The Awareness Center closed. We operated from April 30, 1999 - April 30, 2014. This site is being provided for educational & historical purposes. We were the international Jewish Coalition Against Sexual Abuse/Assault (JCASA); and were dedicated to ending sexual violence in Jewish communities globally. We did our best to operate as the make a wish foundation for Jewish survivors of sex crimes. In the past we offered a clearinghouse of information, resources, support and advocacy.
Showing posts with label Skokie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Skokie. Show all posts
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Friday, January 01, 2010
Reflecting on the Last 10 Years: Connecting To Judaism and Jewish Survivors of Sexual Violence
© (2010) By Vicki Polin
If someone would have told me on January 1, 2000, that I would be doing what I have been doing for the last ten years -- I would have no option but to asked them what drugs they were taking?
To get started I really need to flashback to 1997, when I injured both of my hands and feet in an accident. I went from being an artist and having a successful private practice to not being able to do much on my own.
During a three year period I was in and out of casts and braces on my hands and feet. I couldn't hold a pen, paint brush, telephone or a toothbrush -- yet I was able to move the tips of my fingers just enough to type. This was the same year that AOL changed their pricing plans so there was one set fee per month no matter how long you were on line. Needless to say, 1997 was is the year I found the easiest way for me to communicate with the outside world was on line.
In the beginning I was dabbling in various "New Age" chat rooms -- up until one of my cousin's kept giving me links to the Jewish Community OnLine. Her actions lead me to be connected to a Jewish community -- this is also the reasons why I consider myself to be a "Cyberian" Jew.
The longer I was in these chat rooms I started to realize how many unsuspecting Jews were being proselytized to by those connected to various "Hebrew" Christian groups. One thing lead to another and I became a part of a group of counter-missionaries on line, which lead me to learning more about my own heritage and studying Torah on line.
Back in the summer of 1999 I took a major risk and stopped studying on line, and went to Neve Yerushalayim (a woman's yeshiva/seminary) in Jerusalem, Israel.
During my time at Neve, several of the student learned I was a psychotherapist and that I had specialized in sexual abuse/assault. One thing lead to another and they started coming to me for help. I did my best to find resources for them within the orthodox world, yet found nothing. It was around that time that I started changing my private practice web page into The Awareness Center.
There's times I really miss being naive about what I thought was needed to bridge the gap between the Torah observant and secular Jewish worlds in dealing with sex crimes. I never expected the divisions, the denial and or the attacks on my own personhood. I really believed that all I needed to do was take the knowledge and information I had about sex crimes and transform it into a Jewish context. I now laugh at myself at my naiveté in thinking that our religious leaders would be eager to learn in hopes of making the world a better and safer place for our children and to find ways of reaching out and healing those who had already been harmed.
Ten years ago I never expected to find all the attacks against Jews who practiced differently then another. I really miss my innocence and the notion that we all believed that "A Jew is a Jew is a Jew". That we were all put on this earth as equals and should be respectful to those who do not believe the same as ourselves.
One of the things I've always believed and try to promote was that we are all in this together. Just as in the days of the holocaust, Hitler would not care about how we daven (pray), if we daven or who we daven with. He would have all seen us as the same. I do not believe that one group of Jews is better nor more important then another. It breaks my heart knowing that not everyone views the Jewish world as I do. When I refer to the Jewish world I mean Jews from all movements and non-movements in Judaism (Unaffiliated, Humanist, Jewish Renewal, Reform, Traditional, Conservative, Orthodox, etc.)
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| Vicki Polin - Founder of The Awareness Center |
If we could all join forces like we did back in 1977 to fight the American Nazi Party's plan to march in Skokie, I know it is possible for us to win this war against those who commit these heinous acts in our communities internationally.
My hope is that the following film staring Danny Kaye will be an inspiration to you all, remind you of the history of my hometown and most important remind you of how we are all need to see each other equally as Jews.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Case of Robert Berezin
Case of Robert Berezin
Brooklyn, NY
Skokie, IL
Allegations were made that he entered the apartment of one of his tenants in the middle of the night, pushed her against the door, groped and forced his tongue into her mouth. When he was leaving, she said, he suggested she could provide sexual favors in lieu of rent).
____________________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer: Inclusion in this website does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement. Individuals must decide for themselves if the resources meet their own personal needs.
Table of Contents:
2006
- Village of Skokie - Appearance Commission Meeting (10/11/2006)
2007
- Harassed at Home -- by Your Landlord - Landlords Prey on Poor Women by Extorting Sexual Favors in Lieu of Rent (03/08/2007)
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The Village of Skokie Appearance Commission MeetingVillage of Skokie - October 11, 2006
http://72.14.205.104/search?q=cache:nGBzpnTh67wJ:villageofskokie.org/comm/appearance.pdf+%22Robert+Berezin%22+skokie&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=us
The Village of Skokie Appearance Commission meets Wednesday, October 11, 2006 at 7:30 PM, Village Hall, 5127 Oakton Street, Skokie, IL 60077, to hear the following cases. Special aid for the physically disabled is available upon request. Call 673-0500 or TTY 673-9330.
