I got my eagle scout through an LDS scout troop. My oldest boy did the same. I have been a scout leader or parent volunteer many times over the years. BSA messed up when they gave into political pressure and now my youngest boy will not get those same experiences. I never saw a single thing at a boy scout event that was even close to being abuse. I saw a lot of worrying about avoiding bad situations, "two-deep leadership", etc. to make sure that bad things or false accusations did not occur.
I am sure there are plenty of isolated incidents of inappropriate behavior which is inevitable in any large organization. It certainly goes against everything the BSA and LDS Church teach and practice but predators are predators and learn how to accomplish their goals. Sponsoring an organization that ended up with a few bad apples and sponsoring specific acts are two totally different things.
Anybody looking for a settlement would definitely put a target on whoever has the largest check book. The LDS church's is certainly big enough to attract attention.
Sad state of affairs when an organization like the BSA that was built on solid values and worthwhile goals is brought to its knees by politics and lawyers.
It was not just “isolated incidents”. When my kids were scout age, there was a local (east Idaho) scandal that came to light. Long story short, there was an abuser that molested boys at scout camp. Church leaders “counseled” the offender, and put him back in charge of kids. At least TWICE.
When one of the molested kids came forward, he was told to shut up and let the Church handle it. The kid didn’t after seeing that the Church kept putting the offender back in charge of kids, so the church harassed him to the point of chasing him out of town and then kicking him out of the church. Problem finally solved in their mind, I guess?
Does that sound like an isolated incident?
Needless to say, my kids did not participate in the Boy Scouts.
