Documentary record Bound by Fear
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Conviction Jewish institutions and contexts Hasidic and Haredi communities Colonie, New York, USA · 2010

Rabbi Yaakov Weiss (Chabad of Colonie founder): guilty plea for endangering two boys, including contact in the synagogue's mikveh

Record class

Core record

Evidence status

Convicted

Authority role

founder and rabbi, Chabad of Colonie; founder, Chabad Hebrew School, Loudonville, New York

Organization

Chabad of Colonie; Chabad Hebrew School, Loudonville, New York

Spiritual nexus

Weiss founded and led both the Chabad of Colonie synagogue and its Hebrew school; the contact occurred through his rabbinic authority and in the synagogue's mikveh itself, placing the religious ritual setting and his clerical standing at the center of the access, not incidental to it.

  • Pastoral or clerical authority
  • Ritual, oath, or initiation

Evidence structure

Proceedings

  1. 2010-01-11 · guilty plea and sentence

    Albany County Court, New York. Yaakov Weiss pleaded guilty to child endangerment for inappropriate physical contact with a 13-year-old boy at the synagogue's mikveh on Whitehall Road and a second 13-year-old boy later in 2007, including instructing one victim to deny the contact to police and his mother. The plea agreement did not require sex-offender registration.

Documented coercion mechanisms

  • rabbinic and Hebrew-school authority over congregation children
  • religious ritual setting (mikveh) used as the site of contact
  • instructing a victim to conceal the conduct from his mother and police

Primary record

Sources

jewish press wire sentencing report Cleveland Jewish News wire report, 'Rabbi Weiss sentenced to six months in prison' (2010).

Reports the guilty plea to child endangerment, describes the mikveh location of one incident, and notes the instruction to one victim to conceal the conduct.

local news archived institutional response report Robert Gavin, 'Group Says Rabbi No Longer Leader', Albany Times Union (19 Jan. 2010), archived via BishopAccountability.org.

Reports Chabad's suspension of Weiss following the allegations and confirms his founding role at Chabad of Colonie and its Hebrew school.

Related record

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