Rabbi Rape Charge Dropped

Details:

Rabbi rape charge dropped
30 January 2009

A STUDENT rabbi charged with raping a boy in a synagogue toilet has had his case thrown out of court.

Moshe Reichman, 24, from Golders Green, was accused of four offences which it was claimed occurred five years ago.

But he walked free from court on Monday after the prosecution admitted it could offer no evidence. Mr Reichman had always denied the charges.

Snaresbrook Crown Court heard how the boy was in Israel and would not be returning to stand in the witness box. This gave the judge, Mr Justice Birts, no option but to dismiss the rape case.

Defence barrister Jonathan Goldberg QC said his client was a relieved man. "Mr Reichman always maintained complete innocence and if the boy had appeared to give evidence there was a long history of disturbed anti-social behaviour on which he would have been cross-examined," he said.

Comments

[Rabbidw]

Sometimes the kid lies. Read the Childrens hour by Lillian Hellman written in the 50's or Arthur Miller's The Crucible, about the Salem witch trials.

[R]

If it was so important to the boy and the family he would have been there.

[Wolfie]

An individual has to be nuts to go into chinuch in the current atmosphere. The current vogue, to turn to secular authorities l'chatchila, advocated by rash individuals who have lost faith with Rabbinical Authority, opens a pandoras box. I know of cases in which the secular authorites have been called in first. Having no understanding of the nuances of American Charedi life, they pressed charges. Having seen the police testimony, it is clear from the loshen of the teenage accusers, that is a fabrication. The police worked with a non-nuanced translation. We need now to protect not only the kids but the teachers.