. Menashe Arbiv said yesterday. The Tel Aviv Juvenile Court yesterday remanded the suspect, 15, for five days.

Police arrested the suspect on Wednesday, following an investigation spurred by a complaint from the mother of a victim.

The suspect confessed to molesting 20 children aged eight to 12 over the past half year, Arbiv said. He told investigators he would lure the children to his home or isolated locations, such as bomb shelters, yards, or the beach, by inviting them to play cards or other games and then rape, sodomize, and molest them.

The suspect provided police with great details of the attacks, including the names of victims and locations of the attacks. However, Arbiv emphasized that the investigation is still in its early stages. A psychological evaluation of the suspect has not yet been completed and police have not yet established whether the suspect himself was a victim of sexual abuse. He attended school regularly and was unknown to police prior to the incident.

Police have located nine of the alleged victims so far and are working to locate the other victims.

One child, aged eight, told investigators that the suspect sexually assaulted him on four different occasions. He said the suspect did not use force during the attack, but threatened him afterward when he ordered him not to tell anyone.

The other victims are to be questioned over the next few days by social services experts working in cooperation with the police, as police are not allowed to directly question young children.

Police are working around the clock to solve the case as quickly as possible, Arbiv said.
A spokeswoman from the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality said that municipal social services intend to provide appropriate assistance to victims and residents of the area as soon as the situation is clarified.

This is the third case police have uncovered over the past year in the center of the country in which a pedophile was preying on a large number of children in his area.

Aryeh Goldman, 22, of Ramle, was convicted by Tel Aviv District Court last week of sexually assaulting seven children from his neighborhood aged seven to 13. Although Goldman confessed to molesting many more children, the families of a number of the alleged victims refused to allow their children to testify in the case.

Last month police arrested a Bnei Brak resident, 14, who confessed to molesting about 10 six and seven year olds from his neighborhood.

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Wednesday, February 21, 2001

Case of Paul Slifer

Case of Paul Slifer
High School Teacher - Kushner Yeshiva High School, Livingston, NJ
Biology and Other Sciences Teacher - Sussex County Community College


Convicted sex offender who is currently incarcerated and is scheduled for release on July 16, 2013.  

Slifer was originally arraigned on six counts of aggravated sexual assault, four counts of aggravated sexual contact, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a minor.

Note: There are several individuals by the name of "Paul Slifer".  This Paul Slifer was born on November 13, 1967.

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Disclaimer: Inclusion in this website does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement. Individuals must decide for themselves if the resources meet their ow
n personal needs.

Table of Contents:

2001
  1. Parents praise school's actions in case against teacher at local yeshiva (02/21/2001)

2002
  1. Instructor named in sex suit arrested on new charge (03/13/2002)
  2. New Jersey Yeshiva Teacher Accused of Sex Crimes Against Youths (03/13/2002)


2003
  1. New Jersey Teacher Accused Of Sex Crimes Against Youth  (03/13/2003)
  2. Kushner teacher arrested again as further allegations emerge (03/14/2003)

2013
  1. State of New Jersey Department of Corrections (10/19/2013)

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Parents praise school's actions in case against teacher at local yeshiva
By Enid Weiss
New Jersey Jewish News - Feburary 21, 2001

Parents are pleased with the swift action taken by Kushner Yeshiva High School in Livingston after officials there learned one of their teachers had been arrested for molesting a student.

"Upon learning of alleged misconduct at our school," said yeshiva principal Rabbi Scot A. Berman, school officials had no choice but "to immediately terminate Paul Slifer's employment."

Slifer, 34, of Livingston, is free on $150,000 bail after being arraigned Feb. 15 on six counts of aggravated sexual assault, four counts of aggravated sexual contact, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a minor, said Livingston police detective Lt. Craig Handschuch. Because the assaults are said to have begun when the child was 15, the charges are more severe and are considered first-degree crimes, Handschuch said.

Police had received information regarding possible inappropriate behavior between Slifer and a student, then interviewed the student who confirmed a history of abuse that began in September 2000, Handschuch said. Police confiscated Slifer's computer and are investigating whether there are additional victims.

Handschuch did not go into detail on the assaults but said they included criminal touching and that police believe there was Internet contact with the victim. He added that the incidents occurred over an 18-month period.
Before coming to Kushner, Slifer was a part-time instructor of biology and other science classes at Sussex County Community College. He taught there between Sept. 1, 1999, and May 23, 2001, said Linda Nieman, executive director of public information at the college.
Slifer and the college are being sued for $10 million by a former student, according to a report published in The Star-Ledger. The student, Christine Peacock, alleges that Slifer flunked her after she spurned his sexual advances.

Nieman said she could not discuss Slifer further as "litigation is pending, and on the advice of counsel we have no comment."

