By Tessa Roy, WPRO News
Just weeks after a former Boy Scouts assistant chaplain faced charges for the alleged sexual assault of an 18-year-old disabled man, State Police announced new charges against him on Wednesday.
James Glawson, 74, is charged with eight additional counts of sexual assault and one count of possessing child pornography. Police said the charges are a result of more alleged victims coming forward in the past month.
“The alleged sexual assaults referenced in the charges filed today took place in the 1980s during the period of time when Mr. Glawson was affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America,” said State Police Colonel James Manni. “We have reason to believe that there could be additional victims and additional criminal charges are possible.”
According to State Police, the 74-year-old Exeter man had been affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America since 1980 and from 2012 to 2018, served as an assistant Catholic chaplain and Eucharistic minister at the St. John Bosco Chapel at Yawgoog Scout Reservation, a summer camp in Hopkinton that is run by the Narragansett Council of the Boy Scouts of America. Police said Glawson is also affiliated with St. Bernard Church in North Kingstown and the Immaculate Conception Church in Westerly.
State Police said the Diocese of Providence and the Boy Scouts have been cooperating with the investigation. Peg Langhammer, Executive Director of Day One, a group for victims of sexual abuse and violence, stood with police at a Wednesday press conference to offer support to those affected by the case.
“We’re here for all victims, regardless of what a victim chooses to do. We want to get that across today,” she said. “We know that it often takes years for victims to come forward and report to anyone. In fact, the average age in some cases of institutional abuse is 53.”
Police declined to answer a number of questions from reporters, citing the ongoing investigation, but emphasized they’re putting the information out to the public in case there are more victims. Those with information or complaints regarding Glawson are urged to contact State Police detectives at 401-764-5346.
