 
|
|||||||||
              
|
Scout leader's sentence criticized
Wednesday, April 25, 2001 By Ernie Hoffman, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
Relatives of three young boys who were bound and physically abused by a Boy Scout leader on an overnight campout said they were appalled by the light sentence imposed on the defendant in a Westmoreland County courtroom yesterday.
John T. Levendosky II, the assistant scoutmaster who pleaded guilty two months ago to 18 charges stemming from the incident and has been in jail about 101/2 months, will be eligible for parole in about a month and a half under the sentence handed down by Common Pleas Judge William J. Ober.
Ober ordered Levendosky, of Derry Borough, to a maximum of two years in the Westmoreland County Prison, giving him credit for the time he has spent in prison since his arrest June 9.
The judge also ordered Levendosky to six months of electronic house arrest and 15 years of probation. He is not to be released until he undergoes mental counseling and is certified a nonrisk to repeat the offenses, must register his address with police while on probation and may not work as a child caregiver.
"We're not happy at all," the father of one of the young victims said after the sentence was pronounced. "What kind of deterrent is that? What am I supposed to tell the boys?"
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is not naming the father to protect the identities of the victims.
The incident, according to testimony at yesterday's sentencing hearing, caused one of the boys to attempt suicide several times afterward, and at least two of them are taking anti-depressants like Prozac because of the assault.
Levendosky, 52, was a Boy Scout leader for more than 20 years when he took the three Westmoreland County boys, ages 12 and 13, on a camping trip to a site in Fairfield on June 9.
At the camp, Levendosky enticed the boys to join in a ritual for a make-believe organization he called "Osprey." It included nudity, bondage and paddling but no overt sexual activity. At one point, he traced a large "T" on their chests with the blunt edge of a hunting knife.
Yesterday, two of the boys testified. One, now 14, said he had tried to kill himself several times and was distrustful of adults.
The other, a 13-year-old, said his schoolwork had suffered and he was in therapy.
"I just can't be a kid anymore," he said. "Please don't let him out."
Parents of the victims also testified and asked for the maximum sentence, as did Assistant District Attorney Patricia Elliott, who several months ago offered a three- to six-year plea bargain that was rejected by defense attorney Ryan Kammerer.
Kammerer yesterday asked for what he called a fair sentence: up to 23 months in the county prison with no credit for time already served.
Ober said he was unable to undo the damage Levendosky had done and his sentence was in the high end of standard state sentencing guidelines for the charges, which included three counts each of child endangerment, corruption of minors, unlawful restraint, reckless endangerment, simple assault and harassment.
Ober said he also considered that Levendosky had no criminal history, had apologized to the victims again in court and had behaved well while in prison.
The father said the court ignored the victims and they were devastated.
"This was a major, major defeat for the nation's children," he said.
|
||||||||