Livingston police contacted Kushner school officials on Sunday, Feb. 10, and at 11:30 p.m. on Feb. 13, Slifer was arrested by Barnegat police at his mother's home in that town.

"The school has been very cooperative with police," Handschuch said. "We can't thank them enough."

Upon learning of the police investigation, school officials fired Slifer on Sunday night, said Kushner board president Alice Klein of Livingston. She said they were cognizant they "had a situation, and we had to deal with it."

Kushner board members' swift action after hearing about the allegations is in contrast to alleged inaction by officials at National Council of Synagogue Youth -- a youth group movement of the Orthodox Union -- who had for years ignored similar charges against a rabbi who held an NCSY leadership position. Upon receiving complaints that Rabbi Baruch Lanner had abused teens in his care, OU officials allegedly covered up the incidents and continued to let Lanner work with children. Lanner was charged in 2000 and faces child molestation charges in Monmouth County stemming from incidents when he was principal at a yeshiva there.

"By all means we have learned from that [incident]," Klein said of the Lanner scandal. "It can happen anywhere...and as a society, we're much more aware."

Klein said her thoughts now go out to the victim and to the rest of the school's student population.
"This has been a hard year for the children," she said, adding that the students "lost some innocence" with the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. "So there's been a lot of dialogue and group meetings about everything that's happened this year starting with Sept. 11. I think the children have really matured."

"I was shocked at what happened," Simon Jacob, a West Orange parent of several Kushner students, said upon hearing of the charges against Slifer. "You can't not be shocked."

Three of Jacob's nine children graduated from Kushner, and several others attend school there now, including one who was in one of Slifer's science classes. Jacob appreciated that he received information about the occurrence before his children even came home from school to tell him the news.

"I have children who thought very highly of Dr. Slifer," Jacob said. "He is an incredibly charismatic person.

"I was incredibly impressed with how fast and how much information flew out of the school" in regard to the allegations and arrest, said Jacob.

One of Jacob's sons went to live in Israel after his graduation last year and has communicated via e-mail with Slifer since then. "[Slifer] wasn't his favorite [teacher], but he was well liked..., said Jacob. "Until this, he seemed to be a great role model for the kids. It's a scary thing."

"Our primary concern is the protection of our students," Berman said. "We have informed our parents and students of the events and are cooperating fully with the authorities."

School officials notified parents by e-mail and told students of Slifer's termination and the reason for it during a Feb. 11 assembly. A hard copy of the e-mail letter to parents was also mailed to their homes. Following the assembly, students were divided into small groups to help them process the information with the help of teachers. The school also consulted Jewish Family Service of MetroWest on the issue; the agency supplied the school with a hotline number for parents, teachers, and students who might welcome discussing the subject with a counselor on the telephone or meeting with someone outside the school setting.

"We have encouraged students to speak with their parents, to speak with our guidance staff and other professionals in school," Berman said. He also said school officials consistently repeated the message "that if [a student] has been involved in any way, he or she is a victim and has done nothing wrong."

Berman said school officials are trying to encourage the healing process -- helping students to develop and regain confidence in teachers, adults, and authority figures. Students were encouraged, "especially in the aftermath of this, to be on the lookout for warning signs..., anything from adults that crosses lines of professionalism" or for communications and actions that are inappropriate coming from someone much older, he added.

Berman speculated that later on, perhaps in a few weeks, the school will offer additional programs to address such issues as harassment and abuse to further help students process the unfortunate incident.

The decision to fire Slifer was not difficult, according to Berman. Teachers and others who work with children may be asked to leave because of a "moral indiscretion." Slifer was fired from his job teaching science and one math class to students in the 10th through 12th grades several days before he was arrested.

Berman said that on first hearing of the allegations, he "was sickened by the thought that any person, but in particular a teacher of students, could perpetrate such horrific acts upon children."

Slifer was hired by Kushner in the fall of 2000.

He apparently passed a screening conducted by school officials on new employees. The procedure includes investigating whether applicants have a police record and checking their references and credentials, Klein said.

"We have a very serious system in place," Klein said.

Slifer was a good student, said Peter Kasdan, rabbi emeritus of Temple Emanu-El in Livingston. Slifer grew up in Livingston and attended religious school at the synagogue through high school.

"He was a very social kid," Kasdan said. "He had a lot of friends; he was always helping people."

Now, Kasdan is amazed at what has befallen the community.

"It's very sad," Kasdan said. "It's sad for the child it happened to because it's a lifelong scarring experience, and, if the charges are true, it's sad for Paul. It's throwing a life away. It means he has deepseated problems."

