Recently I viewed a documentary on Netflix: Abducted in Plain Sight. It’s the true
story of Jan Broberg who, as a tween, was kidnapped, not once but twice, by
Robert Berchtold. The perpetrator was a close friend and neighbor to Jan’s
parents, Mary Ann and Bob. Does that seem unbelievable to you? In today’s jaded
view of the world, perverts are around every corner, candy store and church
pew. Back in the early 1970s most citizens in small towns, and a majority of
families attending The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Broberg
Family’s religion), had never heard of pedophiles. Decades ago, perverts
gravitated toward the Church and many quaint communities just to take advantage
of "dumb" people. Those abusers knew what to say, how to say it, and
when called to the carpet, would cry and plead their case, saying that they'd
repented. They learned how to play the system.
I did not know Jan Broberg as a child. She was brought up in
Idaho. I was born in Detroit; raised to not trust anyone. Old West justice has
nothing on us. Although we attended BYU at the same time, I met Jan Broberg long
after both of us were moms and she was well into her career as an actress. Soon
after we became acquainted, I found out that she’d been abducted as a child. In
fact, one evening as I sat and watched the news, a report came in that the
rat-bastard that had taken her far from Idaho to marry him in Mexico, was still stalking her! Wanting to know
more, but hesitant to ask too many nosy questions, I bought Stolen Innocence, the book that her
mother wrote about the kidnappings. I want to add that I never met Jan’s mother
or for that matter, her father.
Last winter, while discussing Abducted in Plain Sight, someone asked me if I believed anyone
(referring to the Broberg parents) could be that clueless. Had I heard this
tale before moving to Utah for the very first time in 1984, I would have
disbelieved the narrative myself. As a youngster in the Detroit area, I learned
to always watch out for my own back; partly because in my day, there was a
serial murderer known as the Oakland County Child Killer, but I will leave that
for another blog entry. While attending BYU in the 1980s, I met countless
sweet, trusting individuals. Crazy as it sounds, this documentary, directed by
Skye Borgman, is true, and is not an isolated event. Abducted in Plain Sight shows how over and over Jan’s parents let
Berchtold back into their lives. He could have murdered Jan at any time. Instead
he abused and raped her for years, slowly killing her spirit. While in our
time, this tale is weird to viewers on many levels, back then families trusted
their neighbors. Deals were made on handshakes. A man was as good as his word. Even
today, Latter-day Saints (Mormons) are urged to do good for their fellow
humans. When there’s a flood, tornado or
other natural disaster, you’ll find them nailing shingles on roof-tops, raking
leaves, or handing out water bottles. These volunteers never ask if you are
deserving or if you are a sinner. They just go and help. Mormons are taught to
love one another and to forgive. That is good advice, but I still would not
allow a snake into my home. (I’m talking about human vipers, not pets.)
The thing is, I’ve met many parents in Latter-day Saint
communities that were just as isolated and naïve as the Brobergs. I've talked
to countless victims of similar abuse from Idaho and Utah. It was a lot like
the 1960s movie version of H G Wells' The
Time Machine. The kind and gentle creatures called Eloi, who lived on the
planet's surface, could not fathom that the Morlocks, who dwelt below, would
lead the Eloi into the caverns to devour them. It was beyond their
comprehension. (Oh, that we could all be like that -innocently believing we are
safe.) Sadly, “Morlocks” walk among us. Many Mormons, unaware of such devils,
were childlike and easily led a generation ago. Not only were the parents of victimized kids
counseled to forgive, there were even cases of adults violated by community
leaders. They, too, were urged to forgive, over and over. Rarely were their
rapists ever brought to justice.
This mindset was so thick, that beginning in the 1960s, a
doctor in a heavily Latter-day Saint region of eastern Idaho sexually abused
his ObGyn patients for three decades. Despite complaints to their bishops and
stake presidents (spiritual leaders of a larger region) the women were told not
to make a big deal of it; after all, forgiveness is good for the soul and
besides, “The fine doctor is the only one in town that’s qualified to assist
you in bringing your babies into the world.”
Where do you go when you are touched inappropriately,
harmed, or shamed into silence and then your bishop asks you to forgive? To whom do you turn when the police look the
other way and then the people you most trust, even your parents, are asked to
find the kindest place in their hearts for the monster that devoured your soul?
This situation in the once-isolated west has improved. Decades
before cable TV, people were happy just to get two stations. Now with the
internet, families know all too well that there are evil maniacs who exist, ones
that enjoy nothing better than to slowly destroy innocent children. There are
also those that will murder a child quicker than the time it takes for a mother
to say a prayer for her baby.
Getting back to the documentary, when I was asked if Jan
Broberg seemed normal to me, I had to respond, “What is normal?” To put it in context, I know many, many performers.
She's actually pretty normal compared to some. She's strong and resilient and I
want to stress this point: any “normal” person might want to sweep similar
memories like a crushed rat under a rug. They’d stomp on it, choke it, then
move along. Denial is problematic. Personally, I’d rather be aware of what’s
actually happening: The rat under the rug might revive, slink along the floor
and become a bigger beast later. Jan is not going to let that happen. She wants
to get the word out that there are still monsters and manipulators amongst us.
Jan’s family was nearly devoured by a monster manipulator. Don’t blame the
victims. Instead, share Jan’s story. It may give someone out there just enough
courage to come forward and find the right people to bring their perpetrator to
justice. At the very least, the rat won’t be left under a rug to scurry out and
bite again. A wound must be cleansed for healing to take place, not left to
fester. Jan is beyond normal. I find her to be brave. She wants to heal and
along the way, Ms. Broberg deserves the joy and happiness, the success and
popularity, that her documentary gives her.
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