UPDATE - Aug 22, 2004

VIROQUA, WIS. -- As Mary Byler sat in the courtroom on Wednesday, awaiting the sentencing of her brother for sexual assault, she had to wonder who'd really been on trial. "I was molested by my father when I was 3 and gang-raped day after day by my cousins and brothers, starting when I was 6 or 7," she told the Star Tribune before Wednesday's sentencing. Byler, 20, alleges that she was raped more than 200 times by members of the Amish family in which she grew up. "And when I'd tell my mother about it, she'd tell me that if I had prayed harder, fought harder, these things wouldn't happen. "I was sent to school ... and my mother told me, 'If you truly don't want this to happen, it won't.' I've been judged by the Amish all my life. I've been on trial all my life." Mary Byler gets words of encouragement.Richard Tsong-TaatariiStar TribuneEli Byler, 24, who told the Star Tribune in April that he first raped his sister when Mary was 8 and he was 12, was sentenced to eight years in prison Wednesday after previously pleading guilty to one count of the sexual assault of a child. "Eli, I hope you still hear my screaming in your nightmares," Mary Byler said in court, reading from a prepared statement as family members and nearly two dozen other Amish listened. "You were my brother. "You should have protected me . . . and you raped me." Eli BylerRichard Tsong-TaatariiStar TribuneEli Byler, one of three brothers charged with sexual assault of a child, told the court, "I believe God will forgive me." In the interview with the Star Tribune before Wednesday's sentencing, Mary Byler trembled as she recounted a lifetime of nightmares that led to the largest reported case of sexual assault in Amish-American history. Eli Byler's confession was part of a plea bargain in which Judge Michael Rosborough also sentenced him to four years' probation. Byler had been charged with five counts of sexual assault of a child after his arrest in April. Click to view full map of area.Another brother, Johnny E. Byler, 25, also charged with five similar counts, pleaded guilty to two counts earlier this month. Sentencing is scheduled for October. David Byler, 18, is charged with two counts of the sexual assault of a child, a relative who is now 6 years old. For Mary Byler, the alleged assaults by her younger brother were the breaking point that prompted her to contact authorities in southwestern Wisconsin's Vernon County. Viroqua is about 25 miles southeast of La Crosse. 'Couldn't tell a soul' "I don't want her to grow up like I did," Mary Byler said, her shaky hands lighting one cigarette after another. "It scares the hell out of me. More than a dozen women who left the Amish have contacted me and told me they were raped by their fathers, brothers, uncles and cousins. "But they couldn't tell a soul because it's such a closed society." Mary Byler, whose name was withheld in earlier Star Tribune stories, said she now wants to be identified because it should help make people more aware of what happened to her. She said that since the newspaper articles appeared, other media organizations have contacted her about telling her story. It started after Amish church leaders in the Viroqua area tried to resolve the matter with punishment that was severe by Amish standards: Johnny Byler would be banished from the church for six weeks. Eli Byler would not be allowed to associate with anyone at church until he improved his character. "Johnny would get six weeks, and I've had nightmares for 16 years?" Mary Byler said, slamming her palm against a table. "No! No! No! "I knew I had to leave the Amish. I had to tell somebody." As a youngster, she never had an option, she said. Going to a stranger outside the Amish community would have been intimidating, especially for a child whose primary language was Pennsylvania Dutch. And family members within her home were sexually assaulting her, looking the other way or accusing her of instigating rape. "If it happened many times, it's not rape anymore. She's probably asking for it," said Byler's stepfather, William Kempf, 78, in a Star Tribune interview in April. On Wednesday, he said before the sentencing: "Mary's been brainwashed." Kempf, charged with three counts of sexual assault and one count of battery against Mary Byler, pleaded no contest last month to lesser charges of misdemeanor battery and disorderly conduct and was sentenced to 18 months probation. His comments were typical of what Mary Byler said she's heard since her childhood in western Pennsylvania, where the sexual assaults began, she said. She recalls her father, Abraham Byler, awakening her "and just plain molesting me" when she was 3 or 4. "How was I to know what that was?" she asked. "I remember thinking that this had gone on even before that and that I never wanted to go to sleep again . . . because if I do, he'll wake me again." She says that she told her mother what was happening, but that "my mom was the one who made me sit on his lap and told me to forgive him." Her mother, Sally Kempf, 49, pleaded no contest to one count of failure to report a crime, a misdemeanor. She was given a stayed 30-day sentence and ordered to serve two years probation. "The betrayal by my mother hurt me more than anything else," Byler said. "She's dead to me." Looking to the future Abraham Byler was killed while the family was still living in Pennsylvania when a car hit a horse-drawn buggy in which he was riding. But the sexual assaults against his daughter continued, Mary Byler said. She said she was 6 or 7 when she was raped for the first time -- by a cousin who was 17 or 18. Often three or four cousins held her down and took turns raping her, Byler said. "Between 8 and 14 it was just horrible, pure hell," said Byler. "Sometimes they'd even be laughing when they'd hold my dress up to the top of my head. I'd feel like I was suffocating in that dress. I was so alone. And I was brainwashed into thinking: You don't talk about that stuff. You just forgive them." Seven years ago, the Bylers moved to Wisconsin. Depressed, worried that she could get pregnant, and "living in the same home as some of my abusers," Mary told her mother she was seeking therapy or leaving the Amish. Therapy began last September -- and with it came stories that Byler's friends outside the Amish community urged her to tell to Wisconsin authorities. She couldn't, she said. The Amish didn't do that sort of thing. But when the 6-year-old family member talked about being abused by David Byler, Mary Byler broke down. She left the Amish in March and called the Vernon County sheriff. A lost childhood "She was imprisoned in her own home," said Vernon County District Attorney Tim Gaskell. "Simply put, she lost her childhood." Now, Mary Byler said, she's trying to capture the rest of the adolescence that eluded her. She watches Seinfeld reruns and listens to Loretta Lynn. She earned her high school equivalency diploma -- the Amish typically attend school only through the eighth grade -- and got her driver's license two months ago. A hospital housekeeper, Byler says she hopes to attend college and become a nurse. She says her boyfriend, Rudy Mast, 28, who also left the Amish community, has talked to her about marriage. "[The Amish] don't care," she said. "They think I'm going to hell. Not because I turned them in. They think I'm going to hell because I left the Amish."