After Slifer graduated, Kasdan had little contact with him. But the two spoke again when Slifer's father died. According to Kasdan, Slifer's father took his own life a few years ago.
Anne Homa of Livingston said it helps to get the school's daily e-mail on the issue. Homa, who serves on the board and executive board at Kushner, has one child who is a student in the academy's lower school and two in high school.

The information they receive, she said, helps parents deal with the loss of control they feel with regard to the circumstances, Homa said.

Several parents told NJ Jewish News of their satisfaction with Berman and the school's handling of the situation, echoing Homa's sentiments.

The students had built up trust in Slifer, said Kushner parent Jacob; when that trust was broken by Slifer, he added, it affects the trust students have in everyone.

Jacob said his children's initial reaction was almost one of denial as they felt "there's no way this can be happening," Jacob said. "They couldn't believe it was the same person" -- someone who is alleged to have preyed on a student and who was the teacher they had looked up to and confided in.

Jacob said he told his children, "It isn't the fault of the student assaulted; unfortunately there are some people who are predatory in nature, and they can act one way in one situation and very differently in another...."

Jacob said the incident illustrates to his children how important it is to be careful, but he cautioned them against letting it tarnish their relationship with other teachers.

"The hardest thing was to tell them to rebuff any outreach by Dr. Slifer and not to contact him," Jacob said. One of his children "had gotten used to talking to [Slifer]. There are a number of students he really helped through tough times. I know he did good things in the school. When kids needed someone to talk to, [Slifer] was there."

The incident has forced Jacob to rethink how he perceives people, he said.

"Many parents are so distressed and very angry; parents and students feel incredibly betrayed by this.... My kids seem to be coming out of it and...ready to move on," said Jacob. "But it's definitely had an impact on them. There is definitely a hollow space."

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Instructor named in sex suit arrested on new charge
Associated Press - March 13, 2002

NEWARK, N.J. -- A former college instructor named in a student's sexual harassment suit has been arrested in a separate case of alleged sexual assault.

Paul Slifer, who taught science at a Jewish high school in Essex County, was fired and then arrested three days later on charges he sexually assaulted a 16-year-old male student there.

Slifer also taught at Sussex County Community College, where a female student claimed in a lawsuit earlier last month that he attempted to flunk her because she rejected his advances.

Slifer is no longer employed at the Sussex two-year college, school spokeswoman Linda Nieman said.

In the lawsuit, a Sussex nursing student charged that in January 2001 Slifer sexually harassed her verbally and physically, and gave her prescription medication.

Slifer hugged and kissed her, and when she complained, he gave her a failing grade in anatomy and physiology, she claimed. After she protested to the school, the grade was changed to C-plus.

Authorities said they seized computers from Slifer's Livingston home and are investigating whether he victimized other students.

Slifer, 34, is accused of assaulting the boy over the last year and a half. He is charged with six counts of aggravated sexual assault, four counts of aggravated sexual contact and two counts of child endangerment.

He was arrested late last month and has been held at the Essex County Jail.

Rabbi Scot Berman, principal of the high school at Kushner Hebrew Academy in Livingston, said the school learned of the assault investigation four days later, and Slifer was immediately fired.

Berman said the school already had discussed the college student's lawsuit, which was filed Feb. 1. Slifer had denied the charges, Berman said.

Nevertheless, Berman said, "We started to gather information regarding that case. We put safeguards in our own school to ensure that his association with students would only be in the classroom and not alone with individual students."


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New Jersey Teacher Accused Of Sex Crimes Against Youth
By Maria Newman
New York Times - March 13, 2003

Since joining the Kushner Yeshiva High School in Livingston, N.J., as a biology teacher in September 2000, Paul Slifer had been popular among students. They liked talking to him, in person and on the Internet, police investigators said. Some of them believed he was a doctor, the police said, and went to him for advice with problems. He offered physical exams.
Last week, the police arrested Mr. Slifer on charges of sexually touching students. Those students, three girls and a boy, all 16 years old, came forward after learning last month that Mr. Slifer had been charged with sexually assaulting a 15-year-old male classmate.
All told, there have been more than 20 charges filed against Mr. Slifer, among them sexual contact, aggravated sexual assault and impersonating a doctor. And police say they are continuing to talk to students.
''We want to make sure there's nothing else out there,'' said Detective Lt. Craig Handschuch of the Livingston Police Department.
Mr. Slifer, 34, of Livingston, could not be located for comment. Lieutenant Handschuch said he was free on $97,000 bail in connection with the charges last week.

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New Jersey Yeshiva Teacher Accused of Sex Crimes Against Youths
By Maria Newman
New York Times - March 13, 2002

Since joining the Kushner Yeshiva High School in Livingston, N.J., as a biology teacher in September 2000, Paul Slifer had been popular among students. They liked talking to him, in person and on the Internet, police investigators said. Some of them believed he was a doctor, the police said, and went to him for advice with problems. He offered physical exams.

