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'''Satanic ritual abuse''' ('''SRA''') refers to the [[sexual abuse]] of children or non-consenting adults in the context of [[Satanism|Satanic]] rituals.  The term '''sadistic ritual abuse''' is sometimes used or suggested as a more descriptive synonym that makes no assumption of whether actual "Satanism" is involved.<ref name = VOV>{{cite web | url = http://www.victimsofviolence.on.ca/research339.html | format = html | language = english | accessdate =  2007-10-22 | title = Ritual Abuse of Children }}</ref>

Allegations of SRA remain [[controversy|controversial]]. A number of [[law enforcement]] sources,<ref name = Lanning>{{cite web | url = http://www.religioustolerance.org/fbi_01.htm | format = html | language = english | first = Kenneth V. | last = Lanning | title = Lanning's Guide to Allegations of Childhood Ritual Abuse | year = 1992 }}</ref> [[criminology|criminologists]], [[psychology|psychologists]], journalists, and religious commentators<ref name = RT>{{cite web | url = http://www.religioustolerance.org/ra_intro.htm | format = html | first = B.A. | last = Robinson | publisher = [[Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance]] | title = Ritual Abuse: An introduction to all points of view | accessdate = 2007-10-22 }}</ref> have suggested that allegations of SRA are false or at least grossly exaggerated.<ref name=NYT3>{{cite news |first=Daniel |last=Goleman |authorlink=Daniel Goleman |coauthors= |title=Proof Lacking for Ritual Abuse by Satanists. | url = http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B02EEDD1E3FF932A05753C1A962958260 |publisher=[[New York Times]] |date=[[October 31]], [[1994]] |accessdate = 2007-09-25 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=The Fears and Fables about Satanic Cults |url= |publisher=[[The Wichita Eagle]] |date=[[September 15]], [[1990]] |accessdate = 2007-09-25 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Showalter |first=Elaine |authorlink=Elaine Showalter |coauthors= |title=Hystories: Hysterical Epidemics and Modern Culture |year=1997 |publisher=[[Columbia University Press]] |quote= | url= |isbn=0231104596 }}</ref>  Skeptics point to the cases reported during the [[day care sex abuse hysteria]] which swept [[United States]] during the 1980s and 1990s, with only occasional cases with Satanic ritual elements perpetrated by lone abusers being substantiated.<ref name=NYT3/> 

An estimated 93% of [[Psychotherapy|therapists]] working with alleged ritual abuse survivors in the early and mid 1990's believed that ritual abuse occurs.<ref name = Noblitt>{{cite book |author=Perskin, Pamela Sue; Noblitt, James Randall |title=Cult and ritual abuse: its history, anthropology, and recent discovery in contemporary America |publisher=Praeger |location=New York |year=2000 |pages= |isbn=0-275-96665-8 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref> Studies have shown a connection between [[dissociative identity disorder]] and SRA, and researchers have found ritualistic abuse in substantiated cases of day care sexual abuse.<ref name = SVB>{{cite journal | last = van Benschoten | first = Susan C.  | year = 1990 | url = https://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/dspace/bitstream/1794/1492/1/Diss_3_1_5_OCR.pdf | format = pdf | language = english | title = Multiple personality disorder and Satanic ritual abuse: the issue of credibility | journal = Dissociation | volume = 3 | issue = 1 | pages = 22-30}}</ref><ref name = Noblitt/>  Of the more than 12,000 cases examined by the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, only a single case involved actual abuse within a context of Satanic rituals.<ref name = NCCANsurvey>{{citation | source = Clearing House on Child Abuse & Neglect Information | title = Characteristics & Sources of Allegations of Ritual Child Abuse | author = National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect | year = 1994}}; summary of results at {{cite web | url = http://www.religioustolerance.org/ra_rep00.htm | title = US Government study of Childhood Ritual Abuse | language = english | format = html | accessdate = 2007-10-22 | date=  1994 | author = Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance | authorlink = Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance }}</ref>

==Origin of the concept==

The earliest modern account of child sexual assault in a ritualistic context can be found in [[Sigmund Freud|Freud']]s letters regarding his therapeutic work with a patient named [[Emma Eckstein]]. Eckstein described to Freud experiences similar to the ritual abuse survivors of the last few decades, which included sexual abuse and ritual bloodletting. Freud was so disturbed by these disclosures that he theorised "we may have before us a residue of a primaeval sexual cult".<ref>{{cite book |author=Masson, J.M. |title=The Complete Letters of Sigmund Freud to Wilhelm Fliess, 1887-1904 |publisher=Belknap Press |location=Cambridge, Mass |year= |pages= |isbn=0-674-15421-5 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref>

The phrase 'satanic ritual abuse' first arose in the mid-1980s to describe the disclosures of some children in child protection cases, and some adults in [[psychotherapy]].  In the early 1980s there was an exponential increase in child protection investigations in [[United States|America]], [[United Kingdom|Britain]] and other developed countries due to [[mandatory reporting]] laws and increased public awareness of [[child abuse]]. In a small number of investigations, children began speaking about organised and ritualistic forms of [[sexual abuse]] by parents and carergivers.<ref>{{cite book |author=Hechler, David |title=The Battle and the Backlash: The Child Sexual Abuse War |publisher=Macmillan Pub Co |location= |year= |pages= |isbn=0-669-21362-4 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref><ref name=Cozolino1989>{{cite journal | author = Cozolino, L. | year = 1989 | title = The ritual abuse of children: Implications for clinical practice and research | journal = The Journal of Sex Research | volume = 26 | issue = 1 | pages = 131-138}}</ref> Adults in psychotherapy were also speaking about similar experiences in childhood.<ref name=Van1990>{{cite journal | author = Van Benschoten, S.C. | year = 1990 | title = Multiple personality disorder and satanic ritual abuse: The issue of credibility | journal = Dissociation | volume = 1 | issue = 3 | pages = 13-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Conte, Jon R. |title=Critical issues in child sexual abuse: historical, legal, and psychological perspectives |publisher=Sage Publications |location=Thousand Oaks |year=2002 |pages= |isbn=0761909125 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref> These disclosures included descriptions of sexual abuse in the context of Satanic cults, rituals and the use of Satanic iconography, garnering the label "satanic ritual abuse" in the media and amongst treating professionals.

Accounts of SRA were amongst the first wave of autobiographical literature on child abuse that emerged in the early 1980s. One of the most well known is ''[[Michelle Remembers]]'' (1980), written by [[Michelle Smith (author)|Michelle Smith]] and her psychiatrist (and later husband) [[Lawrence Pazder]]. Since the publication of ''Michelle Remembers'', a number of autobiographies have contained accounts of SRA.<ref>{{cite book | last = Beckylane | year = 1995 | title = Where the Rivers Join: A Personal Account of Healing from Ritual Abuse | publisher = [[Press Gang Publishers]] | isbn = 0889740437 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Laura Buchanan |title=Satan's Child: A Survivor Tells Her Story to Help Others Heal |publisher=Compcare Pubns |location= |year= |pages= |isbn=0-89638-327-X |oclc= |doi=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Anna Richardson |title=Double Vision: A Travelogue of Recovery from Ritual Abuse |publisher=Trilogy Books |location=Pasadena, Calif |year= |pages= |isbn=0-9623879-7-5 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref> Others have written books which gather life histories, stories and creative reflections on organised abuse and living with multiple personalities.<ref>{{cite book |author=Ryder, Daniel |title=Breaking the Circle of Satanic Ritual Abuse: Recognizing and Recovering from the Hidden Trauma |publisher=Compcare Pubns |location= |year= |pages= |isbn=0-89638-258-3 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Smith, Margaret |title=Ritual abuse: what it is, why it happens, and how to help |publisher=HarperSanFrancisco |location=[San Francisco] |year=1993 |pages= |isbn=0-06-250214-X |oclc= |doi=}}</ref>  Over the last twenty years, a number of clinicians, psychotherapists and social workers have documented their encounters with clients who describe history of SRA.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Barstow | first = D. G. | year = 1996 | title = The end of the sidewalk: Where do I go from here? | journal = Journal of Child Sexual Abuse | volume = 5 | issue = 4 | pages = 125-30}}</ref><ref name = VS>{{cite book |author=Sinason, Valerie |title=Treating survivors of satanist abuse |publisher=Routledge |location=New York |year=1994 |pages= |isbn=0-415-10543-9 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref><ref name=Jonker1991>{{cite journal | author = Jonker, F. | coauthors = Jonker-bakker, P. | year = 1991 | title = Experiences with ritualist child sexual abuse: a case study from the Netherlands | journal = Child Abuse and Neglect | volume = 15 | pages = 191-196 | url = http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/recordDetail?accno=EJ429991  | accessdate = 2007-10-20}}</ref><ref name="isbn0-471-95292-3">{{cite book |author=Mollon, Phil |title=Multiple Selves, Multiple Voices: Working with Trauma, Violation, and Dissociation |publisher=Wiley |location=New York |year=1996 |pages= |isbn=0-471-95292-3 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref>  There is also a body of work outlining treatment plans and modalities for survivors of ritualistic abuse, much of which focuses on [[dissociative identity disorder]] and similar diagnoses.<ref name="isbn0-88048-478-0">{{cite book |author=Fraser, George C. |title=The Dilemma of Ritual Abuse: Cautions and Guides for Therapists |publisher=American Psychiatric Press |location=Washington, DC |year=1997 |pages= |isbn=0-88048-478-0 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Ross, Colin A. |title=Satanic Ritual Abuse: Principles of Treatment |publisher=University of Toronto Press |location=Toronto |year=1995 |pages= |isbn=0-8020-2857-8 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref>, and a body of research into dislcosures of SRA. This research has found a consistent association between diclsoures of SRA, and disclosures of abuse by intra and extra-familial groups, including physical abuse, sexual abuse and forced manufacture of [[pornography]], forced ingestion of [[feces]] and [[semen]], animal mutilation, and control over victims through the claim of supernatural powers.<ref name=Snow1990>{{cite journal | author = Snow, B. | coauthors = Sorensen, T. | year = 1990 | title = Ritualistic child abuse in a neighborhood setting | journal = Journal of Interpersonal Violence | volume = 5 | issue = 4 | pages = 474 | doi = 10.1177/088626090005004004}}</ref><ref name = Jonker1991/><ref>{{cite journal |author=Jonker F, Jonker-Bakker I |title=Effects of ritual abuse: the results of three surveys in The Netherlands |journal=Child abuse & neglect |volume=21 |issue=6 |pages=541–56 |year=1997 |pmid=9192143 |doi= |issn=}}</ref>

