4 Local Men Listed in Boy Scouts' 'Perversion Files'

Editor's Note: This article contains graphic language.

Media outlets all over the country have been reporting on the Boy Scouts of America's (BSA) so called "Perversion Files"–lists of men banned from volunteering with the organization due to allegations of inappropriate behavior which, in most cases involved molesting young boys.

The files, which cover the years from 1965 to 1985, list thousands of men, many of whom were never charged with any crime because the BSA kept the records private and never reported the incidents.

The files were released after a lawsuit in Oregon (Lewis vs. Boy Scouts of America, Case No. 0710-11294) resulted in a court order demanding the records be made public.

Of the thousands listed, there are four cases listed in the Marple Newtown area. 

The Los Angeles Times database, listing these cases, was only able to identify persons on the list by name if there was documentation in the released Boy Scouts files. 

• Richard J. Toner–Toner was a registered scouter in 1978 with Explorer Post 2044 in Newtown Square. Toner, who was 33 at the time, and his wife, Janice, 30 at the time, both of Landsdowne, were arrested on July 1, 1978, on charges of soliciting and procuring prostitutes for the purpose of prostitution. Toner held the title as post advisor and his wife was the chairperson of the committee. Though there was no indication that any scouts were involved, the BSA immediately terminated the charter.

• William H. Winslow–Winslow, 42, was arrested on charges of sodomy in 1963. He was an assistant cubmaster for Pack 151. Winslow, of Sterner Avenue in Broomall, was a printing salesman and married at the time. Winslow was a two-time registered scout master.

• Paul Memmo–Memmo, 31, of First Avenue in Newtown Square, was sentenced up to 37 years in prison in 1991 for sexually molesting nine Delaware County boys–from ages 9 to 14 between January 1986 to May 1990. He pleaded guilty to 20 sexual offenses. Newtown Township Police Chief Stanley Short informed the BSA Valley Forge Council that Memmo was arrested in 1983 on the following charges: three counts of Corruption of the Morals of Minors, three counts of Indecent Assault, three counts of Indecent Exposure, three counts of Criminal Solicitation, and three counts Having Obscene and Sexual Material. According to Short, the arrest took place after receiving a complaint from Scout Troop 238 in Broomall.

• Michael P. Gallagher–Gallagher, 18, of Canterbury Drive in Broomall, was an assistant scoutmaster of Troop 346 at the Don Guanella School in Springfield in 1966. Gallagher had allegedly fondled and and touched the scouts in the troop, which was a troop designated for mentally handicapped boys. Gallagher was in training to become a Brother in the Augustinian Monastery in Drexel Hill. Gallagher was placed under psychiatric treatment.

You can see the full list of ineligible volunteers here.