Baltimore, MD – A suburban Baltimore Jewish day school has terminated the employment of a rabbi who has been accused of molesting children he taught at a summer camp.
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On Thursday, the Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School in Pikesville, Maryland, announced it was firing Rabbi Shmuel Krawatsky after The New York Jewish Week published an article featuring allegations against him by the parents of three boys who reportedly said he molested them in 2015 while the rabbi was a counselor at Camp Shoresh in the Baltimore area.
Krawatsky’s lawyer told the weekly that the rabbi denies the allegations and that Krawatsky had passed a polygraph test in 2015 concerning the accusations.
Krawatsky, an Orthodox rabbi, was the subject of a police investigation in 2015 but was not charged. Lindell Angel, the assistant state’s attorney in Frederick County and the chief of the sex crimes and child abuse unit, decided not to pursue criminal charges due to “the lack of evidence and witnesses.”
In a transcript of one interview with an alleged victim, the boy said the rabbi was naked and alone in the pool changing room with two alleged victims, and touched the young boys inappropriately before asking them to touch his “private parts” in exchange for $100.
“As a result of the allegations detailed in yesterday’s Jewish Week article, Beth Tfiloh has terminated Rabbi Shmuel Krawatsky’s employment,” Zipora Schorr, the director of education at Beth Tfiloh Dahan, wrote in a statement. “Rabbi Krawatsky will not be on our premises, and will not have any contact with our students.”
Married and the father of four, Krawatsky lives in Baltimore and taught Judaic studies at Beth Tfiloh, which runs from preschool to high school. He also ran youth programming at Suburban Orthodox Toras Chaim, a large Orthodox synagogue in Baltimore. He began working at Camp Shoresh, an outreach, or kiruv, camp, in the early 2000s.
Krawatsky resigned from his position at Suburban Orthodox Toras Chaim following the publication of articles about him by The Jewish Week, the weekly reported.
SINCE HE WAS NOT CHARGE THIS SHOULD HAVE NOT BE PUBLISHED
Poor guy!
Rabosai:
The burden of proof needed for a charge and conviction in court is beyond what is needed to verify fact. We might debate that, but that’s how it goes. The schools have a responsibility to verify the facts to the degree possible. Evidence which may be inadmissible in court due to technicalities can and should affect a possible court action. But the schools do not require conviction in court to take necessary steps to protect their environment. I assume they did their due diligence.
The prosocutor did not file charges due to “lack of evidence and witnesses”. He also passed a polygraph.
Why is this man being pilloried in the press?
Seems that with these type of allegations , the accused is guilty until proven innocent
This type of yellow journalism will only ensure that true victims will not be taken seriously !!
Innocent until PROVEN guilty! The states attorney said “there was a lack of evidence or witnesses” for him to be charged.He passed a polygraph. Unless there is further evidence or credible witness, he does not deserve to be tried in the “court of public opinion”.
Is evey allegation true? He was cleared by law enforcement!
Of course, not every allegation is true. But that three victims chose to tell their parents, when for most children the parent is the last one they would talk to, is a very disturbing pattern that lends strong credibility to their story. Most sex crimes do not take place in front of witnesses. While there may not be enough evidence for a legal case, as a parent, I am thankful that the school places some value on the safety of their students.
Lo Tisa Shema Shav. It’s forbidden mide’Orayso to believe slander based on rumors.. It’s very easy to ruin someone’s life. by his enemies. by advising people to be ‘on the safe side’. and sever their connection with that individual. .in the infamous ‘blood libels’ where Jews were accused of mixing blood in their Matzos. and an actual corpse of a Christian child
was produced. and not just rumors. Even the Goyim were cursed in Rabbinical literature. although they wanted to be ‘on the safe side’ because the gentiles too. are required to have a legal system. that should check out.the facts. and the Jews vehement denial.
This is trial by social media. The police, cps, state attorney and a PI that the ACCUSER hired all found in favour of Rabbi K. So they resorted to trial by social media where anyone can say anything about anyone.
Anyone can accuse anyone of anything. Rabbi K has been a teacher for over 20 years, tutored hundreds kids and taught hundreds more bar mizvah. And in one summer in 2015 he “molests” 2 first cousins and their friend?!? With all the investigating parties involved they could not find one other victim. This is a blood libel.
Read the case. No evidence, no charges, passed a polygraph test. It’s suspicios that 2 cousins and a friend all came out at once with allegations. B.S case.