There is a diverse body of skeptical literature on SRA. [[Sociologists]] and [[journalists]] noted the vigorous nature with which some evangelical activists and groups were using claims of SRA to further their religious and political goals <ref> e.g. see Victor, J. "Satanic Panic, Creation of a Contemporary Legend", Open Court Publishing Company, 1993</ref>. Other commentators suggested that the entire phenomenon may evidence of a “[[moral panic]]” over Satanism and child abuse <ref>de Young, M. (1996). "A Painted Devil: Constructing the Satanic Ritual Abuse of Children Problem." Aggression and Violent Behaviour 1(3): 2335-248</ref>. Some skeptical explanations for allegations of SRA have been mutually exclusive; for instance, conservative commentators have claimed that allegations of SRA are an attempt by “radical feminists” to undermine the nuclear family<ref>Wakefield, H. and R. Underwager (1994). Return of the Furies: An Investigation into Recovered Memory Therapy. Chicago and La Salle, Illinois, Open Court</ref>, whilst progressive commentators have viewed claims of SRA as evidence of a conservative backlash against working women <ref> Nathan, D. and M. Snedeker (2001). Satan's Silence: Ritual Abuse and the Making of a Modern American Witch Hunt, Authors Choice Press</ref>or gay childcare workers<ref> Hood, L. (2001). A City Possessed: The Christchurch Civic Creche Case, Longacre Press</ref>. Others have attributed allegations of SRA to a universal need to believe in evil<ref> Frankfurter, D. (2001). "Ritual as Accusation and Atrocity: Satanic Ritual Abuse, Gnostic Libertinism and Primal Murders." History of Religions 40(4): 352 – 80, Frankfurter, D. (2006). Evil Incarnate: Rumors of Demonic Conspiracy and Ritual Abuse in History. Princeton, Princeton University Press</ref>, a fear of alternative spiritualities<ref> La Fontaine, J. S. (1998). Speak of the devil : tales of satanic abuse in contemporary England. Cambridge, New York, Cambridge University Press</ref>, “end of the millennium” anxieties<ref> Showalter, E. (1997). "Hystories: Hysterical epidemics and modern culture." in. London, Picador</ref>, or even a transient form of temporal lobe epilepsy<ref> Paley, J. (1997). "Satanist abuse and alien abduction: A comparative analysis theorizing temporal lobe activity as a possible connection ebtween anomalous memories." British Journal of Social Work 27: 43-70</ref>.

Whether their explanation is "moral panic" or "false memory syndrome", skeptics have tended to treat allegations of SRA as viral agents that can be spread through conferences, seminars, books, television programs and court cases, or through contact with healthcare workers or professionals who believe in SRA. In the skeptical literature, cases of SRA have been described in terms of an infectious illness, such as "rashes" <ref>e.g. see Nathan, D. (1990). "Never Forget the McMartin Case." The San Francisco Chronicle. 12 August: 20/Z1, Guilliatt, R. (1995). "Daughter Claims Memory of Ritual Abuse." Sydney Morning Herald. 13 May, Goodlin, L. (2002). "Recovered Memory; Unproven strategy to find evidence of past sexual abuse." The Post-Standard Syracuse. 24 September, New York: A9, Radford, B. (2004). "Canadian Defendants Victorious in Ritual Abuse Case." Skeptical Inquirer 28(2): 12</ref>, “psychogenic syndromes" or "hysterical epidemics" <ref>Showalter, E. (1997). "Hystories: Hysterical epidemics and modern culture." in. London, Picador.</ref>, infectious “memetic” agents <ref> Ross, S. E. (1999). ""Memes" as Infectious Agents in Psychosomatic Illness." Annals of Internal Medicine 131(11): 867-71.</ref>, symptoms of a “mediasomatic ailment”<ref>Nesvisky, M. (1997). "Mediasomatic ailments." The Jerusalem Post. 22 August: 22.</ref>, or simply the “madness in the air” <ref>Appleyard, B. (1998). "Lost in the dark shadows of child abuse." The Sunday Times. 31 May.</ref>. When cases of ritual abuse emerged outside North America, journalists and researchers accused American child abuse researchers of "spreading" the epidemic of SRA allegations by mentioning it at international conferences and training workshops .<ref>e.g. see Waterhouse, R. (1991). "Therapists Role in Notts Child Abuse Case." Independent on Sunday. 7 April: 3, Witham, L. (1994). "Satanic ritual abuse: Modern horror or hoax? Credibility of 'survivors' is under attack." The Washington Post. 15 June: A9, Guilliatt, R. (1996). "The Devil's Advocates." Sydney Morning Herald. 31 August, Frankfurter, D. (2001). "Ritual as Accusation and Atrocity: Satanic Ritual Abuse, Gnostic Libertinism and Primal Murders." History of Religions 40(4): 352 - 80.</ref>

By the early 1990s, the phrase "satanic ritual abuse" was featured in media coverage of ritualistic abuse but its use decreased among professionals in favour of more nuanced terms such as "multi-dimensional child sex rings"<ref name = Lanning/> "ritual/ritualistic",<ref>{{cite book |author=Hudson, Pamela S. |title=Ritual child abuse: discovery, diagnosis, and treatment |publisher=R&E Publishers |location=Saratoga, Calif |year=1991 |pages= |isbn=0882478672 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref><ref name = VOV/> "organised"<ref name="isbn1-85742-284-8"/> or "sadistic" abuse,<ref name = VS/> that acknowledged the complexity of abuse cases with multiple perpetrators and victims without projecting a religious framework onto perpetrators.

==Evidence==
The prevalence of any form of sexual abuse is difficult to quantify, and this is particularly the case in regards to SRA. There is little consensus on a definition of SRA,<ref name = Lanning/> and its existence is challenged in some quarters.<ref name = RT/><ref name="Skepdic"/>  Nonetheless, there are some research findings that shed some light on the prevalence of SRA.

