Rabbi Yaakov Hopfer, one of Baltimore's two most important Orthodox rabbis, spoke about the whole issue (no names of course) of rabbinic sex abuse on Sunday morning in shul (it was taped and widely distributed).
It was a Q&A session with the rov. Rabbi Hopfer knows his name has popped up repeatedly on the Internet [Protocols] in connection with Orthodoxy's handling of the string of sex abuse cases in town.
Rabbi Hopfer brought up the issue of sex abuse. How it's a real problem, taking place too prevalently. (Someone asked him how prevalent it was. He answered "too prevalent".) How every claim has to be investigated and that nobody should be turned away and not believed. How he has dealt with a number of cases. How victims have come to him. etc. He also added that an accusation is not a conviction. he knows of false accusations made by people.
Rabbi Hopfer said the community rabbis are aware of the problem and that investigations are being done behind the scenes.
Someone in the audience spoke up: said he's a teacher in one of the local prestigious public school boards, and that in the public school system there is a system that investigates things quietly too.
Rabbi Hopfer recognizes that they don't want to ruin innocent lives by exposing someone who is only accused.
Someone in the audience asked if three people make accusations about one teacher to three different rabbis or principals, does it ever centralize? He said that it does. He said that he didn't want to name names in public (and on tape), but the accusations do usually reach the same people in the community who take them seriously and investigate.
Rabbi Hopfer is not a smooth political operator. He is a soft-spoken, mildly stuttering giant of a talmid chochom. The other big rabbi in town -- rabbi Heineman -- seems to be more of an operator.
Rabbi Hopfer did add that not all "abuse" is worth all the destruction. He seemd to recognize a category of inappropriate behavior that did not warrant destroying a child's life by convincing the child that s/he's damaged and broken/irreparable.
He said that every yeshiva and day school in Baltimore has precautions in place and a system of dealing with accusations.
He said that some communities have taken extreme measures. e.g. In LA he said that the yeshiva/day school educators have come to a consensus never to touch any students, in any way. He (and an audience member) aknowledged that that may be too harsh, since often children need physical affection (eg a hug). R. Hopfer says that he knows that he takes a chance every time he hugs a kid, but that he feels the risk is worth it because the child needs it.
He mentioned how much more dangerous accusations are nowadays, because as soon as someone is accused, it can be on the Internet within minutes.
I think it's clear that the Eliezer Eisgrau case was brought to his attention, investigated under his auspices, and he concluded that it was false.