06-161A Robert Berezin - 3821 Sugarloaf
Residential Elevations - Addition
Approved - 5-0-2
The Village of Skokie Appearance Commission meets Wednesday, October 11, 2006 at 7:30 PM, Village Hall, 5127 Oakton Street, Skokie, IL 60077, to hear the following cases. Special aid for the physically disabled is available upon request. Call 673-0500 or TTY 673-9330.
06-161A Robert Berezin - 3821 Sugarloaf
Residential Elevations - Addition
Approved - 5-0-2
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Harassed at Home -- by Your Landlord
Landlords Prey on Poor Women by Extorting Sexual Favors in Lieu of Rent
By RUSSELL GOLDMAN
ABC News - March 8, 2007
March 8, 2007 — - For four years Mary lived in fear of her landlord, describing herself as a prisoner in her own home.
She went out of her way to avoid him, turning off the lights and TV in her apartment and pretending not to be home every time her doorbell rang, fearing it was him.
At first, she said, he was just "creepy." He sometimes would force his way into her room and poke around, or buzz her apartment from outside to see whether she was home, even though he had keys to the building.
Mary, who asked that her real name not be used, told ABCNEWS.com that her situation took a turn for the worse in 2005, when she was late with her rent.
One night her landlord, Robert Berezin, allegedly made his way into her Brooklyn, N.Y., apartment, pushed her against the door, groped her and forced his tongue into her mouth. When he was leaving, she said, he suggested she could provide sexual favors in lieu of rent.
Landlord Harassment Not Uncommon
No national statistics are kept for what lawyers call "sexual harassment in housing." The term, however, encompasses a broad range of landlord misbehavior that includes making lewd comments, stalking, entering homes to watch women while they sleep or shower, extorting sex for rent or repairs, sexual assault and rape.
What is certain, however, is that low-income women are particularly subject to harassment at home and that landlords or their building managers rarely target just one tenant.
In a suit filed by the New York attorney general last month against Berezin, Mary was just one of a dozen young women from three different buildings Berezin and his partners owned lined up to testify against him.
Lawyers for the state write that Berezin typically "grabbed the woman's face and forced his tongue into the woman's mouth. He used his body to restrain and confine her. These unwanted encounters left [his] victims stunned and frightened. Frequently, they yelled, pushed him and took other steps to get him to leave. ... After he had sexually harassed them Berezin also told some of his victims that he would 'work something out with the rent.' He told others that he would make some accommodations with the rent if they would agree to go out with him or have an intimate relationship with him."
Berezin, who has since moved to Skokie, Ill., could not be reached for comment.
After her alleged assault, Mary wanted to take action and looked for help at the Fair Housing Justice Center, a nonprofit organization that provides legal advice on issues regarding discrimination in housing.
Diane Houk, the center's executive director, said women living in "low-income, affordable or rent-stabilized housing" were most likely to be harassed. Harassment, she said, is more likely to occur in rental properties than in sales. Poor women cannot afford to pay market rates in competitive housing markets and often must choose between being harassed at home or living on the streets.
"There's an imbalance of power between tenants and landlords," Houk said, and landlords exploit that position of power.
Jill Maxwell, a third-year student at Brooklyn Law School, was not surprised to learn that some of the harassed tenants in Berezin's buildings might have been law students attending her school.
"It goes to show how many women don't know who to tell," she said. Maxwell is in a unique position to comment, as she has just written a soon-to-be published article on the intersection between class and gender in harassment in housing cases.
"Government agencies who serve low-income women need to be more cognizant of sex harassment and incorporate it in the way they deal with landlords," she said.
If Harassed, Who Should You Tell?
It is difficult to definitively know how many women are being harassed at home because it often goes unreported. Figures of reported incidents are also difficult to come by because women have a variety of private, state and federal agencies to tell.
Of the 10,000 discrimination in housing complaints the Department of Housing and Urban Development received last year, about 10 percent, or 996 cases, pertained to sex discrimination, said Kim Kendrick, a fair housing and equal opportunity official at HUD. HUD does not, however, distinguish between traditional forms of discrimination and harassment.
Of the 24 sex discrimination in housing suits the Department of Justice has brought against landlords in federal courts since 2001, two-thirds of them related to sexual harassment.
The Justice Department does not prosecute every instance of harassment in housing and will only take a case when a significant number of tenants report abuse.
Some Women Don't Know Their Rights
Though women can report harassment to a variety of agencies -- including local fair housing organizations, HUD or their caseworkers if they receive government assistance -- they rarely do.
"Women are likely to get away quickly," Houk said. "They'll break the lease and move rather than report."
"Women who use [government assistance] vouchers or live in rent-stabilized apartments will try to add locks, get a male roommate, or change routines to avoid running into the manager. ... The last thing done is complain, in part because no one else is around to see it. ... There's a burden on women to prove this happened, and they worry about 'How will I prove it?'"
