Sex offender Garrido used Jehovah’s Witness to get early parole
Lenient parole system and Jehovah’s Witnesses helped Garrido get back on the streets after 10 years of 50 year sentence
Philip Garrido as photographed by El Dorado County, Calif. Sheriff's office, and taken Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009 after his arrest for the abduction and 18 year sexual abuse of an 11 year old girl
Story from San Francisco Chronicle, updated with James A. Beckford reference
Philip Garrido and his wife Nancy are under arrest for the abduction of Jaycee Lee Dugard, then 11 years old, on June 11, 1991. Garrido was a convicted sex offender for past three decades who had been in an out of jail. Nancy was a devout Jehovah’s Witness who converted Garrido to the religious sect prior to 1978.
Related story – Jaycee Dugard speaks out after kidnapping
Jaycee Lee Dugard at 11 photo: Childquest
1991 was 18 years ago and the couple held the child and sexually abused her. Philip Garrido fathered two children by the abducted Dugard.
The Garrido’s kept Dugard and her children locked up in a backyard compound in Antioch California, east of San Francisco. They used the girl, along with being their sex slave, to handle telemarketing for printing business related to religious brochures the Garrido’s were promoting.
In 1993 Philip Garrido was returned to prison on a parole violation. In 1999 he was released from another parole violation. During that time it was his wife Nancy Garrdo who held the Dugard child captive.
Mrs Garrido’s role has stunned America, leading to speculation about her motives, her relationship with her husband and her own mental state. Little has been made public about her early life but it is believed that she was a Jehovah’s Witness when she met Garrido during a visit to her uncle in a prison in Leavenworth, Kansas. TimesOnline.uk
Garrido house from the air showing ramshackle compound where Dugard and her two children were held photo: AP
Conversion to Jehovah’s Witness
Nancy met Garrido in 1977 when he was in prison on a rape conviction. The 1970s rape and violent abduction had sent Garrido to Leavenworth on what should have been a virtual life sentence of 50 years.
Nancy, slightly younger than Garrido and a devout Jehovah’s Witness, was visiting her uncle in prison according to the Times Online.
The fact that they married behind bars in 1988, and he was released shortly afterwards, proves how valuable she was. She gave him what seemed like a family life, and, by implication, proved that he would not offend again. Daily Mail
Philip Garrido was using his newfound JW faith as early as 1978 to obtain his release.
When Garrido subsequently appealed his sentence, however, his lawyer said he was getting help in prison and had become a Jehovah’s Witness. In a handwritten letter to a judge in March 1978, Garrido said he was ready for a chance to “get my life in line.” “I am so ashamed of my past. But my future is now in controle (sic),” he wrote. SF Gate
For the 11 years after Nancy and Garrido met while he was in jail, she corresponded with him. She converted him to the Jehovah’s Witness faith which would have required the approval of the local JW congregation. It is highly unlikely the Witnesses will confirm his conversion although Garrido claims to be converted.
It was the marriage and conversion that Garrido used to convince the parole board that he would not re-offend.
Nancy Garrido is facing more charges than her husband for the abduction and systematic abused suffered by Jaycee Lee Dugard photo: Mail Online
Jehovah’s Witnesses take pride in converting the down-and-out, drug addicts, people down on their luck.
In his study The Trumpet of Prophecy: A Sociological Study of Jehovah’s Witnesses
Similar studies of the members of the Jim Jones cult who committed suicide in the 1970′s showed adherents were poor, dispossessed and looking for a new world order that Jones promised to deliver.
Garrido apparently strayed from Jehovahs Witnesses to form his own religious cult. In 2007, he began blogging under various titles. One blog”The Truth Will Set You Free” is eerily familiar to the insider dialogue of Jehovah’s Witnesses. To those inside the JW sect, the code word for Jehovah’s Witness is “The Truth”. Members use that bible quotation to define themselves as being “in the Truth”, “strong in the Truth” and defectors conversely as “weak in the Truth.”
It was the religious fanaticism that caught Philip and Nancy Garrido. They were spotted handing out religious pamphlets at UCLA Berkeley by police. Under questioning, the police became suspicious of the parolee and sex-offender accompanied by children.
Note 1
“James A Beckford, Fellow of the British Academy, teaches an undergraduate module on Collective Behavior and Social Movements and the doctoral programme core module Research Process and Research Design.
“His research has focused on the theoretical and empirical aspects of religious organisations, new religious movements, church-state problems, civic religion, religion in prisons and religious controversies in several different countries. He was President of the Association for the Sociology of Religion (1988-89), Vice-President of the International Sociological Association (1994-98) and President of the International Society for the Sociology of Religion for 1999-2003.