Last week, the police arrested Mr. Slifer on charges of sexually touching students. Those students, three girls and a boy, all 16 years old, came forward after learning last month that Mr. Slifer had been charged with sexually assaulting a 15-year-old male classmate.

All told, there have been more than 20 charges filed against Mr. Slifer, among them sexual contact, aggravated sexual assault and impersonating a doctor. And police say they are continuing to talk to students.

''We want to make sure there's nothing else out there,'' said Detective Lt. Craig Handschuch of the Livingston Police Department.

Mr. Slifer, 34, of Livingston, could not be located for comment. Lieutenant Handschuch said he was free on $97,000 bail in connection with the charges last week.

Students told investigators that Mr. Slifer's misconduct began shortly after he began teaching at the school in September 2000, the police said. The matter came to light on Feb. 9, said the school principal, Rabbi Scot A. Berman, when someone told him about the 15-year-old boy.

The rabbi contacted board members of the Hebrew Academy, which operates the high school.

''We immediately contacted the authorities,'' he said. ''That evening we terminated Paul Slifer from employment. Within 24 hours, on that Monday, we had contacted our parents, assembled our students and shared with them what had transpired and put into motion the mechanism for dealing with the emotional components of this matter for our students, teachers and parents.''

The police arrested Mr. Slifer, and school officials encouraged anyone with further information to come forward.

Lieutenant Handschuch said: ''The school has been very cooperative with us on this matter. They've been very good with the parents, not just of the victims, but all parents. We were lucky in this situation that people did forward information to us. People had enough sense to say, 'Hey, something doesn't look right here.' ''

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Kushner teacher arrested again as further allegations emerge
By Enid Weiss
New Jersey Jewish News - March 14, 2003

Additional charges have been filed against a Livingston man for allegedly molesting several students while he was a teacher at Kushner Yeshiva High School in Livingston.

The teacher, Paul Slifer, 34, was fired as soon as Kushner officials became aware of the situation. School officials also contacted police to begin an investigation that resulted in Slifer's arrest on Feb. 13 and again on March 6, as further allegations emerged.

On March 6, Slifer surrendered to police after five additional victims came forward, according to Livingston Police Chief Michael Erb. Slifer was charged with viewing pornographic materials on the Internet and multiple counts of endangering the welfare of a minor, sexual assault, aggravated sexual contract, criminal sexual contact, and practicing medicine without a license.

Slifer had been leading the victims to believe he was a physician to gain their confidence, Erb alleged, adding that he then took advantage of them. As in most sexual-abuse cases involving minors, he said, the victims were hesitant to come forward at first but once the original allegation surfaced, the others started to report to police. The police, especially Livingston detective David Fischgrund, are still investigating whether there are additional victims and urge anyone with information to contact them or other authorities.

Victims were both males and females, according to Essex County Prosecutor's office spokesperson Charlotte Smith.

On Feb. 15, Slifer was arraigned on six counts of aggravated sexual assault, four counts of aggravated sexual contact, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a minor, said Livingston police detective Lt. Craig Handschuch. Because the assaults began when the child was 15, the charges are more severe and are considered first-degree crimes, Handschuch said.

A first-degree charge carries a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison, Smith said. A second-degree charge carries a maximum sentence of up to 10 years. Smith could not elaborate on how many total years Slifer faces.

The second set of incidents allegedly took place over the same 18-month time period that the incidents that gave rise to the first set of charges took place, according to Erb.

Slifer had been hired to teach science to students in 10th through 12th grades in the fall of 2001. He also taught one math class.

Meanwhile, Kushner's principal Rabbi Scot Berman is concerned that the victims may be further victimized. He has called on the school community to refrain from speculating as to the identities of the victims.

"The potential harm in correctly or incorrectly identifying the individuals could have" lasting and painful effects, Berman said. "As a society of concerned, caring Jews, we need to be very careful in adhering to laws of lashon hara(hateful talk)."

Berman said Slifer also worked for a tutoring organization and had contact with non-Kushner students, thus the potential exists for yet more victims to come forward.

"At this point our students are moving on with their lives," Berman said, adding that he continues to update parents, students, and faculty members, openly and honestly addressing the issues. In one letter to the school community, he wrote that if sentenced to the maximum term, Slifer will spend the better part of the rest of his life in jail. "I think that does a lot," Berman said. "I think that makes people feel better. ... I think that helps parents and students feel more secure."

Slifer has been released on $50,000 bail on the second set of charges, according to police and prosecutor's office records.


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State of New Jersey Department of Corrections
October 19, 2013



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