According to Rigel Oliveri, a law professor at the University of Missouri and a former civil rights lawyer at the Justice Department, some women also don't report harassment because they do not know it is illegal.
"Women realize it's wrong but don't know it's illegal. They don't think they can call the police because they think it's a landlord-tenant problem and don't realize it's a civil rights violation," Oliveri said.
The fact that it is a civil rights issue is at the heart of the matter for the federal government.
"The Fair Housing Act protects against discrimination on the basis of race, national origin and gender. Harassment is an egregious form of discrimination and no woman should be discriminated in her home," said a senior Justice Department official on the condition of anonymity.
In determining cases, courts often look to see whether landlords have created a "sexually hostile living environment." That environment could be created as early as the first time a potential tenant comes to look at apartment.
"This kind of conduct is on a broad spectrum. ... Sometimes when a tenant comes applying to rent, a landlord offers a reduction in rent for sexual favors ... making a quid pro quo offer," Houk said.
As in Mary's case, it is not uncommon for landlords to harass multiple women over the course of several years.
In one of the most often cited cases in recent years, U.S. vs. Veal, Bobby Veal of Kansas City, Mo., was found to have violated the Fair Housing Act when he demanded sexual favors from 11 tenants and evicted tenants who did not submit to his advances.
In 2005, David Madrid was found guilty of verbally and physically abusing mentally challenged tenants who lived in the group home he operated in Albuquerque, N.M., and threatening to kick them out if they reported him.
Lawyers say it is difficult to press criminal charges against landlords because there is usually little physical evidence and few witnesses. Harassment in housing cases are usually taken up in civil courts, where the burden of proof is less stringent and where tenants can seek financial damages.
In the Veal case a jury awarded compensatory and punitive damages totaling $1,102,804 to 11 female tenants. Individual awards ranged from $10,001 to $310,000. Madrid was ordered to pay the tenants he harassed a total of $67,500.
According to Oliveri, courts can also ban landlords from entering housing units unless accompanied by another person, or require them to turn management of the property over to an independent company.
The New York Attorney General's Office is seeking financial damages for Mary and the other women allegedly harassed by Berezin.
Mary's attorney, Mariann Meier Wang, has also filed a separate individual case seeking further financial damages. Wang says that the stress of "living in fear in her own home" has left Mary "emotionally damaged."
Landlords Prey on Poor Women by Extorting Sexual Favors in Lieu of Rent
By RUSSELL GOLDMAN
ABC News - March 8, 2007
March 8, 2007 — - For four years Mary lived in fear of her landlord, describing herself as a prisoner in her own home.
She went out of her way to avoid him, turning off the lights and TV in her apartment and pretending not to be home every time her doorbell rang, fearing it was him.
At first, she said, he was just "creepy." He sometimes would force his way into her room and poke around, or buzz her apartment from outside to see whether she was home, even though he had keys to the building.
Mary, who asked that her real name not be used, told ABCNEWS.com that her situation took a turn for the worse in 2005, when she was late with her rent.
One night her landlord, Robert Berezin, allegedly made his way into her Brooklyn, N.Y., apartment, pushed her against the door, groped her and forced his tongue into her mouth. When he was leaving, she said, he suggested she could provide sexual favors in lieu of rent.
Landlord Harassment Not Uncommon
No national statistics are kept for what lawyers call "sexual harassment in housing." The term, however, encompasses a broad range of landlord misbehavior that includes making lewd comments, stalking, entering homes to watch women while they sleep or shower, extorting sex for rent or repairs, sexual assault and rape.
What is certain, however, is that low-income women are particularly subject to harassment at home and that landlords or their building managers rarely target just one tenant.
In a suit filed by the New York attorney general last month against Berezin, Mary was just one of a dozen young women from three different buildings Berezin and his partners owned lined up to testify against him.
Lawyers for the state write that Berezin typically "grabbed the woman's face and forced his tongue into the woman's mouth. He used his body to restrain and confine her. These unwanted encounters left [his] victims stunned and frightened. Frequently, they yelled, pushed him and took other steps to get him to leave. ... After he had sexually harassed them Berezin also told some of his victims that he would 'work something out with the rent.' He told others that he would make some accommodations with the rent if they would agree to go out with him or have an intimate relationship with him."
Berezin, who has since moved to Skokie, Ill., could not be reached for comment.
After her alleged assault, Mary wanted to take action and looked for help at the Fair Housing Justice Center, a nonprofit organization that provides legal advice on issues regarding discrimination in housing.
Diane Houk, the center's executive director, said women living in "low-income, affordable or rent-stabilized housing" were most likely to be harassed. Harassment, she said, is more likely to occur in rental properties than in sales. Poor women cannot afford to pay market rates in competitive housing markets and often must choose between being harassed at home or living on the streets.
"There's an imbalance of power between tenants and landlords," Houk said, and landlords exploit that position of power.
Jill Maxwell, a third-year student at Brooklyn Law School, was not surprised to learn that some of the harassed tenants in Berezin's buildings might have been law students attending her school.
