Convictions of clergymen who have been
convicted of child sexual abuse and child molestation have become so commonplace over the past decade, which they
don't even make the main headlines anymore. In the most recent such conviction, a former Catholic Deacon
in Alabama was sentenced to six years in prison on charges of child pornography,
but not before also confessing to sexual abuse of children in the past.
82-year-old Robert L. Nouwen has a solid reputation
in the community. However, in
spite of his reputation and advanced years, the judge was not willing to be
lenient with him. According to the
judge, it is important to take into account the defendant's conduct, no matter
what his age.
Nouwen was charged with ordering several
dollars worth of movies from a Canadian company. The US Postal Inspection Service was able to track down his
location. However, by the time he
was arrested, he had managed to destroy the movies. Officers searched his home as well as computer, but did not
find any evidence of child pornography.
The investigation was really not going
anywhere, and officers were ready to give up, when Nouwen admitted to buying
the movies. He also admitted to
numerous incidents of sexual abuse against young boys that he had committed in
the past.
According to the law enforcement officers,
they had no idea about these sexual abuse cases against young boys, and had not
intended any investigation for these.
If he had not admitted to these crimes, they would never have had a
clue.
His attorneys say that the sexual crimes are
the result of an unnatural and undesirable family environment. He lost his mother when he was five
years old, and his alcoholic father then abandoned him. He was then put in an orphanage when he
was 12 years old, and was sexually abused at the orphanage.