“His teaching and research have taken place at the Universities of Reading, Durham, California at Berkeley, Loyola at Chicago, the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris, and the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris. His current research deals with the relationship between social theory and religion, the treatment of religious minorities in prison, and ‘emergent’ faith communities in England.” University of Warwick Coventry
20 Responses to 'Sex offender Garrido used Jehovah’s Witness to get early parole'
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Amazing article. When I read the above, it all makes sense. My father was a JW for 40 years before he passed away from cancer and had extreme mental illness and bizarre behavior. Although he did not go to the extremes that the Gariddos did, he too was an emotional mess and controlled by the JWs. Thanks, La Ria
La Ria Rumball
17 Sep 09 at 9:19 am
Having been an elder with them for over 30 years I can only say it’s all vicious lies. The majorirty of this earths population will soon be destroyed by Jehovah and we will be picking up your bodies. The End is very, very close and soon all of you liars, fornicators, etc will be gone….forever! Hope I don’t throw my back out picking up your bodies and your children and grandchildren.
Harry Har
19 Sep 09 at 11:36 pm
Wow! Mr. Sunshine there.
Stephen Pate
20 Sep 09 at 4:06 pm
Harry Har,
Funny, your cult has predicted the end was near many times before, do you guys ever get tired of being wrong?
Khrag
20 Sep 09 at 5:19 pm
Harry Har is not one of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Busted
21 Sep 09 at 5:22 pm
Jesus said the end was coming “soon” too. That was some two thousand years ago!! Are christians supposed to believe he was wrong? It is coming and for guys like Garrido, it will not be pretty.
Also, I know witnesses, Harry Har is not one of them.
Ray
23 Sep 09 at 8:26 pm
Harry Har is not a Witness…
“Having been an elder with them for over 30 years…”
His language even from his very first sentence is “off”
Boo
10 Oct 09 at 5:50 pm
My wife’s family are all JW’s they take in blindly to there homes who ever they find. Most that do this are them self’s down and out with very low self esteems. A family friend who my wife’s mother used to leave my wife to baby sit her was a child molester he even had a baby with his own daughter. My wife’s mother still to this day doesn’t believe any of it as long as he was a JW he was a good person. We don’t know if my wife was ever molested she was younger then 2 but her older sister thinks so. My wife has had a lot of problems over the years. She was raised a JW so she knows both sides. It is nothing more then another extreme religion. I could see how this monster could dupe them and use the JW’s as a way to get what he wanted. JW’s are a nice place for child molesters to hide especially if the molester becomes an elder. JW’s bereave 2 JW’s have to witness the molestation before they will act and turn them over to police. This allows them to continue to abuse. Even though many religious have there problems with molesters JW is worse then most because of the almost cult like way they operate. The family will cut most people off that are not JW’s. We hardly speak to her family and even her brother who got back into it a few years ago quit speaking to us. It splits the family, and with this kind of devotion few will question a elder.
John
17 Oct 09 at 2:14 pm
With Jehovah’s Witnesses, it’s all about appearances and keeping the image of holiness. They will deny and excuse away any evidence that their organization breeds fanatics and unscriptural behavior. Pity is the only emotion I can feel for them.
JT
20 Nov 09 at 3:39 pm
I cannot confirm it yet but was told 3 of 4 kidnappers (all except Mohammed Guhad) in Roanoke, Virginia, were in JWs:
Besides the Garrdios having been JWs, the Night Stalker of London who raped and beat up to 200 old women during a 17 yr spree is said to be a JW. He cut electrical and phone lines, woke victims with a torch in their faces.
It’s an Armageddon cult and thos attracts a lot of mentally unbalanced people. Pedophiles, rapists of the old, serial killers, wiretappers, other perverts. They also mis predict and hint at false dates for doomsday, etc.
There are good JWs in the Watchtower Society but they are good in spite of being it! As we near 2014 (100 yrs after their big prophecy re 1914), more zaniness will come out. Are the mental health authorities aware of what’s going on??? If they are, perhaps Waco or Jonestown style suicides etc can be averted.
Joe Emerson
20 Nov 09 at 5:09 pm
FUNNY, how these things happen more often in those who call them selfs catholics, and yet no one publicizes their religious believes when they are cough committing crimes like Garrido. But if its a witness its all over the news. I am not a JW but I think these people try to help other and yes they as well make mistakes! What other religions are willing to help others besides just wanting their money?.. Next time a witness knocks on my door I will take the time to ask questions and listen..