"It goes to show how many women don't know who to tell," she said. Maxwell is in a unique position to comment, as she has just written a soon-to-be published article on the intersection between class and gender in harassment in housing cases.
"Government agencies who serve low-income women need to be more cognizant of sex harassment and incorporate it in the way they deal with landlords," she said.
If Harassed, Who Should You Tell?
It is difficult to definitively know how many women are being harassed at home because it often goes unreported. Figures of reported incidents are also difficult to come by because women have a variety of private, state and federal agencies to tell.
Of the 10,000 discrimination in housing complaints the Department of Housing and Urban Development received last year, about 10 percent, or 996 cases, pertained to sex discrimination, said Kim Kendrick, a fair housing and equal opportunity official at HUD. HUD does not, however, distinguish between traditional forms of discrimination and harassment.
Of the 24 sex discrimination in housing suits the Department of Justice has brought against landlords in federal courts since 2001, two-thirds of them related to sexual harassment.
The Justice Department does not prosecute every instance of harassment in housing and will only take a case when a significant number of tenants report abuse.
Some Women Don't Know Their Rights
Though women can report harassment to a variety of agencies -- including local fair housing organizations, HUD or their caseworkers if they receive government assistance -- they rarely do.
"Women are likely to get away quickly," Houk said. "They'll break the lease and move rather than report."
"Women who use [government assistance] vouchers or live in rent-stabilized apartments will try to add locks, get a male roommate, or change routines to avoid running into the manager. ... The last thing done is complain, in part because no one else is around to see it. ... There's a burden on women to prove this happened, and they worry about 'How will I prove it?'"
According to Rigel Oliveri, a law professor at the University of Missouri and a former civil rights lawyer at the Justice Department, some women also don't report harassment because they do not know it is illegal.
"Women realize it's wrong but don't know it's illegal. They don't think they can call the police because they think it's a landlord-tenant problem and don't realize it's a civil rights violation," Oliveri said.
The fact that it is a civil rights issue is at the heart of the matter for the federal government.
"The Fair Housing Act protects against discrimination on the basis of race, national origin and gender. Harassment is an egregious form of discrimination and no woman should be discriminated in her home," said a senior Justice Department official on the condition of anonymity.
In determining cases, courts often look to see whether landlords have created a "sexually hostile living environment." That environment could be created as early as the first time a potential tenant comes to look at apartment.
"This kind of conduct is on a broad spectrum. ... Sometimes when a tenant comes applying to rent, a landlord offers a reduction in rent for sexual favors ... making a quid pro quo offer," Houk said.
As in Mary's case, it is not uncommon for landlords to harass multiple women over the course of several years.
In one of the most often cited cases in recent years, U.S. vs. Veal, Bobby Veal of Kansas City, Mo., was found to have violated the Fair Housing Act when he demanded sexual favors from 11 tenants and evicted tenants who did not submit to his advances.
In 2005, David Madrid was found guilty of verbally and physically abusing mentally challenged tenants who lived in the group home he operated in Albuquerque, N.M., and threatening to kick them out if they reported him.
Lawyers say it is difficult to press criminal charges against landlords because there is usually little physical evidence and few witnesses. Harassment in housing cases are usually taken up in civil courts, where the burden of proof is less stringent and where tenants can seek financial damages.
In the Veal case a jury awarded compensatory and punitive damages totaling $1,102,804 to 11 female tenants. Individual awards ranged from $10,001 to $310,000. Madrid was ordered to pay the tenants he harassed a total of $67,500.
According to Oliveri, courts can also ban landlords from entering housing units unless accompanied by another person, or require them to turn management of the property over to an independent company.
The New York Attorney General's Office is seeking financial damages for Mary and the other women allegedly harassed by Berezin.
Mary's attorney, Mariann Meier Wang, has also filed a separate individual case seeking further financial damages. Wang says that the stress of "living in fear in her own home" has left Mary "emotionally damaged."
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FAIR USE NOTICE
Some of the information on The Awareness Center's web pages may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc.
We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml . If you wish to use copyrighted material from this update for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
Some of the information on The Awareness Center's web pages may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc.
We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml . If you wish to use copyrighted material from this update for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Wednesday, July 30, 2003
Case of James A. Cohen
Case of James A. Cohen
(AKA: James Cohen)
Counselor for a Jewish Youth Group Bus Trip Around the USA
Counselor for a Jewish Youth Group Bus Trip Around the USA
Skokie, IL
Sioux City, IA
Synagogue Youth Director - Davie, FL
Coleman Federal Correctional Complex - Coleman, FL
Synagogue Youth Director - Davie, FL
Coleman Federal Correctional Complex - Coleman, FL
In 1997, after boys complained about the conduct of James A. Cohen he was removed from abuse trip by the sponsors, United Synagogue Youth of New York. Cohen admitted he performed a sex act on one boy and fondled three boys over a 10-day period during the bus trip.Three of the boys were asleep at the time and awakened to discover the molestation, authorities said. Cohen tried to convince one of the boys that he had been dreaming, court papers showed.
