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Local Boy Scout Council Says It Is Abiding By Rules To Weed Out Pedophiles

By David Madden, Todd Quinones

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Confidential files listing the names of 1,200 scoutmasters and other Boy Scout officials accused of sexually abusing boys over two decades were released today.

The documents were used as evidence in a 2010 civil lawsuit brought by a man in Oregon who says he was molested by a Portland scout leader in the 1980s.

In the Delaware Valley, local Boy Scout officials insist they've abided by the national guidelines for dealing with alleged pedophiles within their ranks and have nothing to hide.

Harrington_Tom BSA phila thumb _prov
(Tom Harrington. Photo provided)

Cradle of Liberty Council CEO Tom Harrington (right) says 6,000 adults in the region who serve as scoutmasters have gone through background checks, and any suspicions put them on the "ineligible" list.

In his three-year tenure, he adds, "We have had two of those individuals who we've been informed by authorities that they have either been charged or have been suspicious of inappropriate behavior."

One involved a case 10 years ago of a former leader now charged with possession of child pornography.

The Boy Scouts' national policy includes a mandate that authorities be notified at the first hint of a problem, and that the national office be informed of anyone who's barred locally, so they can't just go somewhere else.

For more information on the documents released on The Boy Scouts of America visit: www.kellyclarkattorney.com/files.

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