The victims' side of the story.



Amirault was found guilty and this verdict was upheld several times by
both political parties. There were physical findings of abuse in the
children and the children showed signs of strong sexualized behaviors
after the abuse. The children as adults continue to state they were
abused.


http://eassurvey.wordpress.com/2010/...amirault-case/



Fells Acres – Amirault Case



for information on more cases, see
http://ritualabuse.us/ritualabuse/ar...d-abuse-cases/

Letters to the Editor: The Real Darkness Is Child Abuse WALL STREET
JOURNAL (J) 02/24/95 Hardoon
The three Amiraults — Gerald, Violet and Cheryl – were convicted after
two trials before different judges and juries almost one year apart.
They were represented by able and well-known defense counsel. The
convictions were upheld after review by state and federal appellate
courts….in Amirault, the majority of the female children who testified
had some relevant physical findings, as did several female children
involved in the investigation who did not participate in the trial.
The findings included labial adhesions and hymenal scarring of the
sort present in avery small percentage of non-sexually abused
children….The victims and their families in these cases have been
irrevocably harmed by what was done to them by the Amiraults. Every
argument raised by Ms. Rabinowitz was ably presented by the defense at
the trials. The juries, by their verdicts, rejected these arguments.
Justice was done.http://web.archive.org/web/20010719201703/http://
www.vocal-nasvo.org/hardoon.htm

see for actual case evidence
http://abusearticles.wordpress.com/c...8-page-622.jpg
“All nine children testified in a broadly consistent way…The children
testified to numerous instances of sexual abuse. Some of the children
testified that they were photographed during this abuse, describing a
big camera with wires, a red button, and pictures which came out of
the camera. The children testified that the defendant threatened them
and told them that their families would be harmed if they told anyone
about the abuse….The Commonwealth also presented a pediatric
gynecologist and pediatrician who examined five of the girls who
testified…She made findings consistent with abuse in four of the
girls.”

Mass. Victims Fight Commutation Plea By Leslie Miller, Associated
Press Writer
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) – Victims in the Fells Acres child abuse case
broke down Thursday as they described their pain publicly for the
first time in hopes of keeping the last person convicted in the case
behind bars. Victims urged her to keep Amirault in prison. “During
counseling meetings as a child, I would speak of a tall man touching
me and taking pictures of me,” Phaedra Hopkins, 20, said at an
emotional news conference. “So many times, Mr. Amirault hovered over
me, touched me and hurt me and committed many disgusting acts of
abuse.” Those children, now adults, stood by their testimony Thursday.

“This family raped me, molested me and totally ruined my life,’’said
Jennifer Bennett, who was 3 1/2 years old when she started at Fells
Acres. “We weren’t coaxed. We weren’t lying. We’re telling the truth
and we always will,” said Bennett, 22. “I was there. None of you were
there. We weren’t coaxed, nor were we ever ever ever
brainwashed.”Brian Martinello, 21, said he was sexually abused by
Amirault. His mother, Barbara Standke, claims her son came home from
the day care with sores on his genitals and other people’s underwear.
“I think it’s an absolute disgrace to let anyone out of prison for
such a disgusting crime,” Martinello said.http://web.archive.org/web/
20010807011330/http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20010802/us/
preschool_abuse_3.html

Governor explains Amirault decision Says she needed to ‘live with
myself’ By Douglas Belkin and Frank Phillips, Globe Staff, 2/21/2002
In her announcement, Swift said her first consideration was whether
there was ”overwhelming evidence” to contradict the jury conviction
and two decisions by the Supreme Judicial Court upholding the verdict.
”I concluded there was not,” she said. Swift said that she also
considered the two guidelines for a commutation: that the sentence is
too severe and that the person had made ”exceptional strides in self-
development.” ”Again, my answer was no,” Swift said. ”I concluded
after that review that the jury and the Supreme [Court] decisions
should be upheld and that under the commutation guidelines commutation
was not warranted,” Swift said….But ultimately, she said, she
concluded that the sentence was appropriate and consistent with other
cases. Pressed on how she could come up with a far different judgment
than the five members of the Parole Board, Swift said her staff
conducted ”a more exhaustive review of all of the legal aspects” than
the board did.
http://web.archive.org/web/200202212...ecision+.shtml