Cohen admitted that a major reason he took part in the trip was to engage in sexual acts with underage boys.
The assaults took place in Sioux City, IA, and Yellowstone National Park, in addition to Skokie, IL
____________________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer: Inclusion in this website does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement. Individuals must decide for themselves if the resources meet their own personal needs.
Table of Contents:
2003
2003
- Molester gets 9 years for assaulting 4 boys; Judge calls him 'worst nightmare' (07/30/2003)
- Child Predator Sentenced To 9 Years In Prison Federal Judge Calls Defendant 'Parents' Worst Nightmare' (07/30/2003)
- Man gets 9 years for molesting teens on bus trip (07/30/2003)
2006
- Federal Bureau of Prisons (12/12/2006)
2012
- Federal Bureau of Prisons - Locator (01/02/2013)
- Illinois Sex Offender Registry (01/02/2013)
____________________________________________________________________________________
Molester gets 9 years for assaulting 4 boys; Judge calls him 'worst nightmare'
By Matt O'Connor
Chicago Tribune - July 30, 2003
A former counselor for a goodwill cross-country bus trip organized by a Jewish youth group was sentenced to 9 years in prison Tuesday in federal court in Chicago for molesting four underage boys, including one in a Skokie hotel, in 1997.
About 2 1/2 years later, though he was aware that the FBI was investigating his conduct on the bus trip, James A. Cohen molested a fifth boy whose family he had befriended as the youth director of a Florida synagogue, authorities said.
"For a mother, you're the worst nightmare out there," U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer said in imposing the sentence on Cohen, 33, of Davie, Fla. Prosecutors had sought the maximum 10-year prison term.
Cohen's lawyer, Kent Carlson, said his client has confronted his "demons," acknowledged for the first time that he was the victim of sexual abuse as a child and asked for treatment.
But Assistant U.S. Atty. Brian Hayes questioned why Cohen hadn't sought treatment in 1997 after boys complained about his conduct and he was removed from the bus trip by the sponsors, United Synagogue Youth of New York.
In pleading guilty in January, Cohen admitted he performed a sex act on one boy and fondled three boys over a 10-day period during the bus trip in the summer of 1997.
Three of the boys were asleep at the time and awakened to discover the molestation, authorities said. Cohen tried to convince one of the boys that he had been dreaming, court papers showed.
The assaults took place in Sioux City, Iowa, and Yellowstone National Park, in addition to Skokie, authorities said.
Cohen admitted that a major reason he took part in the trip was to engage in sexual acts with underage boys.
Cohen also admitted that in late 1999 or early 2000 he molested a 13-year-old Florida boy at his home while staying there after religious services.
The victim has told authorities he attempted suicide, was hospitalized for a time and underwent counseling for 3 1/2 years for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
According to court papers, one of the boys victimized on the bus trip said he feels less secure and less confident with women because of the abuse.
"I think about it every day," he wrote in a victim-impact statement. "Someone I trusted used me, and that hurts."
Early this year, while free on bail, Cohen fled Florida with $158,000 he stole from his condo association, leaving behind a note for his wife that threatened suicide, authorities said. Four days later, he was arrested in Las Vegas driving a stolen car and armed with a loaded handgun, authorities said.
By Matt O'Connor
Chicago Tribune - July 30, 2003
A former counselor for a goodwill cross-country bus trip organized by a Jewish youth group was sentenced to 9 years in prison Tuesday in federal court in Chicago for molesting four underage boys, including one in a Skokie hotel, in 1997.
About 2 1/2 years later, though he was aware that the FBI was investigating his conduct on the bus trip, James A. Cohen molested a fifth boy whose family he had befriended as the youth director of a Florida synagogue, authorities said.
"For a mother, you're the worst nightmare out there," U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer said in imposing the sentence on Cohen, 33, of Davie, Fla. Prosecutors had sought the maximum 10-year prison term.
Cohen's lawyer, Kent Carlson, said his client has confronted his "demons," acknowledged for the first time that he was the victim of sexual abuse as a child and asked for treatment.
But Assistant U.S. Atty. Brian Hayes questioned why Cohen hadn't sought treatment in 1997 after boys complained about his conduct and he was removed from the bus trip by the sponsors, United Synagogue Youth of New York.
In pleading guilty in January, Cohen admitted he performed a sex act on one boy and fondled three boys over a 10-day period during the bus trip in the summer of 1997.
Three of the boys were asleep at the time and awakened to discover the molestation, authorities said. Cohen tried to convince one of the boys that he had been dreaming, court papers showed.
The assaults took place in Sioux City, Iowa, and Yellowstone National Park, in addition to Skokie, authorities said.
Cohen admitted that a major reason he took part in the trip was to engage in sexual acts with underage boys.
Cohen also admitted that in late 1999 or early 2000 he molested a 13-year-old Florida boy at his home while staying there after religious services.
