Oregon man abused as adolescent tells jury how he initially admired Scout leader

Oregon man abused by Scout leader testifies

PORTLAND, Ore. — An Oregon man who is suing the Boy Scouts of America for $14 million told a jury Tuesday that he initially worshipped the Scout leader who eventually molested him in the early 1980s.

To the then-adolescent boy, Timur Dykes was a superhero who knew everything about the woods, was an expert mountain climber and goofed around, just like a kid. The boy’s parents trusted Dykes and considered him a friend.

“He was the best, the coolest,” said the now 37-year-old man. “I wanted to get his attention.”

Dykes was convicted three times between 1983 and 1994 of sexually abusing boys, most of them Scouts. In a video deposition played last week for jurors, Dykes acknowledged abusing the plaintiff.

The Associated Press does not identify sexual assault victims as a matter of policy.

The man’s lawsuit alleges the Boy Scouts of America knew it had child molesters among its troop leaders but didn’t tell parents or authorities and sometimes let confessed pedophiles continue in scouting activities.

Attorneys for the Boy Scouts of America say the organization kept files on suspected molesters to protect children.

During an emotional day of testimony at Multnomah County Circuit Court, the man’s mother said she saw her son deteriorate in the months and years after being molested. From being a bubbly, confident, athletic boy, his grades plummeted, he grew secretive, had no friends and dropped out of sports.

“He seemed a little more adrift,” she testified. “He didn’t have focus anymore. The passion was gone. We lost our connection, our ability to have heart-to-heart talks.”

The mother said she had no idea that Dykes had already been convicted of sexual abuse when he took her son and several other Scouts on a camping trip in July 1984.

Dykes had a van filled with Scouts when he was pulled over for a minor traffic violation. When the officer ran his name through police records, he found that Dykes was violating a parole order to stay away from children.

The plaintiff’s mother recalled receiving a phone call from a Tillamook County sheriff’s deputy, who told her about the order.

“I felt my stomach drop,” she said.

But her son denied that Dykes had touched him, the woman testified, and for years she believed her child had escaped a close call. In 2007, she saw Dykes’ photo on a television news report of a lawsuit against the Boy Scouts of America. She called her son and asked again if he’d been abused. This time, he said yes.

“He said he was afraid to tell me” earlier, she said.

The plaintiff’s attorneys are using confidential files kept by the Scouts from 1965-84 to support the lawsuit’s contention that accusations against Scout troop leaders within the organization were ignored or dismissed.

Charles Smith, attorney for the national Boy Scouts, earlier told jurors the documents helped national scouting leaders weed out sex offenders, especially repeat offenders who may have changed names or moved in an attempt to join another local scouting group.

Dozens of lawsuits have been filed against the Boy Scouts over sex abuse allegations, but judges for the most part have either denied requests for the documents — dubbed the “perversion files” by the Boy Scouts of America — or the cases have been settled out of court. The only other time the documents are believed to have been presented at a trial was in the 1980s in Virginia.

Boy Scouts of America spokesman Deron Smith has said the organization cannot comment on details of the case, but has worked hard on awareness and prevention efforts, including background checks.