I have some sad and some possibly happy news to announce.
First the sad news.
Mormon Stories Podcast has just received today a temporary restraining order requiring us to take down our interview of Adam Paul Steed – the courageous whistleblower to Mormon church Boy Scout sexual abuse in Idaho, and one of the many victims of 8 Passengers Therapist Jodi Hildebrandt. We are not at liberty to discuss publicly the details of the restraining order at this time.
For those who were not yet able to see Adam Steed’s interview, in it he focused on the following:
1) His story of courageously speaking up as a victim of Mormon-church backed child abuse in its Idaho Boy Scout program,
2) How he and his father fought to successful change the statue of limitation laws for child sexual abuse victims in Idaho,
3) How he and his young family (while at BYU) were referred to therapist Jodi Hildebrandt by his Mormon bishop,
4) How (by Adam’s report) Jodi Hildebrandt destroyed both his reputation and his family, through various unethical therapy practices, including violating his confidentiality by reporting false and/or confidential information to the BYU Honor Code Office, leading to his suspension from BYU.
5) How he fought back against Jodi Hildebrandt by successfully getting Jodi Hildebrandt’s license suspended. And finally,
6) Adam’s firm belief that the Mormon church intentionally weaponized Jodi Hildebrandt and her tactics to destroy both his life and his family, in part as retaliation for his work as a Boy Scout abuse whistleblower within the Mormon church.
Because of the importance of Adam’s story, we are heartbroken to have to take it down (for now). Especially after hearing from thousands of Mormons, post-Mormons, and never-Mormons who found Adam’s story to be validating and/or healing.
Here’s the good news: this week we are actively working with a few major media outlets to: 1) Give voice to the victims of Jodi Hildebrandt, of other Mormon church-recommended “sex addiction” therapists like “Sons of Helaman,” “Fight the New Drug,” and Lifestar, as well as and from the Mormon church’s “Addiction and Recovery Program” targeting its members for “sex addiction.” And: 2) Hold both the Mormon church and these unethical therapists including Jodi Hildebrandt accountable for their unethical malpractice.
Here’s what we need from you: If you or someone you love has been harmed by either:
- Jodi Hildebrandt,
- a Mormon church-recommended “sex addiction” therapist (like Sons of Helaman or Lifestar), or
- from the Mormon church’s “Addiction and Recovery Program” (wherein healthy, normative behaviors were pathologized as “sex addiction”), please email your story as soon as possible to mormonstories@gmail.com.
In your email, please include the following sections:
- The date range that you worked with these people. We are particularly interested in patients recommended to Jodi Hildebrandt and others like her AFTER 2012.
- The names of the therapist(s) or you worked with.
- Any detail you can provide about who recommended you (especially if a Mormon church bishop or leader).
- A description of the unethical therapy practices and how they harmed you. And
- A confirmation of whether or not you are willing to speak with a journalist, either on the record or off the record.
Again, please email this information to mormonstories@gmail.com as soon as you are able. Finally, we promise you that at Mormon Stories Podcast, we will do everything we can to:
- Restore Adam Paul Steed’s Mormon story,
- Help you and other victims tell your stories about Jodi Hildebrandt and/or other unethical Mormon therapists, and practices, and
- Help both the Mormon church and its unethical therapists and programs be held accountable for the harm that they have caused so many individuals and families. Sincerely, John Dehlin and the Mormon Stories Podcast Team
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After listening to the lengthy interview with Adam Steed, I felt as though I, myself were living a dystopian nightmare. (Unusual reaction for someone who is not LDS but familiar with the culture.) Perhaps the extensive abuse results from a ‘closed system.’ The church seems to be built on an elaborate network of ill-deputized ‘authorities’ over the devout and vulnerable. (Breaking out of that closed network is so difficult. Witness Cassidy Hutchinson’s challenge in leaving Trump world and its vindictive devotees.)
Adam Steed was so very articulate at times but also anguished. I wish, John, you could have had helped him and us a bit more by structuring the interview carefully and safeguarding Adam against casual use of names. Instead it was a public and vulnerable therapy session in which we listened in at points to a disjointed chronology. Suddenly Adam had two kids instead of one when his wife seemingly had him sleeping on the floor. Suddenly near the end, Adam has us on a Mediterranean shore rescuing boat people and being shot at? (This required some explanation!) Nevertheless, I had the feeling that we were wading into a corruption story the size of the Boy Scouts. I hope you and the Steeds have plenty of legal counsel for this crusade. How sad that Adam still feels unable to pursue damages and a sufficient income. $150,000 in legal bills?
The interview raised far too many unanswered questions. Many thanks for your courage. 👍
I disagree with “Superstein.” First, this is Adam’s story—he tells it the way that he’s most comfortable with, and he SHOULD be naming the people that negatively impacted him when he was a child, especially because many of those people are still part of the LDS church and still have the ability to harm more children/people in general. The man has a significant amount of trauma, he’s had a lot of things happen to him. He did his best to keep the story chronological, and I think Adam did a fantastic job. John, you also did a great job interviewing Adam and asking the important and impactful questions.