The victim has told authorities he attempted suicide, was hospitalized for a time and underwent counseling for 3 1/2 years for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
According to court papers, one of the boys victimized on the bus trip said he feels less secure and less confident with women because of the abuse.
"I think about it every day," he wrote in a victim-impact statement. "Someone I trusted used me, and that hurts."
Early this year, while free on bail, Cohen fled Florida with $158,000 he stole from his condo association, leaving behind a note for his wife that threatened suicide, authorities said. Four days later, he was arrested in Las Vegas driving a stolen car and armed with a loaded handgun, authorities said.
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Child Predator Sentenced To 9 Years In Prison - Federal Judge Calls Defendant 'Parents' Worst Nightmare'
NBC5 - July 30, 2003
CHICAGO -- A federal judge on Tuesday sentenced a man to serve 9 years in prison and called him a parent's "worst nightmare" for molesting teenage boys in a youth group while chaperoning them on a cross-country bus trip.
The sentence imposed on James Cohen, 33, of Davie, Fla., was just a year shy of the maximum penalty.
Cohen originally was facing a penalty range of 78 to 97 months in prison after pleading guilty to one count of traveling in interstate with the intention of having unlawful sexual contact with a minor.
But prosecutors filed motions seeking to increase the range to the maximum penalty of 10 years in prison because he molested four boys on the bus trip and a fifth boy after being notified by federal agents that he was being investigated.
U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer agreed to increase the penalty range to one of 87 to 108 months in prison.
When imposing the 108-month sentence, Pallmeyer said, "For somebody who's a mother, you're kind of a worst nightmare that's out there. Whatever temptation you felt, you should have resisted."
Cohen also was ordered to undergo sex offender treatment and not to have unsupervised contact with minors while serving 3 years supervised release. In addition, he must pay $13,000 restitution.
Defense lawyer Kent Carlson said Cohen did not care how long of a sentence the judge imposes. "He wants one thing out of this judge; he wants treatment," Carlson said.
Cohen wanted to break the cycle of abuse, said Carlson, stating that Cohen and his mother were sexually abused when they were younger.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Hayes said Cohen should have gone for help after federal agents began questioning him about allegations that he molested four boys on the bus trip. Instead, Cohen molested a fifth boy while in Florida.
Cohen's $4,500 recognizance bond was revoked after the Nevada Highway Patrol arrested him on Jan. 6, 2003. Officers found him in possession of a loaded Taurus .40-calibur handgun.
He had left a note for his wife in Florida saying he was traveling to Las Vegas to commit suicide, Hayes said. The court had not granted him permission to travel to Nevada.
Cohen told the court on Tuesday that he kept his feelings regarding the sexual abuse he had suffered bottled up. "It's been eating me up inside," he said.
But he said he was cured the day he attempted to commit suicide. He added that he asked God for forgiveness for his actions, and wanted to write to the families of the boys he molested and ask for their forgiveness, too.
After Pallmayer said she was not sure the families would want to hear from the sons' molester, the judge asked the lawyers to work something out.
Cohen admitted in a plea agreement with prosecutors that his motive for chaperoning and supervising a cross-country bus trip for teenagers was so he could engage in unlawful sexual conduct with boys below the age of 18.
A New York City-based Jewish youth group had sponsored the trip, which lasted from June 23 to Aug. 12, 1997. While the group stayed at a Holiday Inn in Skokie on Aug. 10, 1997, Cohen massaged the back of one of four teenage boys inside one of the hotel rooms. After the boys fell asleep, Cohen performed a sex act on the 16-year-old boy whose back he had massaged, the plea said. When the boy awoke, Cohen attempted to convince him that the boy was conducting a sex act on himself while he was sleeping.
Cohen also fondled two 16-year-old boys while they slept in a cabin overnight in Yellowstone National Park on July 30, 1997. Cohen left the cabin after the boys awoke and told him to stop, the plea said.
On Aug. 5, 1997, Cohen attempted to fondle a 16-year-old boy as they were lying on a bed watching television at a hotel in Sioux City, Iowa, the plea said. After several attempts to fondle the boy were rebuffed, Cohen left the room.
Cohen, president of Harvest Condominium Associates, also admitted he defrauded the Regent Bank on Dec. 23, 2002. He issued a $158,000 checks made payable to "Network Associates," which he deposited into an account at SouthTrust Bank in Florida and converted the funds for his personal use. Cohen wrote three checks on the account, one addressed to himself, and the two others were made payable to aliases, the plea said.
NBC5 - July 30, 2003
CHICAGO -- A federal judge on Tuesday sentenced a man to serve 9 years in prison and called him a parent's "worst nightmare" for molesting teenage boys in a youth group while chaperoning them on a cross-country bus trip.
The sentence imposed on James Cohen, 33, of Davie, Fla., was just a year shy of the maximum penalty.
Cohen originally was facing a penalty range of 78 to 97 months in prison after pleading guilty to one count of traveling in interstate with the intention of having unlawful sexual contact with a minor.
