PUBLISHER'S NOTE: On June 24, 2017, The Statesman published a noteworthy letter to the editor from Lewis Jones, who writes that as Fran Keller's trial attorney, he was overwhelmed with
thankfulness by the actions of prosecutors Margaret Moore and Keith Hampton. "While
the dismissal of charges is a remedy, the recompense that the state of
Texas is offering does not begin to compensate for the years of abuse
suffered during their incarceration," he writes. " Consideration should be given to
the severity of what the Kellers endured, as well as the years that they
served. The unjust incarceration of Dan and Fran Keller has
haunted me for years — and in my anger I ended my own legal career.
Perhaps my anger on their behalf was selfish and not what they would
have wished. I find myself in awe at the Keller’s ability to forgive
those who prosecuted them. They have shown me what it is to move forward
in this life — and for that I am thankful."
http://www.mystatesman.com/news/opinion/letters-the-editor-june-2017/9Lz0qUezpnTbBiH54MpC0N/
Harold Levy. Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;
-----------------------------------------------------------
STORY: "Babysitters Accused of
Satanic Crimes Exonerated After 25 Years," by reporter Sarah Pruitt,
published by 'History' on June 21, 2017.
GIST: "On June 20th, a couple who served 21 years in prison for the Satanic
ritual abuse of children was formally exonerated by the district
attorney in Austin, Texas, who said there is “no credible evidence”
against them. The decision brings an end to one of the more prominent cases brought
during the so-called Satanic Panic of the 1980s and the early 1990s,
where fears of devil-worshippers influencing American children spread
rapidly. During this time, hundreds of childcare providers were accused
of unspeakable crimes, and many would spend years behind bars for crimes
they didn’t commit. Fran and Dan Keller were convicted in 1992 of sexually abusing a
three-year-old girl at their home daycare facility on the outskirts of
Austin, Texas. After the girl’s initial reports of abuse (she said Dan
spanked her, according to
the Intercept,
but later alleged rape under further questioning), the local community
grew panicked. The charges leveled against the Kellers soon included
supposedly Satanic rituals like baby sacrifice, the amputation of a zoo
gorilla’s arm, secret graveyard ceremonies, and transportation of
children to Mexico to be assaulted by members of the military. Following
a trial, the Kellers were each sentenced to 48 years in prison. The
Kellers were finally released in 2013 after multiple appeals,
when the doctor who had provided the only physical evidence of the
alleged assault recanted his testimony. This week, Travis County
District Attorney Margaret Moore exonerated the couple, bringing an end
to the Kellers’ 25-year-long struggle to clear their names. Though the
Satanic Panic that ensnared the Kellers certainly has historical
precedents (most notably the
Salem Witch Trials),
the panic’s more immediate roots can be traced to the tumultuous decade
that preceded it. “In the 1970s, there was a lot of anxiety being put
onto the idea
that Satanists were controlling things and had their hands in things,”
said Debbie Nathan, a longtime investigative journalist who co-authored a
book about the panic,
“Satan’s Silence: Ritual Abuse and the Making of a Modern American Witch Hunt”
(2001), with Michael Snedeker. At the time, a number of gossipy urban
myths were going around about
Satanic influences on corporations. Procter & Gamble even had to
hold a press conference in 1985 to deny allegations that their logo was
the sign of the devil. According to Nathan, such myths had staying power
because they reflected people’s anxieties about “corporate consumerism
and corporate culture,” about women entering the work force, and
especially about children being left in daycare facilities in increasing
numbers. In the early 1980s, “Daycare was really demonized in ways that
were way beyond the facts. There was just a lot of anxiety about public
childcare, which I think was tacked onto a generalized anxiety about
women going into the workforce.” In the early 1980s, these concerns
unexpectedly tracked with those of
feminists, who were seeking to confront violence (particularly sexual
violence) against women and children. “Those two things came together
and caused a really powerful panic,” Nathan said. “It was really
remarkable to see all of these institutions buy into the idea that there
was an international conspiracy of Satanists set out to recruit tiny
kids, and somehow brainwash them so that later on when they became
adults, you could sort of snap your fingers and they would go into this
Satanic trance.”.........In addition to hundreds of accusations of abuse
against daycare
providers and other caregivers, people identified all kinds of evil
influences in modern American society during the panic. People saw
Satanic messages in rock music, cartoons, role-playing video games like
“Dungeons and Dragons,” the theme song from “Mr. Ed” and even the
diapers they put on their children. By the early ‘90s, evidence was
mounting against the existence of a
widespread Satanic conspiracy among childcare providers. A report in
1992 by the Department of Justice found the reports of widespread
Satanic ritual abuse were not credible. In 1994, the National Center on
Child Abuse and Neglect released another report debunking the claims.
Thanks to increased skepticism, the Satanic Panic died down by the
mid-1990s, and by now many of the cases against childcare providers have
been overturned due to mishandled prosecutions. In perhaps the most
notorious panic-fueled case, three Arkansas men—known as the
West Memphis Three—were
freed in 2011 after serving more than 18 years in prison; they had been
convicted as teenagers in 1994 of the sexual assault and murder of
three young boys, but DNA evidence showed they had no connection to the
crime. With the exoneration of the Kellers, and improved techniques used by
law enforcement officers, social workers and other professionals to
interview children in cases where abuse is suspected, it’s tempting to
believe something like the Satanic Panic could not happen today. Nathan
warned against such complacency, however, saying that the Internet has
sparked all kinds of new anxieties about what children are doing online,
and what kind of dangers they might be exposed to. In fact, the earlier panic may hold a lesson for us in today’s news
climate, with its prevalence of conspiracy theories and unsupported
rumors. “We saw this 30 years ago,” Nathan said. “It’s sort of an object
lesson, what happened then, and I think it’s unfortunate that not very
many people remember it.”"
The entire story can be found at:
http://www.history.com/news/babysitters-accused-of-satanic-crimes-exonerated-after-25-years
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the
Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my
previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put
considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith
and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic
pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses
on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please
send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest
to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy;
Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;
The entire post can be found at: