Brooklyn DA, In Shift, Opens Window On Abusers’ Names

While Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes has repeatedly refused to divulge names of Orthodox child molesters charged or prosecuted though his office’s confidential Kol Tzedek hotline, a spokesman for the DA this week told The Jewish Week that, if presented with a name obtained through other means, his office would confirm whether the individual was reported through Kol Tzedek.
Kol Tzedek was launched by the DA in April 2009 to encourage the reporting of sex crimes within the Orthodox community. Hynes’ office claims to have arrested approximately 90 Orthodox child molesters through Kol Tzedek.
Hynes has for months asserted he cannot reveal these names because doing so would violate victims’ privacy rights. However, according to spokesman Jerry Schmetterer, the DA is making a distinction between being the source of those names and confirming them — a distinction some believe is without a difference.
“In a practical sense, it’s an absurd position for him to take,” said Ros Dann, a spokesperson for the advocacy group Survivors for Justice. “DA Hynes is either concerned that naming Orthodox child molesters will identify the victims or not. He shouldn’t be allowed to have it both ways.”

However, Schmetterer maintains that “the law prohibits us from releasing names if doing so might expose a victim.”
“Names of people arrested are public record and available through other sources. If you have a name, I can confirm it,” Schmetterer added, offering this option to The Jewish Week for the first time.

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