Witness praises Amirault decision By John Ellement, Globe Staff,
2/23/2002 CAMBRIDGE – Jen Bennett wants to give Acting Governor Jane
Swift a bear hug in appreciation, and she wants Gerald Amirault to
admit he sexually abused her when she attended the Fells Acres Day
Care Center in Malden in the 1980s. Bennett was one of nine children
who testified against Amirault during his three-month trial in 1986,
which ended with his conviction on multiple rape and molestation
charges. He was sentenced to 30 to 40 years in prison….As for
Amirault, ”I want to say to Mr. Amirault: Admit your guilt, you did
this. He is where he is supposed to be. I will fight against you to
the end. He destroyed my childhood.” Harriett Dell’Anno, whose
daughter was one of the victims, echoed Bennett’s insistence that
children were sexually violated and also thanked Swift for keeping
Amirault in prison….Hardoon also said the quality of the investigation
and the actions of prosecutors, police, and social workers working
with the children were all scrutinized intensely during Gerald
Amirault’s trial – and still the jury convicted.
He said Amirault supporters are focusing on 2 percent of the
children’s claims that ‘’seem inexplicable and they are conveniently
ignoring the 98 percent of the case that was overwhelming” against
Amirault.…Middlesex District Attorney Martha Coakley, who inherited
the case from former district attorneys Scott Harshbarger and Thomas
F. Reilly, said Amirault’s insistence that he is innocent does not
make it true. She drew a parallel between John Geoghan, the former
Catholic priest sentenced to 9 to 10 years in prison Thursday for
molesting a child. Like Amirault, Geoghan insisted that he, too, was
innocent, she said. ”Admitting to child abuse is a very difficult and
often, a never-seen thing,” she said. Coakley said it was time for
Amirault and his supporters to end their pursuit of an early release
from prison so that the victims can finally begin to fully heal from
the trauma he caused them as children.
http://web.archive.org/web/200202240...ecision+.shtml

Swift won’t free Tooky by David R. Guarino and Elisabeth J. Beardsley
Wednesday, February 20, 2002 Convicted child molester Gerald “Tooky”
Amirault lost his best shot at freedom yesterday, denied commutation
of his sentence by acting Gov. Jane M. Swift in another stunning turn
to the roller coaster abuse case. Swift rejected the unanimous July
Parole Board recommendation that there was “real and substantial
doubt” of Amirault’s guilt. Taking sides in a highly charged case as
she drops in election-year polls, Swift said Amirault should be jailed
at least until he’s up for parole in 2004 on his 30- to 40-year
sentence. “She carefully analyzed every bit of information generated
through the investigation and came to her decision that the verdict
was just and the sentence was appropriate,” said Swift spokesman James
Borghesani….victims rejoiced last night, praising the acting governor
for standing up to the Parole Board and claiming vindication after
years of doubts about the case. “All along, they’ve always told the
truth,” said Harriet Dell’Anno of Lynn, whose daughter, Jamie, remains
in therapy over the incidents. Barbara Standke of Tewksbury, whose
son, Brian Martinello, was molested when he was 4, said, “He may be
doing 20 years, but my son’s doing life.” Amirault, his sister, Cheryl
LeFave, and their mother, Violet, were convicted after a parade of
children told horror stories about being fondled, raped.http://
web.archive.org/web/20020305205020/http://www2.bostonherald.com/news/
local_regional/swif02202002.htm

More evidence of guilt in this case where the conviction was upheld
after several appeals.

COMMONWEALTH vs. GERALD AMIRAULT. 404 Mass. 221 December 6, 1988 –
March 6, 1989 “The parents of the child witnesses testified about
their children’s behavior while, or shortly after, attending Fells
Acres. The children complained and cried about the school; they
complained of stomachaches, headaches, pain in their genital areas,
and bowel problems. They began bedwetting, lost their appetites, had
nightmares, used baby talk, became fearful of lights, of men, and of
being left alone. The children also displayed sexually explicit
behavior; some began masturbating. Two of the boys tried to stick
their tongues into their mothers’ mouths.”

COMMONWEALTH vs. VIOLET AMIRAULT (and eleven companion cases [Note
1]). COMMONWEALTH vs. GERALD AMIRAULT. 424 Mass. 618 October 9, 1996 –
March 24, 1997* “All nine children testified in a broadly consistent
way. [Note 6] The children testified to numerous instances of sexual
abuse....The children testified that the defendant threatened them and
told them that their families would be harmed if they told anyone
about the abuse. Parents and relatives of the children testified and
related the circumstances in which the children’s disclosures of abuse
took place. These parents also testified to instances of extremely
sexualized behavior on the part of the children including
masturbation, sexualized play with dolls, boys sticking their tongues
in the mouths of their mothers, and the simulation of sexual acts.
Many of the children also developed generalized symptoms indicative of
trauma such as bedwetting, baby talk, pain in their genital areas,
headaches and stomach aches, and fearfulness. The Commonwealth
presented a child psychiatrist who testified as to three major points.
First, she testified that children who are abused often delay
revealing the abuse out of fear, guilt, or lack of trust. Second, she
described the sorts of sexualized behaviors abused children can show,
acknowledging that although these behaviors can be prompted by
circumstances other than abuse, they do occur most frequently in
abused children. Third, she related nonspecific symptoms of trauma
such as bedwetting, fearfulness. and babytalk which she claimed were
common in abused children. The Commonwealth also presented a pediatric
gynecologist and pediatrician who examined five of the girls who
testified against Gerald. She made findings consistent with abuse in
four of the girls….The parents of several children testified that
their children developed pronounced sexual behavior and regressed to
infantile behaviors such as bedwetting and baby talk. The same child
psychiatrist who appeared at Gerald’s trial testified that these
behaviors were commonly indicative of sexual abuse. “