But prosecutors filed motions seeking to increase the range to the maximum penalty of 10 years in prison because he molested four boys on the bus trip and a fifth boy after being notified by federal agents that he was being investigated.
U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer agreed to increase the penalty range to one of 87 to 108 months in prison.
When imposing the 108-month sentence, Pallmeyer said, "For somebody who's a mother, you're kind of a worst nightmare that's out there. Whatever temptation you felt, you should have resisted."
Cohen also was ordered to undergo sex offender treatment and not to have unsupervised contact with minors while serving 3 years supervised release. In addition, he must pay $13,000 restitution.
Defense lawyer Kent Carlson said Cohen did not care how long of a sentence the judge imposes. "He wants one thing out of this judge; he wants treatment," Carlson said.
Cohen wanted to break the cycle of abuse, said Carlson, stating that Cohen and his mother were sexually abused when they were younger.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Hayes said Cohen should have gone for help after federal agents began questioning him about allegations that he molested four boys on the bus trip. Instead, Cohen molested a fifth boy while in Florida.
Cohen's $4,500 recognizance bond was revoked after the Nevada Highway Patrol arrested him on Jan. 6, 2003. Officers found him in possession of a loaded Taurus .40-calibur handgun.
He had left a note for his wife in Florida saying he was traveling to Las Vegas to commit suicide, Hayes said. The court had not granted him permission to travel to Nevada.
Cohen told the court on Tuesday that he kept his feelings regarding the sexual abuse he had suffered bottled up. "It's been eating me up inside," he said.
But he said he was cured the day he attempted to commit suicide. He added that he asked God for forgiveness for his actions, and wanted to write to the families of the boys he molested and ask for their forgiveness, too.
After Pallmayer said she was not sure the families would want to hear from the sons' molester, the judge asked the lawyers to work something out.
Cohen admitted in a plea agreement with prosecutors that his motive for chaperoning and supervising a cross-country bus trip for teenagers was so he could engage in unlawful sexual conduct with boys below the age of 18.
A New York City-based Jewish youth group had sponsored the trip, which lasted from June 23 to Aug. 12, 1997. While the group stayed at a Holiday Inn in Skokie on Aug. 10, 1997, Cohen massaged the back of one of four teenage boys inside one of the hotel rooms. After the boys fell asleep, Cohen performed a sex act on the 16-year-old boy whose back he had massaged, the plea said. When the boy awoke, Cohen attempted to convince him that the boy was conducting a sex act on himself while he was sleeping.
Cohen also fondled two 16-year-old boys while they slept in a cabin overnight in Yellowstone National Park on July 30, 1997. Cohen left the cabin after the boys awoke and told him to stop, the plea said.
On Aug. 5, 1997, Cohen attempted to fondle a 16-year-old boy as they were lying on a bed watching television at a hotel in Sioux City, Iowa, the plea said. After several attempts to fondle the boy were rebuffed, Cohen left the room.
Cohen, president of Harvest Condominium Associates, also admitted he defrauded the Regent Bank on Dec. 23, 2002. He issued a $158,000 checks made payable to "Network Associates," which he deposited into an account at SouthTrust Bank in Florida and converted the funds for his personal use. Cohen wrote three checks on the account, one addressed to himself, and the two others were made payable to aliases, the plea said.
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Man gets 9 years for molesting teens on bus trip
BY STEVE WARMBIR
BY STEVE WARMBIR
Chicago Sun Times - July 30, 2003
A federal judge called a former counselor who molested teenage boys in a youth group a mother's "worst nightmare," and hit him with a nine-year prison sentence Tuesday.
James A. Cohen, 33, of Davie, Fla., was a group counselor on a cross-country bus trip run by a New York City-based Jewish youth group in 1997 and molested four 16-year-old boys, prosecutors said.
He molested another boy, who was 13, in late 1999 or early 2000, even after he was aware he was under investigation for preying on kids on the bus trip, prosecutors said.
"For somebody who's a mother, you're kind of a worst nightmare," U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer said, before sentencing Cohen to a tougher than usual sentence. "The abuse of your situation and their vulnerability is shocking and extremely distressing."
Cohen apologized for what he did to the teens and asked the judge to get him counseling while in prison.
"It's been eating me up inside," Cohen said.
In January this year, Cohen jumped bond on the case, stole $158,000 from the condo association he was president of and took off for Las Vegas.
He left a note behind saying he was going to kill himself.
Cohen was found in Las Vegas a few days later, in a stolen car and wearing a fanny pack with a .40-caliber Taurus handgun, a counterfeit North Miami Beach Auxiliary Police Badge and two Florida driver's licenses in other men's names.
Cohen left behind devastated victims, authorities said.
"Everyone seems to think I should know better," wrote one victim on the bus trip, who Cohen sexually abused in a hotel room in Sioux City, Iowa, when the victim was 16. "Nobody really understands what it's like for a friend to do that to you. . . . One day in the future I might meet a nice girl who I will care for deeply. I know that eventually I will have to tell her about this. I am scared that she will look at me differently because of this."