Research in [[Australia]] and [[United Kingdom|Britain]] suggests that between a third and a quarter of psychotherapists, social workers and counselors have encountered at least one client who discloses allegations of ritualistic abuse.<ref name=Andrews1995>{{cite journal | author = Andrews, B. | coauthors = Morton, J.; Bekerian, D.A.; Brewin, C.R.; Davies, G.M.; Mollon, P. | year = 1995 | title = The recovery of memories in clinical practice: Experiences and beliefs of British Psychological Society practitioners | journal = The Psychologist | volume = 8 | pages = 209-214}}</ref><ref name=Creighton1993>{{cite journal | author = Creighton, S.J. | year = 1993 | title = Organized abuse: NSPCC experience | journal = Child Abuse Review| volume = 2 | pages = 232-232}}</ref><ref name=Schmuttermaier1999>{{cite journal | author = Schmuttermaier, J. | coauthors = Veno, A. | year = 1999 | title = Counselors' beliefs about ritual abuse: an Australian study | journal = Journal of Child Sexual Abuse | volume = 8 | issue = 3 | pages = p45-63 | url = http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/recordDetail?accno=EJ607651  | accessdate = 2007-10-22}}</ref>  These findings are supported by a comprehensive survey undertaken in America in 1996 in which a minority of psychologist members of the [[American Psychological Association]] who responded had encountered at least one client telling of "ritualistic or religion-related" abuse, and the majority believed their clients.<ref name=Bottoms1996>{{cite journal | author = Bottoms, B.L. | coauthors = Shaver, P.R.; Goodman, G.S. | year = 1996 | title = An analysis of ritualistic and religion-related child abuse allegations | journal = Law and Human Behavior | volume = 20 | issue = 1 | pages = 1-34 | url = http://www.springerlink.com/index/Q40489P813183L15.pdf  | accessdate = 2007-10-22}}</ref> Over 12 000 cases of clients with a history of organised and ritualistic abuse were reported by respondents, however, where the survey asked respondents to detail empirical or corroborating evidence for such histories, the researchers felt that there was insufficient basis to conclude that these histories were based on factual events.<ref name=Bottoms1996/>  In the late 1980s, a BBC survey of British police forces found that, of 186 cases of network abuse where either multiple abusers or multiple abused children were known to each other, only five involved claims of ritual or satanic abuse.<ref>{{cite news | last = Brindle | first = D. | date=  1990-10-19 | title = Ritual abuse occurs 'in 1 in 40 child sex rings| publisher = [[The Guardian]]}}</ref> In another British study, 29% of the 211 cases of organised [[child sexual abuse]] reported to researchers by police, social and welfare agencies from the period of 1988 to 1991 were designated "ritual abuse" cases by respondents.<ref>{{citation | last = Gallagher | first = B | coauthors = Hughes, B. & Parker, H | year = 1996 | title = The nature and extent of known cases of organised child sexual abuse in England and Wales}}; in {{cite book | first = P. (ed.) | last = Bibby | title = Organised Abuse: The Current Debate | publisher = Arena | isbn = 1857422848 }}</ref>  However, in 1996 a survey by the [[United States]] National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect of more than 12,000 cases found only a single verifiable case of abuse which involved explicit Satanic ritual elements.<ref name = NCCANsurvey/>

==SRA in the courts==

Early criminal trials in America and [[United Kingdom|Britain]] involving allegations of organised and ritualistic abuse were characterised by acquittals, hung juries, and successful appeals. The failure of these high-profile cases generated worldwide media attention, and came to play a central feature in the growing controversies over child abuse, memory and the law.<ref name="isbn0393702545 ">{{cite book |author=Hammond, D. Corydon; Brown, Daniel P.; Scheflin, Alan W. |title=Memory, trauma treatment, and the law |publisher=W.W. Norton |location=New York |year=1998 |pages= |isbn=0393702545 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref><ref name="isbn0745323316 ">{{cite book |author=Kitzinger, Jenny |title=Framing abuse: media influence and public understanding of sexual violence against children |publisher=Pluto |location= |year=2004 |pages= |isbn=0745323316 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref>  Public anxiety that an innocent adult could be subject to prosecution for sexual abuse based on false testimony was inflamed by the bizarre nature of children’s allegations in ritual abuse cases. Some community groups, such as the [[False Memory Syndrome Foundation]], lobbied the press and policy-makers to contest accounts of organised and ritualistic abuse, whilst clinicians, police and healthcare workers struggled to accommodate cases of satanic ritual abuse within their professional practice.<ref name="isbn1-85742-284-8">{{cite book |author=Bibby, Peter A. |title=Organised Abuse: The Current Debate |publisher=Arena |location=Aldershot, England |year= |pages= |isbn=1-85742-284-8 |oclc= |doi=}}</ref>  This controversy was compounded by a number of factors, including the absence of evidence-based forensic interviewing techniques with children, a lack of protocols to facilitate collaboration between police and welfare agencies investigating child abuse, and the failure of the justice system to adjust to children testifying in courts. 

During this period, the justice system also failed to recognize the harmful impact of the court process on young children. Whilst screens or CCTV technology are a common feature of child sexual assault trials today, children in the early 1980s were typically forced into direct visual contact with the accused abuser whilst in court. Early efforts to address a young child's anxiety over confronting their accused abuser sometimes provided grounds for a successful appeal. For instance, the convictions of Cheryl and Violet Amirault for offenses relating to ritual child sexual abuse were successfully appealed on the basis that two complainant children, aged 5 and 8, were permitted to angle their chairs away from the defendants after expressing considerable fear at facing them directly <ref>{{cite news | last = Weber | first = D | coauthors = Donlan, A. | title = Pair in day care molest case get 2nd trial | publisher = [[Boston Herald]] | date = 1995-08-30| page = 3 | url = http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/bostonherald/access/20531100.html?dids=20531100:20531100&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Aug+30%2C+1995&author=DAVID+WEBER+and+ANN+E.+DONLAN&pub=Boston+Herald&edition=&startpage=001&desc=Pair+in+day+care+molest+case+get+2nd+trial | accessdate = 2007-11-20}} (abstract)</ref>.

In the McMartin ritual abuse case, children as young as ten were subject to hostile cross-examination for over two weeks.<ref>{{cite news | last = Flynn | first = G | title = Parents plead to spare molested kids new pain| publisher = [[The San Diego Union-Tribune]] | date = 1985-03-01 | pages = 1-4}}</ref> The harms caused to child witnesses in the McMartin case sparked a significant program of legislative reform toin recognize the vulnerable and intimidated nature of complainant children intion of the harm that children testifying in court and the justice system. face.  It also catalyzed a broad agenda of research into the nature of children's testimony and the reliability of their oral evidence in court. The findings of this research is somewhat ambiguous, suggesting that neither children nor adults are immune to suggestive interviewing techniques, however, but even extremely suggestive techniques do not inevitably lead to false reports.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Ceci SJ, Kulkofsky S, Klemfuss JZ, Sweeney CD, Bruck M |title=Unwarranted Assumptions about Children's Testimonial Accuracy |journal=Annual review of clinical psychology |volume=3 |issue= |pages=311–28 |year=2007 |pmid=17716058 |doi=10.1146/annurev.clinpsy.3.022806.091354}}</ref>

==Dissociative Identity Disorder and SRA==

In the 1980s, children and adults with a life history of ritualistic abuse were presenting to healthcare providers with uncanny alterations to their consciousness, memories and identities. They were often unresponsive or resistant to forms of treatment that had proven effective with other survivors of child abuse <ref>Bloom, S. (1994). "Hearing the Survivor's Voice: Sundering the Wall of Denial." The Journal of Psychohistory 21(4): 461 - 77</ref>, and they demonstrated higher levels of distress and trauma-related symptoms <ref>Noblitt, J. R. (1995). "Psychometric measures of trauma among psychiatric patients reporting ritual abuse." Psychological Reports 77(3): 743 - 7</ref>. In particular, children and adults with a history of ritualistic abuse were found to be extremely dissociative, and they were increasingly being diagnosed with [[Multiple Personality Disorder]] (MPD) <ref>Van Benschoten, S. C. (1990). "Multiple Personality Disorder and Satanic Ritual Abuse: The Issue of Credibility." Dissociation 3(1): 22 - 30</ref>.
 
[[MPD]] was a recognised as a psychological illness in the 1980 publication of the [[Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders]] (DSM-III), but it was a controversial diagnosis that had previously been considered extremely rare. As children and adults disclosing a history of SRA presented to healthcare providers with increasing frequency, diagnoses of MPD increased accordingly. Amongst those sceptical of MPD and/or SRA, the [[correlation]] between the two was seen as further evidence that people disclosing a history of SRA were not reliable witnesses to their own lives, and that the professionals providing them with care and support were engaged in malpractice <ref> e.g. Pendergrast, M. (1995). Victims of Memory: Incest Accusations and Shattered Lives, Upper Access Books</ref>. 
 