Belinda
5 Dec 09 at 10:23 pm
I’m not sure why someone in obscure PEI, Canada would want to repost this SF story but it is very slanted. I feel very sorry for the young girl involved. What a terrible way to start your life! The kidnappers have much to answer for. However, what happened to her would never, ever, in any way, be condoned or encouraged by Jehovah’s Witnesses. This man obviously had serious problems long before he ever learned of them. Despite whatever interest he had or feigned in Jehovah, “the truth” ( NOT a”code word”, but Jesus words)did not set him free from his deep-seated troubles. Some people just cannot be fixed by men. But do not blame a few failures on people who could easily point to far more successes. In any case I am so happy that she is once again home with her family; I can’t imagine the ordeal they have all been through.
Sean
8 Dec 09 at 3:19 am
JW’s have had over 100 years of hiding their scandals behind the Watchtower magazine. The reality is they are as riddled with scandal as any religion that seeks to put happy face on perversion.
editor
8 Dec 09 at 4:37 am
Funny to see all the JWs here disowning ’30 year elder’ Harry Har for his comments. Of course you do this in a public forum where non-JW eyes can see, but behind closed doors you believe the same thing he does: “The majorirty [sic] of this earths population will soon be destroyed by Jehovah and we will be picking up your bodies.” At least Harry Har is not a hypocrite like the rest of you.
Sadly you jws are puppets of your masters and by disavowing Harry Har you demonstrate the number one problem with the JW religion: All your leaders care about is how they appear on the outside. These horrible things that go on inside your religion are hidden and suppressed under clergy privilege. Meanwhile, rapists and child molesters are knocking on our doors. It’s only when the public discovers the truth – as we did with Garrido and his wife – that you disown and disavow, just as you demonstrated with Harry Har.
whitewashed tombs
21 Dec 09 at 1:12 pm
FUNNY, how these things happen more often in those who call them selfs catholics, and yet no one publicizes their religious believes when they are cough committing crimes like Garrido. But if its a witness its all over the news. I am not a JW but I think these people try to help other and yes they as well make mistakes! What other religions are willing to help others besides just wanting their money?.. Next time a witness knocks on my door I will take the time to ask questions and listen..
Belinda
5 Dec 09 at 10:23 pm
BIG difference- ALL JWs are considered ministers and go knocking on the doors of people in the neighborhood. Not the case with Catholics. If a Catholic priest, or a minister of another group commits such acts it definitely is mentioned as part of the story.
Jim Wynn
8 Feb 10 at 1:08 pm
To: Boo & Busted
I HAVE been elder, on an off for 30 years in different congregations. If you two are brothers you’d better buck up and grow some kiwi’s. Are you afraid that Jehovah won’t back you up? If you are that scared of worldly people you’ll probably wet your pants at Armageddon. You both sound like fence straddlers to me. Wish you were in my cong. You’d either get some courage or a JC would send you down the road. When Armageddon hits we don’t know what Jehovah will ask us to do…but if he does ask you’d better do it. I know I will!!
Harry Har
13 Feb 10 at 6:04 pm
Lifelong Jehovah’s Witnesses dissident speaks out on JW belief system .
A) They are at your door to recruit you for their watchtower society corporation,they will say that “we are just here to share a message from the Bible” this is deception right off.
B) Their ‘message’ creed is a false Gospel that Jesus had his second coming in 1914.The problem with this is it’s not just a cute fairy tale,Jesus warned of the false prophets who would claim “..look he is here in the wilderness,or see here he is at the temple.”
C) Their anti-blood transfusion ban against *whole blood* has killed thousands.
D) once they recruit you they will “love bomb” you in cult fashion to also recruit your family & friends or cut them off.
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Danny Haszard Jehovah’s Witness X 33 years
Danny Haszard
18 Mar 10 at 11:39 am
Many court documents and news events prove that Jehovah’s Witnesses require two witnesses when a child comes forward with allegations of molestation within the congregation. Such allegations have customarily been treated as sins instead of crimes and are only reported to authorities when it is required to do so by law, (which varies by state). It has also been shown that child molesters within the organization usually have not been identified to the congregation members or the public at large.
These people engage in a door to door ministry, possibly exposing children to pedophiles. Although the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society claims that known pedophiles are accompanied by a non-pedophile in such work, there is no law stating that such a practice must be followed.
The Watchtower corporation has paid out millions in hush money already.
The Watchtower defenders will say do anything to protect mother Watchtower.This is an abusive cult to children and adults.
Danny Haszard
19 Mar 10 at 4:11 pm