Another teenage boy who Cohen molested tried to kill himself, was put into a mental health hospital for a time and has been treated for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, according to court records.
"If I had not been forced into such a horrific act I would have been able to do much more with my friends, family and career," the boy wrote."Unfortunately, I was put into this experience and now must suffer for the rest of my life."
A federal judge called a former counselor who molested teenage boys in a youth group a mother's "worst nightmare," and hit him with a nine-year prison sentence Tuesday.
James A. Cohen, 33, of Davie, Fla., was a group counselor on a cross-country bus trip run by a New York City-based Jewish youth group in 1997 and molested four 16-year-old boys, prosecutors said.
He molested another boy, who was 13, in late 1999 or early 2000, even after he was aware he was under investigation for preying on kids on the bus trip, prosecutors said.
"For somebody who's a mother, you're kind of a worst nightmare," U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer said, before sentencing Cohen to a tougher than usual sentence. "The abuse of your situation and their vulnerability is shocking and extremely distressing."
Cohen apologized for what he did to the teens and asked the judge to get him counseling while in prison.
"It's been eating me up inside," Cohen said.
In January this year, Cohen jumped bond on the case, stole $158,000 from the condo association he was president of and took off for Las Vegas.
He left a note behind saying he was going to kill himself.
Cohen was found in Las Vegas a few days later, in a stolen car and wearing a fanny pack with a .40-caliber Taurus handgun, a counterfeit North Miami Beach Auxiliary Police Badge and two Florida driver's licenses in other men's names.
Cohen left behind devastated victims, authorities said.
"Everyone seems to think I should know better," wrote one victim on the bus trip, who Cohen sexually abused in a hotel room in Sioux City, Iowa, when the victim was 16. "Nobody really understands what it's like for a friend to do that to you. . . . One day in the future I might meet a nice girl who I will care for deeply. I know that eventually I will have to tell her about this. I am scared that she will look at me differently because of this."
Another teenage boy who Cohen molested tried to kill himself, was put into a mental health hospital for a time and has been treated for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, according to court records.
"If I had not been forced into such a horrific act I would have been able to do much more with my friends, family and career," the boy wrote."Unfortunately, I was put into this experience and now must suffer for the rest of my life."
____________________________________________________________________________________
Federal Bureau of Prisons - Locator
December 12, 2006
http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/LocateInmate.jsp
Inmate Information for JAMES A COHEN
Inmate Register Number : 14467-424
Name : JAMES A COHEN
Age : 35
Race : WHITE
Sex : MALE
Projected Release Date : 11/12/2010
Location : COLEMAN LOW FCI, 846 NE 54TH TERRACE, P.O.1029, COLEMAN , FL 33521
Phone Number : (352)689-4000
Federal Bureau of Prisons - Locator
Jan. 2, 2012
http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/LocateInmate.jsp
December 12, 2006
http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/LocateInmate.jsp
Inmate Information for JAMES A COHEN
Inmate Register Number : 14467-424
Name : JAMES A COHEN
Age : 35
Race : WHITE
Sex : MALE
Projected Release Date : 11/12/2010
Location : COLEMAN LOW FCI, 846 NE 54TH TERRACE, P.O.1029, COLEMAN , FL 33521
Phone Number : (352)689-4000
____________________________________________________________________________________
Jan. 2, 2012
http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/LocateInmate.jsp
| |||||||||||||
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Illinois Sex Offender Registry
Jan. 2, 2012
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FAIR USE NOTICE
Some of the information on The Awareness Center's web pages may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc.
We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml . If you wish to use copyrighted material from this update for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
Some of the information on The Awareness Center's web pages may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc.
We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml . If you wish to use copyrighted material from this update for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
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Friday, March 20, 1981
Case of David Miller
Case of David Miller
THIS PAGE IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Winnetka, IL
Skokie, IL
Chicago, IL
Israel
Miami Beach, FL
Israel
Miami Beach, FL
David Miller fled the country after being found guilty of the attempted rape and deviant sexual assault of a young woman. He was sentenced to sex years in prison. Miller also faced charges of indecently exposing himself to a young girl in Kenilworth.
Both the FBI and Interpol got involved in this case. David Miller fled the United States and for a short time was living on a kibbutz in Israel. He then landed in Miami Beach where his parents owned an exclusive beachfront home.
David Miller is the stepson of one of the owners of the North Shore Hilton in Skokie. His biological father was the owner of Miller Builders in Skokie and in Sunrise, FL.
If you have any more information about this case, please forward it to The Awareness Center.
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Table of Contents:
1981
- Wealthy couple's son sought in sex case; jury opens probe (02/20/1981)
- Fugitive surrenders on sex charges (03/20/1981)
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Wealthy couple's son sought in sex case; jury opens probe
By Bonita Brodt
Chicago Tribune - February 20, 1981
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Fugitive surrenders on sex charges
By Bonita Brodt
Chicago Tribune - March 20, 1981
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