Criticisms of MPD (now called [[Dissociative Identity Disorder]]) have largely died away following numerous research studies and meta-analyses confirming the construct validity of the diagnosis <ref>e.g. Elzinga, B. M., R. van Dyck and P. Spinhoven (1998). "Three Controversies About Dissociative Identity Disorder." Clinical Journal of Psychology and Psychotherapy 5: 13-23</ref>, and the standardisation of evidence-based treatment for the disorder <ref>International Society for the Study of Dissociation, J. A. Chu, O. Van der Hart, C. J. Dalenberg, E. R. S. Nijenhuis, E. S. Bowman, S. Boon, J. M. Goodwin, M. Jacobson, C. A. Ross, V. Sar, C. G. Fine, A. S. Frankel, P. M. Coons, C. A. Courtois, S. N. Gold and E. Howell (2005). "Guidelines for Treating Dissociative Identity Disorder." Journal of Trauma and Dissociation 6(4)</ref>. However, the reliability of memories of SRA elucidated by clients in treatment for MPD has been a major point of contention in the popular media and amongst clinicians. Some healthcare professionals continue to express ambivalence over the reliability of narratives of SRA provided by patients, although most acknowledge that such a narrative is likely to be indicative of serious victimisation and trauma. 

The controversies over SRA and MPD have prompted a significant program of research into the reliability of early memories of extreme trauma, the findings of which suggest that such material is encoded differently in the brain, and that the accuracy of it’s recall is impacted upon by the other consequences of early trauma, including dysregulation of affect and impulses, somatisation, and profound changes to self-perception, psychosocial wellbeing and systems of meaning <ref>Van der Kolk, B. A., S. Roth, D. Pelcovitz, S. Sunday and J. Spinazzola (2005). "Disorders of Extreme Stress: The Empirical Foundation of a Complex Adaptation to Trauma." Journal of Traumatic Stress 18(5): 389-99</ref>.

==Specific cases==
===Australia===
====Perth, Western Australia====
In [[Perth, Western Australia|Perth]], [[1991]], police claimed to have proven a link between "organised [[child sexual abuse]] and [[devil worship]]" following the confession of a self-confessed [[Satanist]] and former [[Boy Scout]] leader to the [[sexual]] abuse of number of young boys in the context of Satanic rituals. The defence claimed that Scott Gozenton, 20, had been sexually abused as a child before being drawn into a group of people who practiced "Satanic" and ritualistic sex with adults and children. Gozenton's lawyer alleged that numerous "covens" were operating in Perth, and that Gozenton had sexually abused the boys in his Boy Scout troop in order to recruit them for the group. Gozenton's defence also claimed that Gozenton had been followed and threatened by "coven" members throughout the court proceedings. <ref>David Humphries, "Child Sex Abuse Linked With Satanism: Police", Sydney Morning Herald, 1991</ref>

====Mornington Peninsula, Victoria====

In the late [[1980s]], a number of children at a daycare centre in the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, began disclosing experiences of organised and ritualistic sexual abuse to their parents and the police<ref>Caroline Milburn, "First Child-abuse Claims Were In 1989, Says Police", The Age, 9 March 1992, p4</ref>. Their disclosures included instances in which they were taken in a car from the creche to a nearby house, undressed by adults and sexually assaulted, video-taped and filmed while naked, and urinated and defecated upon by adults. The children disclosed that some of the abusers wore police uniforms, masks and costumes<ref>Caroline Milburn, "Parents Alerted By Their Toddlers' Nightmares", The Age, 4 March 1992, p4</ref>. 

In [[1992]], a government inquiry ordered that the daycare centre be shut on the basis that there was significant evidence that the owner of the centre had either participated in the abuse or facilitated it<ref>Caroline Milburn, Child-care Centre Shut. Inquiry Finds Sexual Abuse Of Children, The Age, 3 March 1992, p1</ref>. This include forensic evidence that some of the children had been sexually penetrated. The police never pressed charges against the couple, who later fled to Queensland and, in a serious breach of privacy laws, published the names and addresses of all the complainant children online<ref>Matt Doran, Parents say fine an insult $800 penalty for net claims, Mornington Peninsular Leader, 2 August 2005</ref>. 

In [[2002]], Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon refers complaints about the mishandling of the case by police to the Victorian Ombudsman. An officer from the Ethical Standards Department was stood down a year later from the Ombudsman's investigation for "incompetence" after failing to pass on information from two key witnesses, and claiming that he never spoke to them when phone records proved that he had. One of the witnesses referred to a tape of [[child pornography]] showing men in police uniforms sexually assaulted children from the daycare centre, however, this lead was never followed up by the police. Another witness identified the house in which the children had been assaulted as being owned by a police officer<ref>Matt Doran, Justice is too late for family, Mornington Peninsular Leader, 4 May 2004, p 1 - 8)</ref>.

The principal of a private college on the Mornington Peninsula repeatedly told the Department of Human Services that a 12-year-old boy disclosed ongoing sexual abuse by an organised group of men wearing police uniforms. According to the principal, all records of the child's complaint vanished. A Victoria Police spokesman said he was not aware that files had disappeared. The police declined to press charges, saying the boy had been "too well groomed" by the pedophiles and probably would not testify in court.<ref>Gary Hughes, [http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/04/18/1082226635777.html Police files on sex abuse ‘vanished’], The Age, April 19 2004</ref>.

In [[2004]], the Office of Police Integrity found that the police investigation into the abuse of the children at the preschool had been inadequate and ordered a re-opening of the investigation<ref>Gary Hughes, Police 'failed' on child sex abuse cases, The Age, 8 July 2004, p1</ref>.

====Dandenong Ranges, Victoria====

In [[2000]], a journalist from the Herald-Sun interviewed three women who stated they had been subject to SRA, organised abuse, child pornogrpahy and child prostitution by their parents, who they allege were involved in a network of sexual abusers based in the Dandenong Ranges.<ref>Mark Dunn, Breaking Free From Cult, Herald-Sun, 10 November 2000, p 21</ref>

====Melbourne, Victoria====
In [[1998]], Robin Angus Fletcher was jailed for eight years after pleading guilty to the sexual and ritual abuse of two children. Fletcher had extensive involvement in a satanic cult<ref>Fletcher's involvement in a satanic cult is detailed by police files, printed in the chapter "The Satanist" in Vicki Petraitis, "Rockspider, the danger of paedophiles - untold stories", Ormond, Vic. : Hybrid, 1999</ref>, and previous convictions for false imprisonment, indecent assault, managing a brothel and living off earnings of prostitution<ref>Geoff Wilkinson, Monsters go free: Pedophiles win legal challenges, Herald Sun, 28 September 2006, p1</ref>. Along with his wife, he was found to have used hypnosis and ritualistic abuse to sexually abuse and prostitute two children in the mid-1990s. Whilst in jail, he attempted to have the two children murdered in order to prevent them from testifying against him <ref>Peter Gregory, Witch Jailed For Teen Sex, 5 March 1998, The Age, p9</ref>. 

In [[2001]], the Melbourne diocese of the [[Catholic Church]] acknowledged as "substantially true" allegations that a Melbourne priest took part in Satanic ritual abuse in which a number of deaths occurred in the 1960s, and paid compensation to a surviving victim. <ref>Gary Hughes, Church pays victim of sex and death rituals: Priest's satanic life, Herald Sun, 26 May 2006</ref>

====Central Coast, New South Wales====
In 1999, two journalists from the Sun-Herald claimed to have seen evidence of the ritual abuse of children. They interviewed six mothers whose children had disclosed experiences of SRA and organised abuse in New South Wales. The children's disclosures were corroborating, although they had never met one another, and they had been able to draw 'satanic' ritual sites which where similar to ritual sites uncovered by police on the central coast of New South Wales. One mother stated that her sons remembered beind drugged and hypnotised. "He said they dressed in black robes and had eye and mouth pieces cut out," she said. "I know they're pretty dangerous people. I have had warnings outside the house telling me to stop investigations. We're fearful for our lives. The boys never want me out of their sight." <ref>Miranda Wood and martin Chulov, Evil In The Woods, The Sun Herald, 8 August 1999, p 7</ref>.

===Belgium===
{{main|Marc Dutroux}}
During the investigation of the very high profile [[Marc Dutroux]] case, a number of women approached police claiming to be adult survivors of a network of sexual offenders.<ref>{{cite journal | first = Liz | last = Kelly | url = http://www.cwasu.org/filedown.asp?file=Confronting%20An%20Atrocity(1).pdf | format = pdf | title = Confronting an atrocity: The Dutroux case | journal = Trouble & Strife | volume = 36 | year = 1998 | publisher = CWASU: Child & Woman Abuse Studies website}}</ref>.  The disclosures of these women, known as the "X Witnesses", became the infamous "X-Dossiers", and they included accounts of SRA, child murder, child pornography and child prostitution by a number of men, including Dutroux. The X-Witnesses were widely dismissed by the Belgian media, although they solved a number of missing person's cases by directing the police to the bodies of murdered children and women and they knew unpublished details about a number of unsolved murders.

