by Madaleine Rubin,
Jan 20, 2025
A 46-year-old man was found guilty in Butler County common pleas court last week of rape, indecent assault and corruption of minors – the latest verdict in a six-year, ongoing investigation of widespread sexual abuse in Jehovah’s Witness congregations across Pennsylvania.
Shaun Sheffer, who was accused of repeatedly raping and molesting a young girl more than two decades ago, was a member of the Zelienople Jehovah’s Witness congregation in Butler County at the time.
The jury on Friday found Mr. Sheffer guilty of three counts of rape, three counts of indecent assault and one count of corruption of minors after an investigation by the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office – the longest and most sweeping probe of Jehovah’s Witness congregations in the nation.
“We’re just elated that the victim in this case can finally feel like she’s been heard and believed,” said Deputy Attorney General Alicia Werner, who led the prosecution.
The state’s investigation has led to at least 16 arrests of people accused of sexually abusing children within various Pennsylvania congregations from the Pittsburgh area to Philadelphia.
At the heart of the probe is a trove of internal documents held by congregations that contain detailed records of abuse – many that were never turned over to law enforcement.
Mr. Sheffer was arrested after the state obtained records and received a tip through a hotline from Brandon and Jessica Sheffer, the defendant’s younger brother and his wife.
Prosecutors charged during the four-day trial that leaders of the Zelienople congregation were made aware of allegations against Mr. Sheffer, a longtime member of the community, around a decade ago – but never questioned the victim or notified police.
Zelienople congregation elder Steve Chappell testified that church leaders spoke to Mr. Sheffer about the allegations and acknowledged that they were referenced in a letter between community leaders and the religion’s national headquarters.
Mr. Sheffer’s trial drew a regular crowd of 15 to 25 onlookers – among them, current Zelienople congregation members, abuse survivors and individuals who are no longer practicing Jehovah’s Witnesses – separated into two defined camps in the courtroom.
“You have a family that has been divided by this secret,” Ms. Werner told jurors in her closing argument, gesturing towards Sheffer family members on both sides of the courtroom.
Ms. Werner argued the victim’s testimony was enough to decide this case, while the defense maintained that prosecutors lacked sufficient evidence to prove Mr. Sheffer’s guilt.
At the outset of the trial, the victim took the stand and testified that she is an autistic individual who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression, and struggled to speak before the age of five.
She described repeated instances of sexual assault – between 30 and 50, by her recollection – in and outside of a Butler County home. Prosecutors alleged the abuse occurred when she was between the ages of seven and 12 years old.
Shaun Sheffer frequently led her into rooms alone, the victim said, where he raped her and forced her to perform or watch sex acts.
Representing Mr. Sheffer, Benjamin Steinberg of Myers Law Group called the victim’s testimony “inconsistent, incredible and sometimes impossible.”
Dr. Veronique Valliere, an expert on victim behavior who treats sexual abuse victims, testified that trauma often disorganizes chronology and allegations of sexual abuse are rarely fabricated.
Both the defendant and the victim’s character were called into question throughout the trial, as family members divided on either side of the courtroom took the stand and presented conflicting portraits of the two.
But at the trial’s end, Ms. Werner held up an old photo of the victim and encouraged jurors to view her as a child – when the alleged abuse took place.
“If you believe [her],” Ms. Werner said, “that’s all you need.”
After the verdict was read Friday afternoon, sobs broke out in the courtroom and Judge Joseph Kubit revoked Mr. Sheffer’s bail before he was cuffed and removed from the room.
His sentencing is slated for February 2025.