Victims group wants boarding school employee fired
It also passed out fliers in the Piedmont area recently
“Call law enforcement if you see, suspect or suffer any wrongdoing,” it urges
A support group for clergy sex abuse victims is urging officials at a southern Missouri faith-based boarding school to fire an employee who is accused of abusing children.
The owners of the facility were arrested Friday by the local sheriff’s department.
SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is writing two top officials at Lighthouse Christian Academy (a.k.a. ABM Ministries) begging them to “remove Julio Sandoval from the premises and the payroll” of its facility just outside Piedmont in Wayne County.
“Sandoval was dean of students at Agape Boarding School in February 2021 when the Missouri Highway Patrol launched an investigation into abuse of students at the Cedar County school in Stockton,” according to the Kansas City Star. That same year, the Cedar County prosecuting attorney charged five staff members with 13 counts of third-degree assault. In 2022, The Star reported that Missouri’s child welfare agency had substantiated 10 reports of physical abuse at Agape.
Last fall, Kathleen Britt of Idaho, a former police officer, sued Agape, charging that her son’s sudden death stemmed from abuse he suffered at the facility. Sandoval was named as a defendant in that suit.
Sandoval was at Agape for roughly ten years.
According to the Springfield News-Leader, Sandoval was also arrested “for violating a protective order” and taking a student “against his will from California to Missouri.”
Sandoval was in court over those allegations on 2/26/24. (The case was continued.) He could face up to five years in prison, according to the Associated Press.
After leaving Agape, Sandoval began working at Lighthouse Christian Academy, according to the Kansas City Star.
‘Just terrified.’ Another MO boarding school under fire after boys run, allege abuse (msn.com)
His actual title or role at the school is unclear but a state agency’s website at one point listed Sandoval as a board member of ABM Ministries.
SNAP sent a letter sent by mail yesterday to Larry Musgrave and Reed Goodman, the president and secretary of ABM ministries. They are also board members of the institution, according to documents with the Missouri Secretary of State.
Musgrave’s wife Carmen is also associated with the school. Craig Smith is the principal. The two of them were also sent SNAP’s letter.
“Of course, Sandoval shouldn’t be imprisoned unless he’s convicted,” Clohessy said. “But if Lighthouse officials really care about the safety of kids, they shouldn’t be giving him access to kids and a paycheck given the serious charges against him.”
"Anyone who has seen, suspected or suffered abuse should speak up," SNAP’s letter says.
The letter was signed by David Clohessy of St. Louis. He is the former long-time national director of SNAP and is now the volunteer Missouri director of the group.
Late last month, Clohessy was in Piedmont talking with residents about the Lighthouse and handing out fliers urging anyone who “saw, suspected or suffered” wrongdoing at the facility to call law enforcement or SNAP.
“Remind people you know that abusers are shrewd and they count on others to keep quiet or avoid ‘getting involved,’” read the flier. “Tell them that kids are precious and unless caring adults speak up, youngsters will continue to be hurt.”
The self-help group stressed that “any information or suspicions, no matter how old or slight or seemingly insignificant, can be helpful to police and prosecutors and others seeking to learn and expose the truth and safeguard children.”
It also encouraged residents to “ask friends, family and neighbors ‘Have you heard anything about any misconduct there?’”
(A copy of the leaflet is here.)
Clohessy hopes to hold an open public meeting in the Piedmont area to discuss the situation soon.
The school is about seven miles south of Piedmont (address: 299 Wayne 459) near the Black River, Clearwater Lake and the eastern border of Reynolds County. Its sparse website lists a phone number (573 600 5463) but no names of staff members and no board of directors.
(The Reynolds County seat is Centerville. The Wayne County seat is Greenville.)
The Star reports that “the Academy’s 25,000-square-foot campus is ‘tucked away near the Ozarks on 250 acres’ and “has an average of 40 students.” It is “organized under the laws of Tennessee,” records show.
Sandoval is represented by John Schultz of Kansas City (816 421 7100) and Shane Farrow of Jefferson City (573 556 6606).
This is not the first time a Piedmont-area faith-based boarding school generated headlines.
SNAP is a 35 year old organization dedicated to “protecting the vulnerable, healing the wounded, exposing the truth and deterring future crimes and cover ups.”
Here’s a list of similar facilities in Missouri:
https://dss.mo.gov/provider-services/children/residential-program/license-exempt/index.htm
https://dss.mo.gov/provider-services/children/docs/cd-license-exempt-agencies.pdf
A copy of SNAP’s letter is below.
March 4, 2024
Dear Mr. & Mrs. Musgrave, Mr. Smith and Mr. Goodman:
Julio Sandoval faces serious charges – criminal and civil - at an institution just like yours. Yet you’re paying him to be in a position of authority over dozens of vulnerable children in a remote, largely unmonitored and unregulated setting – exactly like the one where he allegedly committed sexual and physical abuse for years.
We beg you to reconsider your callous and reckless decision that needlessly keeps youngsters at risk of severe harm. We urge you to fire Sandoval immediately from his post at Lighthouse Academy (a.k.a. ABM Ministries) and to write the families of kids there and give them details about the charges and accusations against him.
At a bare minimum, if you continue employing him, we urge you to keep him away from children and promptly, publicly and explain – in detail – why you believe he posts no threat to others.
As you are aware, dozens of children, ranging from 10 to 13 years old, are at your facility. It should go without saying that their physical and emotional safety must be your top priority. That requires that you employ only staffers with pristine records.
In just the past few weeks, at least five of those children have run away from your institution. Prudence and common sense strongly suggest that something terribly wrong is happening there.
“But Sandoval’s never been convicted of a crime so he deserves the presumption of innocence,” you may claim.
This is of course true. But it’s also irrelevant in this situation.
A criminal defendant has a right to remain free until he’s convicted. But a criminal defendant does NOT have a right to hold any particular job, especially one around vulnerable children who are hundreds of miles from home in unlicensed, unregulated facilities.
(If Sandoval faced allegations of stealing money from a store cash register, no one would doubt that a business would be justified in firing him. In fact, a business hiring him should expect to be criticized for taking unnecessary risks.)
The bar for incarcerating someone is justifiably steep. The bar for keeping someone away from kids is understandably much lower. Again, the safety and well-being of youngsters must be top priority.
We look forward to hearing from you soon.
David Clohessy
Former national director of SNAP
Current volunteer director of Missouri SNAP
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests
Prevent Abuse LLC
7234 Arsenal St., St. Louis MO 63143
314-566-9790 (cell)
P.S. Whether you are behind bars or not, you’re still in charge of Lighthouse Christian Academy and we implore you to oust Sandoval immediately.