In relation to SRA, Regina Louf (Witness X1) stated in interview, " When they received new victims into their network, it was extremely important that they shouldn’t speak to anyone about what had happened to them. That’s why they organised ‘ceremonies’. They took the victim to a heavily guarded house and convinced her that it was ‘her’ party. There would then be a great performance with masks, candles, inverted crosses, swords and animals. Rabbits were disembowelled, the blood was poured on naked girls, and some men and women worshipped the devil ... The only aim of these rituals was to totally disorient the victims. They plagued these kids with a load of nonsense - ‘Now you are the wife of Satan’ – and also gave them coke, LSD or heroin. I can assure you that after that you feel completely outside the real world. That was the aim – that the victim herself should begin to doubt the fact that all this had really happened. The result was that the victims didn’t dare speak to anyone."<ref>Annemie Bulté and Douglas de Coninck, [http://www.radicalparty.org/belgium/x1_eng7.htm Interview With Regina Lou, Witness XI at Neufchateau], De Morgen, 10 January 1998, retrieved October 19 2007</ref>

===Argentina===

In [[2006]], a 12-year-old homeless boy called Ramon Ignacio Gonzalez was ritualistically raped, tortured and murdered in the northeastern Argentinian province of Corrientes. Police believe that the ritualistic murder combined different Afro-Brazilian and satanic practices, and they are investigating the involvement of a local satanic cult.

The boy "was raped, impaled, tortured with cigarette burns, decapitated while still alive and then all the blood was drained from his body. They removed all the skin from his body, as well as his tongue, throat and several vertebrae", said the province's chief prosecutor..<ref>[http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22763370-663,00.html Boy killed and mutilated in macabre ritual], The Herald Sun, November 15 2007</ref>.

===Brazil===

In the early 1990s, Superior Universal Alignment, an Argentinian-based international cult, was implicated in the ritualistic murders of several children. One of the leaders of the group, Osvaldo Marcineiro, confessed to murdering a number of young children in Satanic rituals, in which the children were tortured, murdered and their body parts cannibalised. A number of prominent citizens were arrested in relation to the murders, and it later emerged that they had paid the cult to conduct the murderous ceremonies. A search on cult member's houses turned up cult registers, guns, hooded cloaks, 100 videotapes of cult ceremonies and satanist publications, including a 200-page book by cult leader Valentina de Andrade called "God, the Great Farce." Brazilian authorities suggested that the cult was connected to Satanic groups internationally. <ref>Todd Lewan, Satanic Cult Killings Spread Fear in Southern Brazil, The Associated Press, 26 October 1992</ref>

In [[2003]], five members of the Superior Universal Alignment cult in the Amazonian town of Altamira were convicted for the ritualistic murders of three children and the castration of two others. The victims were aged between 8 and 13 years, and they were kidnapped, tortured or killed between 1989 and 1993. Their genitals were removed and used in Satanic rituals by 75-year old village clairvoyant, Valentina de Andrade, the leader of the Superior Universal Alignment cult <ref>Gamini, Gabriella, "Seer for trial in voodoo murders", The Times, 9 September 2003</ref>. de Andrade had previously been sought by police in Argentina and Uruguay prior to her arrest in Brazil on suspicion of involvement in other satanic ritual killings<ref>The Cult Observer (American Family Foundation), Vol. 10 No. 5, 1993</ref>.

Following the castration of victims, two doctors involved in the sect removed the victim's other organs for sale on the international black market <ref>Doctor gets 56 years for Brazil sect killings, 11 September 2003, Reuters News and Five</ref>. Other people sentenced in relation to the murders included a former police officer, a businessman and the son of an influential landowner. The charges related to the murders of three young children and the attempted murder of another, however, victim's families say that there were at least nineteen other murdered children. The cult is based in Argentina and has branches in Holland <ref>More information on allegations of satanic child sacrifice in the Superior Universal Alignment cult can be found at the [http://www.apologeticsindex.org/s52.html Apologetics Index]</ref>.

===Germany===
Several "mass child abuse" scares took place in [[Coesfeld]], [[Worms, Germany|Worms]] and [[Nordhorn]], where violent rituals and underground tunnel networks were alleged; all the accused were later acquitted.{{Fact|date=October 2007}}

===Ireland===

In [[2006]], a jury at [[Dublin]] Country Coroner's court unanimously ruled that the infant found stabbed to death over three decades ago belonged to Cynthia Owen. The court found that the infant Noleen was fathered by Owen's father and murdered by Owen's mother shortly after birth. 

During the trial, Owen detailed her childhood history of incest, organised abuse, and satanic ritual abuse orchestrated by her parents involving at least nine other men and her account was supported by her psychologist <ref>Darren Boyle, [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4161/is_20070218/ai_n18641104 Alleged Abusers 'still risk']</ref>. She claimed that her brother and sister Michael and Therese were also abused, a charge that was denied by her older brother and father. Michael and Therese both committed suicide in 2005, and Therese's detailed 37-paged suicide note corroborated Cynthia's account.<ref name = cusack>Jim Cusack,[http://www.independent.ie/unsorted/features/a-horrifying-past-that-society-seems-unable-to-confront-131255.html A horrifying past that society seems unable to confront], The Independent, June 11 2006</ref> A friend of Therese's testified at the trial, stating that Therese had spoken to him at length about her sexual abuse in childhood<ref>Breaking News, [http://archives.tcm.ie/breakingnews/2005/09/30/story223277.asp Childhood sex abuse caused woman's suicide], inquest told, Sept 30 2006</ref>. It also emerged in trial that Therese was the child of one of Owen's older sisters by Owen's father.<ref name = cusack/>

Following the findings of the Coroner's Court, Owen has raised questions regarding the disposal of her daughter's body and the failure of the police to investigate the murder. In particular, she has highlighted the fact that no blood or tissue samples were kept, that the bag and sanitary towels found alongside the murdered child have gone missing, that the records of the first inquest into the murder have gone missing, and that her daughter was buried in a mass grave alongside other infants that, it has recently emerged, were subject to illegal experimentation.<ref name = cusack/>

===Italy===

In [[1998]], six adults from the Emilia Romagna region were arrested for allegedly prostituting their children to a child sex ring. The arrests followed the conviction of eight people in the region in 2005 for their role on a child sex ring, and child witnesses in this case had tipped police off to the existence of second ring in the area. The child witnesses disclosed being taken to cemetaries and houses in the country for abuse by up to 30 adults, some of whom wore animal masks to conceal their identities. Alleged incidences of abuse included 'satanic' forms of abuse and the manufacture of child pornography. One child told of being taken to the cemetery with another child and a new born baby, when nine adults performed a funeral ceremony for the other children. "But I believed everything was just pretend," he said. "We were locked in a chest with a cross on top. We cried. We were really frightened. Inside there it was dark, the lid was heavy and we couldn't open it." At the end of the ceremonies the children were told that they too had become "children of the devil." <ref> Kevin Buckley, Children 'rented out' for satanic sex abuse, Scotland on Sunday, 15 November 1998, p 21</ref>

In [[2002]], four people were arrested for "Satanism and paedophilia" following a police operation in the central city of Pescara. Police believed that the group may have abused dozens of children in rituals involving bodies stolen from ceremonies. The cult leader was charged with a series of crimes, including sexual abuse, attempted kidnapping, violence, mistreatment and giving drugs to minors. His sister was suspected of destroying evidence, including hundreds of photographs, videotapes, amulets, chalices and tunics. <ref>Agence France-Press, Italians arrested for satanism and child abuse, 16 October 2002</ref>

In [[2006]], five members of the cult "Beasts of Satan" were jailed for three ritualistic murders. <ref>Geneviève Roberts, EUROPE: Satanists jailed for ritual murders, The Independent, 1 February 2006, p 18</ref>. The victims included the girlfriend of the cult leader, a young runaway who had joined the group, and a woman apparently intended as a human sacrifice. Police speculated that the cult may have killed the two members for attempted to save the life of the woman they planned to sacrifice. Victims were shot, stabbed and buried alive. <ref>Peter Popham, The Death Metal Murders: Monsters of Rock, The Independent, 24 November 2005, p 26-27</ref>

