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One man was banned from church and ostracized from the community for at least six weeks, while another had to ask for forgiveness. The third man, who was just a teen at the time of "sentencing" several years ago and therefore not a full-fledged church member, had to stay at home until he showed signs of character improvement.
"It wasn't ignored," Bishop Dan Miller said. "By our church, it was cleared up years ago.
"We try to work out our problems ourselves, among the church," he said. "It's our group, and it's not our way and it wasn't our forefathers' way to take our problems to the law or to your people to settle it.
"It's always worked better for us, we felt, to keep those standards and solve our problems if we can."
Vernon County authorities, however, do not consider the cases closed. After a 20-year-old woman claimed she was raped more than 200 times between age 7 and 17, and beaten unconscious on one occasion, the two brothers and their stepfather were arrested last week.
Criminal complaints already filed in Vernon County Circuit Court depict horrendous allegations of sexual abuse that the woman told investigators became "simply a way of life." Law enforcement became involved after the woman left the community and sought help from a non-Amish friend, authorities said.
The men are scheduled to be charged Monday.
According to court documents, Johnny Byler, 26, will be charged with five counts of sexual assault of a child; Eli Byler, 24, will be charged with five counts of second-degree sexual assault; and William Kempf, 77, will be charged with three counts of sexual assault of a child and substantial battery.
In addition, the Bylers' mother and Kempf's wife, Sally Kempf, will be charged with two counts of failure to aid a victim or report a crime.
Deborah Morse-Kahn, a Minneapolis sociologist and the author of five books about the Amish, said other people might question the severity of Amish justice, but a church ban to them is very serious.
"That's the end of entrance into heaven for them," Morse-Kahn said. "All is based on the Bible, and it is a culture not of grace as most Christians might understand it in the United States, but on work and deeds, and so you have to merit your redemption.
"In our culture, people very rightly go to jail or psychiatric hospitals, and they are not allowed out in public," she said. "Here, by a promise to change, the family is accepted back, but there is no aid for an assaulted child."
Bishop Miller, a church leader for 22 years, said Amish bishops and ministers south of the Cashton, Wis., area dealt with the issues years ago when the suspects lived there before moving to the Viroqua area in 1999. He said he became aware of the situation about a month ago when the 20-year-old woman sent letters to Viroqua- area Amish church leaders outlining the allegations and asking that more be done.
"It said that it happened and we are to do something about it," Miller said. "I felt that the bishop and the ministers (in the town of Webster) did their part in trying to prevent and, after it happened, work in a way that it would not happen again."
Investigators, however, contend abuse has occurred since then, too, in the town of Harmony, and in Pennsylvania before 1996.
Such allegations are viewed very seriously by the Amish, Miller said.
"The church has rulings, standards, and if they are a member of the church, they will be banned and not be a member until they show improvement, and that we would trust them again," Miller said. "It can take six weeks or longer, depending.
"I was told these things took place, and my understanding is that they were punished for it," he said. "That would mean that we don't usually come back and keep these things stirred up.
"Once it was taken care of, we feel if it's done right, God has forgiven," he said. "Is that reasonable? Does it make sense? We believe in forgiveness if they show improvement."
Miller, 49, said "similar cases" are handled this way by the Amish church, though this was the most serious case to come to his attention. Never in his experience have police been involved in such matters, he said.
"We handle it ourselves," Miller said. "The (20-year-old woman) that left (the community) turned around and turned them in for some reason. It appears she turned against our church."
Other Amish sanctions against people accused of wrongdoing include forgoing recreational activities such as fishing, Miller said. In other cases, there can be trade restrictions, though people are allowed to make a living.
In this case, "they had to stay at home," Miller said. "They were not to have contact with other people. A lot of times, we take the person back and have him apologize."
The Amish, who live simple, religious-oriented lives, began settling in southwest Wisconsin in recent decades. They shun many modern conveniences, and generally prefer little contact with mainstream society.
Vernon County District Attorney Tim Gaskell said last week it did not matter that the suspects are Amish because Wisconsin law pertains to everyone.
"We have a sexual assault victim who has reported this to law enforcement," Gaskell said. "It's no longer a hush-hush situation."
The Bylers are accused of raping the woman in various locations, including a bedroom, a barn and a washroom, according to the criminal complaints. The alleged assaults reportedly ended three years ago.
One complaint said Eli Byler told investigators he would chase her, "and when he caught her, she would fight back, but he would still have sex with her."
Johnny Byler admitted sexual contact five or six times, one complaint said. On one occasion, Johnny Byler held the alleged victim down while his brother raped her, the complaint said.
Also, authorities said Johnny Byler's admissions were caught on tape when the 20-year-old woman recently wore a recording device.
William Kempf denied forcing the alleged victim to sit in his lap and touching her through her clothing, according to the complaint against him.
Miller said William Kempf was upset "the police did not believe him, handcuffed him and took him."
All of the suspects, arrested on Wednesday, were released the same day on either cash or signature bonds.
Accused of once beating the woman unconscious with his fists, William Kempf "related he had been violent with his children, but he had asked for forgiveness and believed things had been taken care of," the complaint said.
Sally Kempf told investigators she believed she did all she could to protect the alleged victim from abuse, confronting her sons on a few occasions, according to the complaint against her.
The 20-year-old woman claimed she was once told by Sally Kempf: "You don't fight hard enough, and you don't pray hard enough."
She left the community in February after William and Sally Kempf tried to get her to end counseling sessions, all four complaints said.
She "felt she needed to remain in counseling and address the victimization she had encountered since the age of seven," the complaints said.
If convicted, the felony charges against the three men could result in significant prison time, while the charges against Sally Kempf are both misdemeanors.
Miller said the Amish "don't regret (imprisonment) if a person is bad, and does not listen," but Amish justice has already been served.
Sociologist: Abuse victims rarely seek, get help
By ED HOSKIN / La Crosse Tribune
A Minneapolis sociologist and the author of five books about the Amish said the way the religious sect handles allegations of sexual abuse does little to address the problem, and victims rarely get help.
"When there are instances of sexual abuse or assault, this will be tried or addressed within the church by the church elders, all of whom are male," Deborah Morse-Kahn said. "For those who assaulted her, the family may be banished (or temporarily banned from church), but they won't be punished in a way that we understand.
"The obvious problem is that the problem goes with them," she said. "There is only prayer and an exhortation to do better, which does not address the human issue of sexual assault."
A promise to change might be sincere, but it does not address the root of the human problem, Morse-Kahn said.
"(It's) the problem of having a closed, Bible-based, patriarchal group attempt to solve its many human problems without involving what we are familiar with as public agencies, which obviously include police or county human services," Morse-Kahn said.
Compared to Wisconsin, Morse-Kahn said social service groups in three other states are more involved in Amish affairs.
"In the eastern states of Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio, there are many county social service groups that have liaisons specifically trained to work with the Amish," Morse-Kahn said. "What this allows young women to do in the Amish community is to find help, knowing there are people who can help, and it allows education and awareness to flow back."
That is not as common in the upper Midwest because the Amish haven't been here as long, she said.
There are two major settlements of Amish populations in southwest Wisconsin, and a smaller one in the southwest corner of the state, the author said. The largest settlement is around Cashton, Wilton, Chaseburg, Viroqua and Westby, and the other one is centered around Hillsboro, Greenwood, La Valle, White City and Ironton.
Ed Hoskin can be reached at ehoskin@lacrossetribune.com or (608) 791-8226.