WIS,Byler


Friday, April 02, 2004 Two more admit to assault in Amish community; more women come forward  Wis. — Vernon County officials say two more men have admitted to sexually assaulting a woman who left the local Amish community, and two other Amish women have come forward to report being sexually assaulted. Directory Officials say the three cases are not connected. A week ago, three Amish men — brothers Johnny and Eli Byler and their stepfather, William Kempf — were arrested and charged with sexually assaulting the first woman, now 20. She told sheriff's deputies she was assaulted more than 200 times between ages 7 and 17, first in Pennsylvania and then in Vernon County. In their investigation of the case, Vernon County District Attorney Timothy Gaskell said two other men have admitted to sexual contact with the woman. "Certainly not to the extent of the two youngest ones that have been charged already, it's not to that extent, but there has been some sexual contact," Gaskell said. The other brothers have not been charged or arrested. "Generally, we don't have comment on investigations in progress," said Vernon County Undersheriff Jim Hanson, "but this just has a lot of light on it. You're likely to see something in the next two days." The case has prompted two more Amish women to report other sexual assaults to sheriff's deputies. No charges have been brought in either case. "It's possible that additional arrests will occur," Hanson said. "I don't want to push the panic button yet." On Monday, the 77-year-old Kempf was charged in Vernon County Court with three counts of second-degree sexual assault of a child and one count of substantial battery. Johnny Byler, 26, was charged with five counts of second-degree sexual assault of a child. Eli Byler, 24, faces one count of second-degree sexual assault of a child and four counts of second-degree sexual assault by use of force. Criminal complaints stated both brothers admitted to raping the girl, but Kempf denied touching her through her clothing and forcing her to sit on his lap. Kempf's wife, Sally, also has been charged with failing to protect the girl or report the abuse. The case drew the attention of Deborah Morse-Kahn, a Minneapolis sociologist and the author of a book about the Amish. On Monday, she called Linda Nederlo, director of the Vernon County Human Services Department, offering to give a presentation about providing social services to the Amish community. The presentation originally was going to be for Nederlo's department and sheriff's representatives only, but as word spread, more and more organizations wanted to be involved. When Morse-Kahn spoke Thursday in the basement of the Human Services Department, she had an audience of 70 people from a dozen different departments. "This thing is highly unusual," said Nederlo, whose been at her position for 38 years. "We have never seen a case like this. "Everyone just wants to learn. We live with them, they're our neighbors, but we don't know anything about them." Crime in the Amish community rarely is reported because contact with mainstream society is so limited, and the Amish have their own justice system. An Amish bishop said last week the three men charged had already been punished when church leaders became aware of the situation. Johnny Byler was banned from the church for at least six weeks, Bishop Dan Miller said, Eli Byler had to stay home until he showed improvement, and William Kempf had to admit he'd done wrong and ask for forgiveness. In Amish culture, Morse-Kahn told the group, the 20-year-old woman going to local authorities is like turning her back on the Amish community. The woman is now in what the sheriff's department is calling "a protected environment." The case is rare, Morse-Kahn said, but could inspire others to come forward. Little did she know it had already happened. "Clearly, I think Sheriff (Gene) Cary and myself want to build this bridge that they're talking about as much as possible along with social services," said Hanson, who was at Morse-Kahn's talk. "We will investigate whatever is reported to us and move ahead.