In April of 2007, six people were arrested for sexually abusing fifteen children in [[Rignano Flaminio]].  The suspects were accused of filming the children engaged in sexual acts with 'satanic' overtones.<ref>{{cite news | title = Grandmothers arrested over satanic sex abuse at school | url = http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article1706340.ece | last = Owen | first = Richard | date = [[April 26]], [[2007]] | accessdate = 2007-08-16 | quote = Three women teachers were among six people arrested yesterday accused of sedating and sexually abusing children as young as 3 at a school near Rome. The teachers — two of whom are grandmothers who had taught at the school and at Sunday school for decades — are said to have part in the repeated abuse of 15 children aged 3 and 5 for a year, filming them in sexual acts with satanic overtones at the teachers’ homes and in a wood.  |publisher = [[TimesOnline]] }}</ref>

===The Netherlands===

In [[1989]] some parents alleged in the news magazine ''Tijdsein'' published by the religious broadcasting company [[Evangelische Omroep]] that their children had witnessed SRA in school and that children were ritually abused in [[Oude Pekela]] in [[1987]].{{fact}} In that case only ‘normal’ sexual abuse was reported then to the authorities, who were not able to find any proof of the alleged abuse. According to Tijdsein, the parents, as well as psychiatrist Gerrit Mik, who examined 25 of the 70 allegedly abused children in Oude Pekela, told the investigating officers about the ritual slaughter of children and adults, but the authorities in Oude Pekela would have denied that.<ref>Beetstra, Tjalling A., Massahysterie in de Verenigde Staten en Nederland: De affaire rond de McMartin Pre-School en het ontuchtschandaal in Oude Pekela, in: Peter Burger and Willem Koetsenruijter (Eds.), ''Mediahypes en moderne sagen: Sterke verhalen in het nieuws'', Leiden, Stichting Neerlandistiek Leiden, 2004, p. 53-69; ''Tijdsein'' (EO), 14 June 1989.</ref> Fred Jonker and Ietje Jonker-Bakker, two general practitioners from Oude Pekela, alleged in several articles that the children were both sexually and ritually abused,<ref>Jonker, Fred and Ietje Jonker-Bakker, Experiences with Ritualist Child Sexual Abuse: A Case Study from The Netherlands, in: ''International Journal on Child Abuse and Neglect'', Vol. 15, Nr. 3, 1991, p. 191-196; Jonker, Fred en Ietje Jonker-Bakker, Onderzoek in Oude Pekela, in: ''Maandblad Geestelijke volksgezondheid'', Jrg. 49, Nr. 3, 1994, p. 251-276.</ref>  but their findings were heavily criticised by American and Dutch scholars.<ref>Beetstra, Tjalling A., Massahysterie in de Verenigde Staten en Nederland: De affaire rond de McMartin Pre-School en het ontuchtschandaal in Oude Pekela, in: Peter Burger en Willem Koetsenruijter (red.), ''Mediahypes en moderne sagen: Sterke verhalen in het nieuws'', Leiden, Stichting Neerlandistiek Leiden, 2004, p. 58-62 and 65; Crombag, Hans F.M. en Harald L.G.J. Merckelbach, ''Hervonden herinneringen en andere misverstanden'', Amsterdam/Antwerpen, Contact, 1996, p. 183-186; Putnam, Frank W., The Satanic Ritual Abuse Controversy, in: ''International Journal on Child Abuse and Neglect'', Vol. 15, Nr. 3, 1991, p. 175-179; Wessel, Ineke en Harald L.G.J. Merckelbach, Onderzoek in Oude Pekela (2), in: ''Maandblad Geestelijke volksgezondheid'', Jrg. 49, Nr. 5, 1994, p. 554-556.</ref>

In [[1991]] both the Youth Protection and Probation Branch from the Justice Department and the Chief Inspectorate for the public health service of the Netherlands were for the first time officially informed about satanic ritual abuse by a child custody agency.<ref>Fauwe, Loes de, Ritueel misbruik van kinderen voor satan, in: ''Het Parool'', 12 June 1993.</ref> On 17 September 1992 the Youth Protection Inspectorate wrote to the minister of Public Health and the state secretary of Justice that until [[August 1992]] youth protection agencies in the provinces [[Noord-Holland]] and [[Utrecht]] had reported the satanic ritual abuse of eleven juveniles.<ref> Aanh. Hand. II, 1992-1993, Nr. 770.</ref> Although the authorities now officially knew about satanic ritual abuse, no further steps were taken. Only when secular media reported that satanic ritual abuse was prevalent in the Netherlands on account of the findings of the psychotherapists Suzette Boon and Nel Draijer<ref>Boon, Suzette and Nel Draijer, ''Multiple Personality Disorder in the Netherlands: A Study on Reliability and Validity of the Diagnosis'', Amsterdam/Lisse, Swets en Zeitlinger, 1993; Fauwe, Loes de, Ritueel misbruik van kinderen voor satan, in: ''Het Parool'', 12 June 1993; ''Nova'' (NOS/VARA), 28-29 June 1993.</ref> did the state secretary of Justice appoint the multidisciplinary Ritual Abuse Workgroup.<ref>Werkgroep Ritueel Misbruik, ''Rapport van de Werkgroep Ritueel Misbruik'', Den Haag, Ministerie van Justitie, Directie Staats- en Strafrecht, April 1994, p. 65-66.</ref>

On 21 April 1994 the Ritual Abuse Workgroup concluded that satanic ritual abuse probably does not take place in the way it is described in the stories and it is unlikely that these stories are wholly true.<ref>Werkgroep Ritueel Misbruik, ''Rapport van de Werkgroep Ritueel Misbruik'', Den Haag, Ministerie van Justitie, Directie Staats- en Strafrecht, April 1994, p. 53-54.</ref> The workgroup suggest that the stories could be a replacement for other traumatic occasions. The victim would use the story then as a defence mechanism to process other, less extreme traumatic experiences. According to the Ritual Abuse Workgroup it is also possible that some patients through suggestive questions of their mpd therapist wrongly got the idea that they were a victim of satanic ritual abuse. Finally, the workgroup thinks it is possible that these stories are contemporary legends, which disperse as an epidemic through a network of mpd therapists and victims.<ref>Werkgroep Ritueel Misbruik, ''Rapport van de Werkgroep Ritueel Misbruik'', Den Haag, Ministerie van Justitie, Directie Staats- en Strafrecht, April 1994, p. 32-36.</ref>

The publication of the report of the Ritual Abuse Workgroup caused a short discussion in the media and in scientific literature. In this discussion, critics and sceptics had a dominant role. Only in a few scientific magazines mpd therapists gave their opinion on multiple personality disorder and satanic ritual abuse. Thanks to the scant role of the mpd movement in the Netherlands and the strong counter movement of critics and sceptics, satanic ritual abuse has never been seen by the authorities, the media, legal practice and the public as a big social problem. Because of that relatively few books and articles on the phenomenon of satanic ritual abuse have been published in the Netherlands. So far ''Hervonden herinneringen en andere misverstanden'' by Hans Crombag and Harald Merckelbach, which contains a chapter on satanic ritual abuse, has been the most influential book on the subject.<ref>Crombag, Hans F.M. and Harald L.G.J. Merckelbach, ''Hervonden herinneringen en andere misverstanden'', Amsterdam/Antwerpen, Contact, 1996, p. 153-194.</ref>

According to the criminologist Tjalling Beetstra, SRA has attracted less public debate in the Netherlands than in the United States because of differences in the two countries' social, religious and political structures.<ref>[http://www.tjallingbeetstra.eu/English/index.htm www.tjallingbeetstra.eu]</ref>

===South Africa===
Ritualistic child sexual abuse has been a feature of numerous sexual assault and homicide cases in South Africa over the last twenty years, in both 'satanic' and traditional tribal contexts. 

