Allegations Of Sexual

Also Thursday, an article about Sen. Bob Packwood should have stated that the Senate Ethics Committee is investigating allegations of sexual misconduct against the Oregon senator. According to the committee, the focus of its inquiry into Mr. Packwood's behavior involves "allegations of sexual misconduct, attempts to intimidate and discredit the alleged victims, and misuse of official staff in attempts to intimidate and discredit."The Sun regrets the errors.

The three candidates vying for Anne Arundel County executive faced off in a televised debate Tuesday night, sparring over the county's projected budget deficit, the planned slots casino at Arundel Mills mall, and misconduct and ethics issues. Republican County Executive John R. Leopold debated Joanna L. Conti, a Democratic candidate and Annapolis business executive, and Michael Shay, an environmental activist and Green Party candidate, during the 90-minute session at Anne Arundel Community College.

An article yesterday about allegations of sexual abuse by a former teacher at the Catholic Community Middle School in South Baltimore during the 1970s incorrectly identified one of the 20 known victims as a Roman Catholic priest. The victim was actually a classmate of the priest.The Sun regrets the error.

A 20-year-old college student accused Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger of sexually assaulting her at a nightclub early Friday during a night on the town near where he owns a lake home. Police said the alleged assault occurred early Friday morning in Milledgeville, about 85 miles southeast of Atlanta. The player owns a home about 30 miles to the north on Oconee Lake. The two-time Super Bowl champion, who turned 28 on Tuesday, and some of his friends were seen visiting local restaurants and bars Thursday night.

Ravens officials met with wide receiver Michael Jackson yesterday to discuss a Highlandtown woman's allegations of sexual abuse, and the club later released a statement saying it would not "prejudge the situation."The 44-year-old woman, who said she had a 16-month relationship with Jackson, filed 11 charges in District Court: two counts of second-degree sex offense, a third-degree sex offense, three counts of second-degree assault, two counts of perverted practice, one count of sodomy, one count of harassment and one count of false imprisonment.

After rejecting a summer lease with a Finksburg-based child care company because of a continuing investigation into allegations of sexual abuse, the Carroll County school board reversed its decision Wednesday night and unanimously voted to approve the lease. The board agreed to lease space at Sandymount Elementary School for a summer day-care program that would run from Monday to Aug. 6. The program is operated by the Rainbows and Reasons child care center, which will pay the county $477.

An Anne Arundel County teacher acquitted of child sexual abuse charges this month will remain on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the school system's own investigation.Laurie S. Cook, 33, met yesterday to discuss her employment status with acting Superintendent Carol S. Parham, school spokeswoman Nancy Jane Adams said."They told us they were investigating the same actions and circumstances that led to her being charged in the first place," said M. Cristina Gutierrez, a Baltimore lawyer representing Ms. Cook.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has ordered an investigation of sexual assault by troops against female colleagues in war zones as the Pentagon yesterday confirmed 88 allegations of sexual misconduct in the past year. "Commanders at every level have a duty to take appropriate steps to prevent sexual assaults, protect victims and hold those who commit offenses accountable," Rumsfeld wrote in a letter dated Thursday to David S.C. Chu, the undersecretary of Defense for personnel and readiness.

EASTON -- A prominent Eastern Shore lawyer is facing professional misconduct charges as the result of allegations of sexual abuse, including accusations from a former client and a secretary that he made them submit to spankings because they were "bad girls."The Maryland Attorney Grievance Commission has charged George J. Goldsborough Jr., 67 and a member of a blue-blooded Eastern Shore family, with general misconduct relating to the sexual abuse accusations and with making false statements to a panel investigating the matter.

NEW ORLEANS -- Confronting a problem that has increasingly undermined confidence in their leadership, the nation's Roman Catholic bishops took their first steps yesterday toward creating a nationwide policy for investigating and preventing the sexual abuse of minors by priests.At their semiannual meeting, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops announced the creation of a committee of eight bishops to draw up a plan for rooting out past and potential offenders, providing care to victims and preventing further misconduct.

