Anglican trust pays $75,000 over sex abuse

By GREGG WYCHERLEY and AINSLEY THOMSON

An Anglican Church trust has paid $75,000 in compensation to one of three children who suffered years of sex abuse in one of its foster homes.

The abuser was Ramon Doughty, who ran Blackwood House in Herne Bay 30 years ago.

Doughty, a 72-year-old retired builder from Matamata, last month admitted 20 charges of sexual abuse against three girls between 1967 and 1974 and will be sentenced next week in the High Court at Hamilton.

The Anglican Trust For Women & Children paid the compensation to one of the victims about three months ago.

Chairwoman Dianne Kenderdine said the trust became aware of the abuse only last year when told by one of the victims. "It was totally abhorrent and disturbing to us."

She declined to say how much the payment was because of confidentiality.

The trust is run independently of the church but is answerable to it.

Mrs Kenderdine said the Anglican Church was aware a settlement had been made.

The crimes emerged as the Catholic Church in the United States and the Anglican Church in Australia are being rocked by child abuse scandals.

Police began investigating the Blackwood House case in March last year when one of the victims laid a formal complaint after speaking to a counsellor.

The woman said she approached Detective Constable Christine Miller of Whakatane after many years of fear.

Her nightmare began soon after she was taken to the home by her mother, who was disabled and unable to care for a child. She was 10 years old.

"I've had many problems through my life and I finally did something about it by getting counselling two years ago," she said. "That gave me the strength to go against him."

The offences were committed when Doughty and his wife were foster parents at Blackwood House.

Doughty initially denied the charges and had been scheduled to face trial on May 20 on one charge of rape, one of attempted rape, two of sodomy and 16 of indecent assault.

But on May 17 he changed his plea.

Ms Miller said that when she arrested Doughty last June, the "harmless-looking" grandfather admitted fondling the girls but denied anything more serious.

Doughty's abuse was not a secret within the foster home.

Ross Labone lived there for about eight years until he joined the Navy at the age of 16, and for 30 years he has carried the knowledge of what happened there.

Although Doughty never sexually abused him, he was threatened with being thrown out if he exposed the crimes of the man he knew as "Uncle Ray".

Mr Labone said one of the girls had told him what Doughty had been doing but he was too scared to say anything.

"I think he became worried that I might say something and he started to make these threats to me.

"He said that if I was a trouble-maker he would make sure I would get sent to borstal."

Mr Labone was aware that one of the victims had received $75,000 compensation and understood the other two were also considering claims against the Anglican Church.

But the Bishop of Auckland, John Paterson, said last night that he had not heard of the case and was unaware of any settlement.

Mrs Kenderdine would not comment last night on whether the trust was investigating other cases of sexual abuse by Doughty, or whether it had made any other compensation payments.

She said the trust had not owned Blackwood House for at least 16 years but did not know when the home was closed.

The church had earlier said it had procedures in place to deal with allegations of sexual abuse in its ranks.

On its website (www.anglican.org.nz) the church lists its rules on pastoral oversight and chastity, stating that "it is a serious abuse of power to use a calling or a pastoral position to further a personal relationship of an emotional or sexual nature, and it is a breach of duty".