In 1990, the prime suspects in the disappearances of several young girls, Gert van Rooyen and his partner, Joey Haarhoff, committed suicide whilst on the run from police. Van Rooyen's son Flippie, arrested a year later for the mutilation and murder of a Zimbabewean teenager, claimed that his father had abducted several young girls, sexually abused them in Satanic rituals, murdered those who weren't obedient and sold the others into sexual slavery overseas <ref>[http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20070408083928578C563530 IOL], "The sins of the father: a dark legacy", August 08 2007, retrieved on October 16 2007</ref>. His bizarre claims were lent some credibility when animal bones were found buried at van Rooyen's house in accordance with Flippie's claims of animal sacrifice <ref>"Police take down paedophile's "house of horrors" brick by brick", 13 May 1996, Agence France-Presse</ref> and the recent discovery of human remains in a location where Flippie had claimed his father had buried two of the abducted children <ref> Clark, L. "van Rooyen spotlight on 'confession", [http://www.capeargus.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=3770776 Cape Argus], April 8 2007, retrieved on October 16 2007</ref>. The similarities between the van Rooyen case and the [[Marc Dutroux]] scandal in Belgium sparked speculation from the South African police, the Federal Bureau of Investigations, and the European Union regarding links to an international smuggling ring in prostituted children and body parts <ref>South African police probe possible body-part smuggling ring, Agence France-Presse, 21 August 1996</ref>. 

In [[2003]], Robin Classen was found guilty of sexually assaulting and torturing three children in the context of satanic rituals. The children disclosed being abducted by Classen, sometimes drugged, tortured, indecently assaulted, forced to eat insects and drink Classen's blood and animal blood <ref>see Man accused of torturing children appears in court, 31 July 2002, SAPA (South African Press Association, and Children identified alleged satanist abductor, 27 September 2002, SAPA (South African Press Association)</ref>. 
 
In August [[2007]], Theunis Olivier was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of six-year-old Steven Siebert.<ref>[http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_Top%20Stories&set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=nw20070808114113696C805634 IOL], "Theunis Oliver sentenced", August 08 2007, retrieved on 16 October 2007</ref>. He had previously served a jail term in [[Zimbabwe]] for indecent assault and rape before entering [[South Africa]], where he kidnapped, raped and murdered Steven Siebert in 2005. In his testimony, Olivier claimed to have been abused in a Satanic cult from a young age <ref> Hawker, D. "Theo made me do it, says Olivier", [http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=15&art_id=vn20070802122600788C978119 IOL], August 2 2007, retrieved on October 16 2007</ref>, that he suffered from [[Multiple Personality Disorder]] and that the murder had been undertaken by one of his personalities, Theo. <ref> [http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=15&art_id=vn20070804092724916C733893 IOL], "Olivier no stranger to jail, August 4 2007, retrieved on 16 October 2007</ref>.

===United Kingdom===

There have been a number of cases in the [[United Kingdom]] in which SRA has been alleged. Some of these cases have garnered significant media attention, and they are listed below.

The [[National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children]] affirmed the reality of ritual abuse in 1990, with the publication of survey findings that, of 66 child protection teams in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 14 teams had received reports of ritual abuse from children and seven of them were working directly with children who had been ritually abused, sometimes in groups of 20. <ref>Libby Jukes adn Richard Duce, NSPCC says ritual child abuse is rife, The Times, 13 March 1990</ref> 

====Rochdale====
In 1990 there was a case in [[Rochdale]] which around twenty children were removed from their homes by social services who alleged the existence of SRA after discovering 'satanic indictators'.  No evidence was found of satanic apparatus' and charges were dismissed when a court ruled the allegations were untrue.  The children were removed from their homes sued the city council in 2006 for compensation and an apology.<ref>{{cite news |first= Paul |last=Lewis |authorlink= |coauthors= |title= 'Satanic abuse' case families sue council for negligence |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1684205,00.html |publisher=[[The Guardian]] |date=2006-01-12 |accessdate = 2007-10-23 }}</ref>

====Orkney====
In 1990-1991 several children were taken in dawn raids from their homes in [[South Ronaldsay]], [[Orkney]] and placed into the care of the local authority. 

It was alleged that the children, aged between eight and 15 at the time, had been the victims of ritual abuse. A [[Sheriff Principal|sheriff]] ruled later that the evidence was seriously flawed and the children were returned home. 

The case resulted in a judicial inquiry that criticised social workers, police and child care agencies. A further report in October 1992 produced almost 200 recommendations for changes in child care practices. 

The sheriff who threw out the original case, said the children had been subjected to cross-examinations designed to make them admit to being abused. 

In 1994, a government report based on three years of research said there was no foundation to the plethora of satanic child abuse claims. 

In 2006 one of the children removed from her home, by that time a young woman of 24, announced that she intended to sue the Orkney Islands Council for damages. She stated that her removal from home and placement into care had destroyed her childhood. 

The director of social work with the council, said: "There have been a huge amount of changes in social work since the Orkney inquiry. ...The Orkney inquiry was an agent for change. It has helped to move practices on."<ref>"Orkney abuse scandal victim to sue for lost youth", The Scotsman, 11 September 2006 
[http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=860&id=1338842006]</ref>

====Broxtowe====
In Nottingham, a [[Broxtowe]] family was charged with multigenerational child sexual abuse and neglect.  A 600-page report on the incident concluded that there was no evidence of the claims made by children or corroborating adults.  Though the children may have been 'sadistically terrorized', allegations of organized satanic abuse were found to be baseless and the indicators used by the Social Services department were without validity. <ref>{{citation | last = Thorpe | first = W. | coauthors = Gwatkin, J.B., Glenn, W.P. & Gregory, M.F. | date=  1990-06-07 | title = Revised Joint Enquiry Report | url = http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~dlheb/jetrepor.htm | accessdate = 2007-10-23 | publisher = Nottinghamshire Social Services }}</ref>

====Lewis====
In [[2003]] allegations by three children in [[Lewis]], [[Scotland]] resulted in the arrest of eight people for sexual abuse occurring between 1990 and 2000.  A 2005 investigation by the Social Work Inspection Agency found extensive evidence of sexual, physical and emotional abuse and neglect.<ref name = Crawford>{{cite news | first = Alan | last = Crawford | title = Three children on the Isle of Lewis were sexually abused for years | url = http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_20051009/ai_n15669354 | publisher=[[The Sunday Herald]] |date= 2005-10-09 | accessdate = 2007-11-13 }}</ref>  Police investigation resulted in allegations of an island-wide "Satanic paedophile ring",<ref name = Crawford/><ref name = Martin>{{cite news |first= Lorna |last= Martin |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Satanic abuse key witness says: I lied | url = http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1879884,00.html | publisher=[[The Guardian]] |date= |accessdate = 2007-08-21 }}</ref> though charges were dropped nine months later following an inconclusive investigation.<ref name = Martin/><ref name = Crawford/>

A key witness who had implicated her family in the abuse and whose evidence was "vital" to the case of satanic abuse recanted her testimony in 2006<ref name = Martin/><ref name = Howie>{{cite news |first= Howie |last= Michael | title = Police deny putting pressure on 'satanic abuse' witness | url = http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1413662006 | publisher = [[The Scotsman]] |date= 2006-09-25 | accessdate = 2007-11-13 }}</ref> and the media raised questions about the nature of the police interviewing techniques.<ref name = Martin/><ref name = Howie/> with a police spokesperson replying that the witness was questioned appropriately and that allegations were made by numerous witnesses.<ref name = Howie/>

===United States===
{{main|Kern County child abuse cases}}
{{main|McMartin preschool trial}}
{{main|West Memphis 3}}
In the [[United States]], major allegations of Satanic ritual abuse occurred in the [[Kern County child abuse cases]], [[McMartin preschool trial]] and the [[West Memphis 3]], which garnered world-wide media coverage.  Other high-profile court cases involving allegations of SRA dominated coverage on child abuse throughout the 1980s to 1990s.<!-- <ref>{{cite news | title = Convict's wife sentenced for trying to molest kids | publisher = Orlando Sentinel Tribune | date = 1992-05-09}}; {{cite news | title = A family fears that satanic cult will try to silence their sons | publisher = Orlando Sentinel Tribune | date = 1991-08-10}}; {{cite news | title = Child abuse suspect trades testimony for lesser charges | publisher = Orlando Sentinel Tribune | 1992-01-31 }}</ref> DOES ARTICLE SPECIFY SATANIC ABUSE?  TITLE DOES NOT MAKE THIS CLEAR, IS THERE A FULL TEXT AVAILABLE?  ALSO, THIS PAPER DOES NOT APPEAR TO EXIST; FURTHER, THE ENTRY SEEMS TAKEN FROM THE NEWSMAKINGNEWS.COM SITE--><ref>{{cite news | title = Speaking the unspeakable:  Nightmares of Fran's day care stalk families | publisher = Austin American-Statesman | last = Ward | first = Pamela | 1992-12-13 | pages = A1 }}; {{cite news | last = Gamino | first = Denise | title = 6-year old testifies he witnessed abuse of girl:  Jury may begin deliberating molestation case today  | publisher = Austin American-Statesman | date=  1992-11-24 | pages = A1}}; {{cite news | last = Phillips | first = Jim | date=  1992-11-26 | publisher = Austin American-Statesman | title = Kellers found guilty of sexual assault | pages = A1 }}; {{cite news | title = Therapist describes ritualistic abuse claims:  Defense begins its case in day care molestation trial | publisher = Austin American-Statesman | date=  1992-11-20 |last = Gamino | first = Denise | pages = A1}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = Man could get 162 years in molestations | publisher = The Arizona Republic | date=  1994-09-10}}; {{cite news | title = Ex-pastor sentenced on child-sex charges | publisher = The Arizona Republic | date=  1994-11-19 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = Pa. couple is charged with torturing children: Police say neighbors also took part in abuse | publisher = The Atlanta Journal and Constitution | date=  1991-11-26  }}; {{cite news | title = Pennsylvania couple charged with brutalizing their children | publisher = The Washington Post | date=  1991-11-26 }}; {{cite news | title = Parents charged with torturing their children | publisher = Associated Press | date=  1991-11-25 }}</ref><!-- : Judge unmoved by health woes,” Tribune-Democrat, [[December 9]] [[2006]] http://www.tribune-democrat.com/archivesearch/local_story_343000649.html; "Child Abuser Seeks Prison Release,” Tribune-Democrat, [[September 30]] [[2006]] http://www.tribune-democrat.com/archivesearch/local_story_273002109.html;  THESE ARTICLE DO NOT MENTION SATANIC RITUAL ABUSE; CLOSEST IS 'CULTISH BLOODLETTINGS; IN SECOND ARTICLE - REQUIRES A BETTER SOURCE-->

