THE HEADLINE READS:
Washington 'peeping Tom' rabbi sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison. Underneath the text reads: "Rabbi Barry Freundel, the 63-year-old former head of Kesher Israel synagogue in Washington, sentenced to jail time after pleading guilty to 52 misdemeanor counts of voyeurism for secretly videotaping women naked during ritual baths."
District of Columbia Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Alprin handed down the sentence before a packed courtroom.
What would have a "religious" court - a bet din zedek - have done? How would it have ruled? What punishment would it have handed down?
Based on other reports of Freundel's misbehavior, it is likely the religious court would do little more than say "naughty, naughty."
What has happened to Freundel in the religious community is that
- His congregants fired him
- The Rabbinical Council Of America tossed Freundel off its boards.
- On Wednesday, (Jan 28, 2015) Kesher Israel launched a case with the Beit Din of America to oust Freundel, who was arrested in October on charges that he spied on women, among them his students and converts, who used a ritual bath adjacent to the Orthodox synagogue. JTA: Synagogue launches religious court case to evict Rabbi Barry Freundel
- In an emergency meeting on Wednesday, October 15, 2014 the Rabbinical Council Of America (RCA) Executive Committee voted unanimously to suspend Rabbi Freundel from all positions of leadership in the RCA, from RCA membership and, together with the Beth Din of America, from all activities related to conversion. Rabbinical Council Of America Issues Statement Regarding Freundel Matter
That's it.
Because the civil court dealt with Freundel, the rabbi is now considered a sex offender. The federal government has enacted laws that define the terms and outline the tier of offense based on certain criteria. According to the Sex Crime Criminal Defense web site, voyeurism is a Tier I Sex Offense; this includes misdemeanors and felonies such as:
- Public indecency (lewdness);
- Voyeurism;
- Possession of child pornography (could include teen sexting)./LI>
- Sexual contact without consent.
The Washington Post reported that
- Freundel ultimately pleaded guilty to videotaping 52 women, and the punishment translates to about six weeks per victim. Sentencing guidelines require that he serve 85 percent of his term.
The longtime rabbi had recorded about 100 additional women, prosecutors have said, but those alleged crimes occurred outside the three-year statute of limitations. The videotaping occurred between 2009 and 2014.
Once Freundel gets out of prison (he must serve at least 85% of the 78 month sentence, or 66 months) other than possibly facing some housing restrictions, he is free to assume a rabbinical role
Freundel was one of a handful of rabbis outside of Israel that the Israeli rabbinute considered sufficiently trustworthy to accept his conversions. Likewise, his stamp of approval on a bride-to-be's status as a Jew was accepted by the Israeli religious establishment if the marriage was to be performed in Israel.
Apparently, this is not the first time Freundel has had a run-in with the RCA. According to the Failed Messiah blog,
- The RCA Twice Investigated Rabbi Barry Freundel For Alleged Conversion-Related Misbehavior – Including An Alleged Sexual Dalliance With A Female In The Process Of Conversion
Given the above, is it any wonder that most American Jews, "orthodox" or otherwise, prefer to complain to the civil courts rather than a rabbinical court?
One final note: the RCA announced that the Beth Din of America – under the leadership of Rabbi Gedalia Dov Schwartz – has concluded as a matter of Jewish law that conversions performed by Rabbi Freundel prior to his arrest on October 14, 2014 remain halachically valid and prior converts remain Jewish in all respects. Rabbinical Council Of America Issues Statement Regarding Freundel Matter
- Tel Aviv District Court Judge Oded Mudrik on Tuesday sentenced Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto to a year in prison on a reduced bribery conviction as part of a plea bargain with the state.
The decision, which also carried a NIS 1 million fine, was a blow to Pinto, who had fought all-out for community service and no jail time.
If you can't trust a rabbi, who CAN you trust?