The University of Maryland is under fire for denying activists from the Clothesline Project, a campus rape-awareness event, permission to publicly name alleged rapists. The university cites the danger of lawsuits from those named, and that's certainly a reasonable fear. Yet the university should also oppose naming alleged rapists because it could defame and harm innocent men. A significant percentage of allegations of sexual assault are false. According to a study conducted by former Purdue sociologist Eugene J. Kanin and published in Archives of Sexual Behavior, in more than 40 percent of the cases reviewed, the complainants eventually admitted that no rape had occurred.

The Archdiocese of Baltimore has removed the pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Roman Catholic Church in Ellicott City from ministry after he admitted to sexually abusing two girls nearly 40 years ago. The incidents took place while Monsignor Richard E. Smith served as a priest at the former Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help parish in Woodlawn from 1966 to 1967, according to a news release. That parish is now known as St. Gabriel. One woman called the archdiocese March 16 after seeing a photograph of Smith in The Catholic Review, said archdiocese spokesman Sean Caine.

After rejecting a summer lease with a Finksburg-based child care company because of a continuing investigation into allegations of sexual abuse, the Carroll County school board reversed its decision Wednesday night and unanimously voted to approve the lease. The board agreed to lease space at Sandymount Elementary School for a summer day-care program that would run from Monday to Aug. 6. The program is operated by the Rainbows and Reasons child care center, which will pay the county $477.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has ordered an investigation of sexual assault by troops against female colleagues in war zones as the Pentagon yesterday confirmed 88 allegations of sexual misconduct in the past year. "Commanders at every level have a duty to take appropriate steps to prevent sexual assaults, protect victims and hold those who commit offenses accountable," Rumsfeld wrote in a letter dated Thursday to David S.C. Chu, the undersecretary of Defense for personnel and readiness.

MAJURO, Marshall Islands - She sits on the grass on a warm, windy afternoon, with the Pacific tide rolling gently on the rock-strewn beach behind her. The placid scene contrasts sharply with the part of her young life she is describing. Five years ago, when she was 12, she and her younger sister were adopted by a Greenwood, S.C., couple. The sexual abuse by her adoptive father began almost as soon as she moved into his home, she said. The Sun does not publish the names of alleged victims of sexual abuse.

Baltimore prosecutors will begin an investigation today to determine what happened to two letters detailing a sexual abuse allegation against the Rev. Maurice J. Blackwell that the Baltimore Archdiocese says it sent to the state's attorney in 1998, but which investigators have no record of receiving, a spokeswoman said yesterday. Based on their findings, city prosecutors then will decide whether to open a new investigation into the allegations, said Margaret T. Burns, a spokeswoman for State's Attorney Patricia C. Jessamy.

The University of Maryland is under fire for denying activists from the Clothesline Project, a campus rape-awareness event, permission to publicly name alleged rapists. The university cites the danger of lawsuits from those named, and that's certainly a reasonable fear. Yet the university should also oppose naming alleged rapists because it could defame and harm innocent men. A significant percentage of allegations of sexual assault are false. According to a study conducted by former Purdue sociologist Eugene J. Kanin and published in Archives of Sexual Behavior, in more than 40 percent of the cases reviewed, the complainants eventually admitted that no rape had occurred.

In a rebuke to the Army probe of sexual misconduct at Aberdeen Proving Ground, four women, backed by NAACP President Kweisi Mfume, accused investigators yesterday of using threats and grueling interrogation to try to obtain false rape allegations.Holding hands and trembling at a news conference, the current and former privates said investigators tried to twist their testimony through veiled threats, long interviews without legal counsel, and statements that officials wrote for their approval.

The Justice Department is investigating complaints from women held at the Krome Service Processing Center near Miami who said they had witnessed or were victims of sexual assaults by Immigration and Naturalization Service guards. While the latest investigation began last month, lawyers and advocates for immigrants, as well as some Krome employees, have been expressing concerns about abuse of detainees and corruption at the center for years. The more recent accusations came in a report released yesterday in New York City by the Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children, an international advocacy group.

Ravens officials met with wide receiver Michael Jackson yesterday to discuss a Highlandtown woman's allegations of sexual abuse, and the club later released a statement saying it would not "prejudge the situation."The 44-year-old woman, who said she had a 16-month relationship with Jackson, filed 11 charges in District Court: two counts of second-degree sex offense, a third-degree sex offense, three counts of second-degree assault, two counts of perverted practice, one count of sodomy, one count of harassment and one count of false imprisonment.