Beth Din’s call for sex abuse victims to contact police is ‘complete turnaround’

A Beth Din that faced accusations of failing to act on evidence against convicted sexual predator Todros Grynhaus has issued a public statement urging abuse victims to go to the police.

In a move hailed as a “complete turnaround” by Migdal Emunah founder Yehudis Goldsobel, the Jewish authority gave its “unwavering commitment to supporting the victims of.. abuse”.

Rabbi Hillel Royde of the Beth Din added: “It is, of course, absolutely halachically permitted for any victim of abuse to report such abuse to the police, or other recognised support agencies, and we encourage them to do so.”

This comes after claims that the Manchester Beth Din “did nothing” when presented with evidence about Todros Grynhaus, 55, who was jailed for 13-years in 2015 for sexual assaults of two teenage girls.

Speaking to Jewish News, Migdal Emunah’s founder Yehudis Goldsobel, said: “We are delighted that Manchester Beth Din have chosen to use their position of influence as a halachic authority to support and empower victims in reporting sexual abuse to the authorities.”

This is a complete turnaround in messaging toward reporting abuse to the authorities and we hope this sets a national and global precedent.”

Naomi Dickson, CEO of Jewish Women’s Aid, said: “This is a very significant move and one which JWA welcomes. It’s critical that Jewish authorities are very clear that victims of abuse in our community should feel encouraged to the police – they are here to protect us all. Women who are affected by domestic or sexual abuse can also come to Jewish Women’s Aid for culturally sensitive support, which is free of charge.”