WI, Eli Byler Plead Guilty to two felony counts

Here is the article from LaCrosse Tribune: Bylers arrested during alleged attempt to flee by Ed Hoskin and Tim Hundt Two brothers facing sexual assault charges in Vernon County were jailed Monday after being arrested in La Crosse County this past weekend in what authorities said was an attempt to leave Wisconsin. Eli Byler, 24, and David Byler, 18, were walking along Hwy. D in the town of Onalaska about 2 a.m. Saturday when a citizen called police to report one man had a gun. Vernon County Undersheriff Jim Hanson said the pair were armed with a sawed-off .22 caliber rifle and a "significant amount" of ammunition. The men initially gave La Crosse sheriff's deputies false names, according to a police report. They had also made an attempt to alter their appearance. Eli Byler told authorities they were training for a long camping and hiking trip out west. After they were identified, he eventually said they were trying "to get away from (their) problems," the police report said. According to information presented to Vernon County Circuit Court Judge Michael Rosborough, the men made statements to authorities that they were "headed for the Black Hills" in South Dakota. Both men are accused of repeatedly assaulting a woman from their Amish community. Another brother and their stepfather also face sexual assault charges. Eli Byler, who initially pleaded innocent, but has a second plea hearing scheduled for Wednesday, was charged with one count of second-degree sexual assault of a child and four counts of second-degree sexual assault by use of force. David Byler, who has a preliminary hearing set for July 7, was charged with two counts of first-degree sexual assault of a child. Eli Byler had been free on a $2,500 cash bond, but that was raised Monday to $25,000. In raising the bond amount, Rosborough said that authorities had "good information" that the men intended to "abscond." Rosborough referred to a previous conviction for taking and driving a vehicle without the owner's consent on Eli Byler's record that indicated he was a flight risk. Hanson said the sheriff's department believes it has enough evidence to charge Eli Byler with bailjumping. Until Monday, David Byler had not appeared in court because he had been in Montana before returning voluntarily, authorities said. His cash bond was set Monday at $10,000. Hanson said both men had cut their hair and were wearing "conventional" rather than Amish-style clothing when arrested. "They were detained on the basis of their statement on where they were headed," Hanson said. "There probably will be more charges." La Crosse County deputies turned the men over to Vernon County authorities at the county line, Hanson said. Because the men were carrying a gun and several knives, the welfare of the victim in the case was a concern, Hanson said. However, the men apparently had no contact with the woman, he said. Two weeks ago, the mother of the Byler brothers pleaded no contest to one count of failure to report a crime. Sally Kempf, 50, received a stayed sentence of 30 days in jail and two years of probation.

UPDATE

1 of 3 Amish men pleads guilty to rape July 1, 2004 AMISH0701 VIROQUA, WIS.-- Eli Byler, one of three Amish brothers charged with raping a close female relative, pleaded guilty Wednesday to one count of second-degree criminal sexual assault of a child. With five members of the southwestern Wisconsin Amish community, including Byler's mother, seated in the Vernon County courtroom, the 24-year-old stood before Judge Michael J. Rosborough in prison orange and ankle shackles instead of his usual Amish hat and denim. As part of a plea bargain, four other counts of sexual assault against Byler were dropped. He was charged earlier in the day with trying to jump parole. He and his brother, David Byler, 18, were arrested Saturday in LaCrosse County, about 15 miles from their Amish community near Chaseburg. The victim, now 21, alleges she was raped 200 times by family members. Eli Byler admitted to the Star Tribune two months ago that he first sexually assaulted the victim when he was 12 and she was 8. A hearing for another brother, Johnny E. Byler, 25, has been set for August.

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