Franklin Coverup Scandal
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The Franklin Coverup Scandal began on June 29, 1989, when the front page of the Washington Times bore the headline Homosexual Prostitution Inquiry ensnares VIPs with Reagan, Bush, and officially ended when a grand jury concluded that the charges were a "carefully crafted hoax", although the scandal still feeds conspiracy theories to the present day. The article, by Washington Times journalists Paul M. Rodriguez and George Archibald, alleged that key officials of the Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush administrations were connected to an elaborate Washington, D.C male prostitution ring, and reported that two of these prostitutes even entered the White House late at night. The allegations included, among other things, "abduction and use of minors for sexual perversion."
Key persons named in the allegations were Craig J. Spence, a Washington D.C. based Republican lobbyist (who committed suicide in 1989), and Lawrence King, then manager of the Franklin Community Federal Credit Union in Nebraska. King was one of the Republican party's rising stars, performing the national anthem at the 1984 and 1988 Republican National Conventions. According to the December 15, 1989 New York Times, Nebraska State Senator Ernie Chambers came forward with reports of "boys and girls, some of them from foster homes, who had been transported around the country by airplane to provide sexual favors, for which they were rewarded."
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[edit] A "carefully crafted hoax"
On January 10, 1990, the Nebraska State legislature constituted a special committee to look into the allegations with State Senator Loran Schmit as Chairman. On January 30, 1990, Nebraska State Attorney General, Robert Spire, called for a grand jury to investigate the allegations. February 6, 1990, former County District Judge Samuel Van Pelt was appointed a special prosecutor for the Douglas County Grand Jury, which convened on March 12, 1990. On July 23, 1990, after hearing many hours of testimony, the grand jury threw out all of the allegations concerning sexual child abuse, labeling the charges a "carefully crafted hoax."
[edit] Paul A. Bonacci
Paul A. Bonacci won a default judgment judgment of $800,000 compensatory damages and $200,000 in punitive damages in a civil action against Lawrence King in which the petition alleged kidnapping, mind control, satanic ritual abuse, and sexual abuse, and alleged various personal injuries, both physical and psychological. The Judge did not rule on these allegations, but merely ruled on the motion for default judgment.
The judgment in U.S. District Court in Omaha, Nebraska, on February 27, 1999 was a default judgment following defendant King's failure to appear to respond to the charges. At the time, King was imprisoned due to an unrelated matter, and was believed to be unable to pay for legal representation. As required by U.S. law and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the plaintiff's allegations were required to be taken as fact based on the testimony, since no contrary evidence was introduced. On that basis, the judge awarded monetary damages. The case was not appealed.
[edit] Notes and references
- Associated Press. "Omaha Tales of Sexual Abuse Ruled False", The New York Times, The New York Times Company, 1990-09-27, p. Section A; Page 15, Column 5.
- Robert Dorr. "Bonacci Gets $ 1 Million in King Lawsuit", Omaha World Herald, The Omaha World-Herald Company, 1999-02-24, p. 17.
- Robert Dorr. "Judge Clears 3 More in Bonacci Suit Claims of Sexual Abuse Called Unsubstantiated and Bizarre", Omaha World Herald, The Omaha World-Herald Company, 1997-06-13, p. 26.
- Robert Dorr. "Lawrence King Drops Appeal Of Judgment", Omaha World Herald, The Omaha World-Herald Company, 2000-01-13, p. 15.