====Jordan, Minnesota====
The first such case occurred in [[Jordan, Minnesota]], in [[1983]], where several children made allegations against an unrelated man and their parents. The man confessed and then identified a number of the children’s parents as perpetrators. Ultimately twenty four adults were charged with child abuse though only three went to trial with two [[acquittal]]s and one [[conviction]].<ref name = Scalia>{{cite web | url = http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/89-478.ZD.html | title = Supreme Court Collection at Cornell University Law School | last = Scalia | first = Antonin | authorlink = Antonin Scalia | coauthors = [[William J. Brennan, Jr.|Brennan, William]], [[Thurgood Marshall|Marshall, Thurgood]] & [[John Paul Stevens|Stevens, John Paul]] | accessdate = 2007-10-23 | date=  1990-06-27 | format = html | language = english }}</ref> During the investigation, the children made [[allegation]]s of manufacturing [[child pornography]], ritualistic animal sacrifice, [[Coprophagia#Humans|coprophagia]], [[urophagia]] and [[infanticide]], at which point the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] was alerted.<ref>{{cite book |author=Hechler, David |title=The battle and the backlash: the child sexual abuse war |publisher=Lexington Books |location=Lexington, Mass |year=1988 |pages= |isbn=066914097X |oclc= |doi=}}</ref>  No criminal charges resulted from the FBI investigation, and in his review of the case, the [[Attorney General]] noted that the initial investigation by the local police and county attorney was so poor that it had destroyed the opportunity to fully investigate the children’s allegations.<ref>{{citation | last = Humphrey | first = Herbert | year = 1985 | title = Report on Scott County investigations | location = Minneapolis, MN | publisher = Minnesota Attorney General's Office }}</ref>  [[Antonin Scalia|Supreme Court Justice Scalia]] referred to the Minnesota case in his summation on a later case, and stated, "[t]here is no doubt that some sexual abuse took place in Jordan; but there is no reason to believe it was as widespread as charged," and cited the repeated, well-intentioned but coercive techniques used by the investigators as damaging to the investigation.<ref name = Scalia/><!-- A commission later reviewed the conduct of the county Attorney in dismissing charges against the remaining defendants and noted that it was likely that other charges could have been successfully prosecuted.<ref>Commission Established by Executive Order No. 85-10 1985</ref>. THIS REQUIRES A BETTER REFERENCE, NO-ONE COULD FIND THIS DOCUMENT BASED ON THESE DETAILS-->  The bizarre allegations of the children, the ambiguities of the investigation and the unsuccessful prosecutions were widely covered by the media.  A number of accused parents confessed to sexually abusing their children, received immunity, and underwent treatment for sexual abuse, whilst parental rights for six other children in the case were terminated.<ref name=Faller2004>{{cite journal | author = Faller, K.C. | year = 2004 | title = Sexual Abuse of Children: Contested Issues and Competing Interests | journal = Criminal Justice Review | volume = 29 | issue = 2 | pages = 358 | url = http://cjr.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/29/2/358  | accessdate = 2007-10-23}}</ref> 
<!-- In 1992 [[Florida]] couple were charged with the sexual, physical, and mental abuse against their three children. According to Ohio vs. Estella Sexton, [[February 13]] [[1995]], 1995 Ohio App. Lexis 1413, one of the children stated that family members were involved in satanic rituals, invoking spirits. This testimony regarding Satanic ritual was found by the court to be relevant to the proceedings. The court documented other ritualistic activity by the offenders, including an instance in which one of the children was cut, and forced to sign a contract to the devil.<ref>[[March 9]] [[1998]], STATE OF OHIO vs ESTELLA SEXTON, COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO, FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT, STARK COUNTY, 1998 Ohio App. LEXIS 1302; 1995 Ohio App. LEXIS 1413, Convictions for Complicity to Rape, Felonious Sexual Penetration, Gross Sexual Imposition, Complicity to Gross Sexual Imposition, and Child Endangerment Affirmed</ref>. The father, Eddie Sexton, was later convicted of participation in the murder of his son-in-law, Joel Good, and sentenced to death. Good was murdered by Sexton’s 22 year old son, Willie, who strangled him to death under Sexton’s direction. The States proposed motive for the killing was that Sexton's son-in-law knew Sexton was the father of his own "grandchildren." Willie Sexton testified against his father in exchange for his guilty plea to second-degree murder. News reports state that during the second trial, his son, Willie Sexton, said his father convinced him he had Satanic powers and sexually abused him. <ref>see “Children Tell of Life of Incest, Violence,” Beacon Journal , [[February 6]] [[1994]]; "Court Revisits Murder Case, Son's Fears," St. Petersburg Times, [[September 2]] [[1998]], [[October 12]] [[2000]], EDDIE LEE SEXTON vs. STATE OF FLORIDA, SUPREME COURT OF FLORIDA, 775 So. 2d. 923, 2000 Fla. LEXIS 1993; 697 So. 2d. 833 (1997) Conviction and Death Sentence Affirmed</ref> THIS WHOLE SECTION IS SOMEWHAT SUSPECT - THE SATANIC ABUSE ISN'T DOCUMENTED BY SOURCES I'VE SEEN, AND THE WHOLE 'KILLED HIS OWN SON/GRANDSON THING SEEMS IRRELEVANT.  

The remains of a small infant girl, first dubbed Baby X and later 'Kristina Angelica James,' were discovered near [[Rupert, Idaho|Rupert]], [[Idaho]] in the early 1990s, and the body was considered evidence of SRA activity, though no unambiguous evidence linking the girl's death to SRA was ever found.<ref>{{ cite web | url = http://www.maryellenmark.com/text/magazines/la_times/216O.html | last = Siegel | first = Barry | year = 1992 | title = Idaho Gothic | publisher = [[Los Angeles Times Magazine]] | accessdate = 2007-08-16}}</ref> SUPER DUBIOUS - PAGE SHOULD INCLUDE UNEQUIVOCAL CASES ONLY-->

==See also==
* [[Blood libel]]
* [[Mike Warnke]]
* [[Phantom Social Workers]]
* [[Recovered memory therapy]]
* [[Satanic ritual abuse and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]
* [[File 18]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [http://www.religioustolerance.org/ra_rep03.htm Kenneth V. Lanning: Investigator's Guide to Allegations of Ritual Child Abuse] (1992 FBI report)

[[Category:Conspiracy theories]]
[[Category:Mind control]]
[[Category:Anti-cult terms and concepts]]
[[Category:Religious persecution]]
[[Category:Satanism]]
[[Category:Crimes involving Satanism or the occult]]
[[Category:Hoaxes]]
[[Category:Mass hysteria]]

[[cs:Satanistické rituální zneužívání]]
[[lt:Satanistinių ritualų mitas]]
[[nl:Satanisch ritueel misbruik]]
[[ja:悪魔的儀式虐待]]
[[ru:Сатанинская паника]]
[[sv:Satanic ritual abuse]]