July 31, 2013
“Have you ever stopped to consider what the statistical odds must be against the following allegations made by the prosecution? How could the following all be true?
“1. That seven child abusers would somehow all show up at the Little Rascals Day Care during the same time period.
“2. That out of these seven alleged abusers not one had any record of any sexual misbehavior in their past.
“3. That out of all seven of these alleged abusers not one was found to be in possession of any child pornography or other suggestive materials.
“4. That with multiple-hundreds of alleged abuses claimed to have taken place, not one single piece of ‘hard’ evidence was ever found. Nor was there a single adult witness to any behavior even suggestive of abuse.
“5. That out of all seven of these alleged abusers, not one would be willing to testify against the others in return for easier treatment.”
– From a Feb. 22, 1994, letter sent to prosecutors and the press by Jeffrey Keimer of Portola Valley, Calif.
These are questions that occurred to someone following the Little Rascals case from 3,000 miles away. Too bad they seem not to have occurred to so many prosecutors, therapists, parents, reporters and jurors. Up close, was the “ritual abuse” narrative simply too mesmerizing?