Rabbi Stephen Weiss, who has served as senior rabbi at B'nai Jeshurun Congregation in Pepper Pike, Ohio, since 2001, was arrested Monday evening by law enforcement officers with the Ohio . Free Sign Up, The Cleveland Jewish News reported: According to the prosecutors office, the vehicle he was driving was searched and law enforcement officers found a box of condoms and two bottles of lubricant.. All rights reserved (About Us). Publicly-engaged rabbis and a Judaism committed to social justice and Zionism these are the legacies of Rabbi Stephen S. Wise. Pepper Pike Rabbi Stephen Weiss, 60, was arrested after allegedly engaging in sexually explicit online conversations with an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a 15-year-old boy on a . Weve had enough. (JTA) Two groups associated with Conservative Judaism called the allegations against a Cleveland-area rabbi arrested for soliciting underaged sex horrible and disgusting, as the rabbi resigned from his synagogue. Arrangements under the direction of Berkowitz-Kumin-Bookatz Memorial Chapel. These deeply disturbing accusations betray the sacred trust our communities put in their clergy and must be fully and immediately investigated and dealt with appropriately, the group said in a joint statement with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism at the time. Weiss was charged with one count each of the following: Officers searched Weisss car and found a box of condoms, two bottles of lubricant, and one bottle of ED medication containing a single pill, the prosecutors office stated. Weiss was previously indicted by a Cuyahoga County grand jury on June 16. On Jan. 19, more than 70 women attended the Ladies Night fundraiser at The Drake Closet in Roswell. His arraignment was scheduled for July 11, but was moved up to July 1 on the day before, according to Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas records. You have permission to edit this article. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Start your search for Cleveland Court . Stephen Weiss is the Chief Investment Officer and Managing Partner of Short Hills Capital Partners LLC, an alternatives investment fund manager. The AJT welcomes your letters. Several people connected to Weiss during his time at Ahavath Achim declined to comment for this article. Blumenthal said the organization has been in touch with Bnai Jeshurun leadership, and the Rabbinical Assembly has an ethics committee that investigates and punishes rabbis accused of wrongdoing. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). The national turmoil over the PMs judicial overhaul is now being exacerbated by surging Palestinian terrorism and settler extremism. NCJW Prepares Post-Abortion Care Packages. 2023 jewish telegraphic agency all rights reserved. Heart Disease is Leading Cause of Death for Women. 61-year-old Stephen . JTA Two groups associated with Conservative Judaism called the allegations against a Cleveland-area rabbi arrested for soliciting underage sex horrible and disgusting, as the rabbi resigned from his synagogue. Unlike other news outlets, we havent put up a paywall. The groups praised the Bnai Jeshurun Congregation, the Conservative synagogue in Pepper Pike, Ohio, where Weiss had served as a senior rabbi since 2001, for immediately suspending Weiss this week following his arrest. Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove of the Park Avenue Synagogue in NY, from his twitter . But, Bickart said, Choosing to support and defend Rabbi Weiss here, as opposed to the community that was victimized or potentially victimized, was the wrong decision to make., In an email to JTA, Lebeau said, I chose to make a personal statement referring to the Stephen Weiss I have known for 35 years and the qualities that defined him, as I said in the courtroom, prior to this tragic event.. // Credit Stephen Weiss(Cuyahoga County Jail). Thats why we started the Times of Israel ten years ago - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world. Wise designated Rabbi Edward E. Klein as his successor. The charges also drew condemnation from the rabbi who heads both national and international organizations . I respectfully ask you your honor to consider the case of Rabbi Weiss in the context of the life of devotion to his family and to his community that he lived in prior to this tragic event.. This is a sad story., In a statement to the AJT, Rabbi Laurence Rosenthal, the current senior rabbi at Ahavath Achim, said: We are extremely upset and disappointed by this news and are processing many emotions. Local artist displays her series, capturing her sentiments for the ebb and flow of world systems, in intriguing techniques and treatments. Stephen Wise Temple is a large Reform Jewish congregation in the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles, California.Founded in 1964 by the late Rabbi Isaiah Zeldin, with 35 families, the congregation grew rapidly.At various times in its history it has been stated to be the largest, or one of the largest, Jewish congregations in the world, at one time having a membership of about 3,000 families . Stay up-to-date with the Detroit Jewish News! He served on many Cleveland-area and national Jewish boards, including Camp Ramah and the Greater Cleveland Board of Rabbis. Guest Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin at Temple Beth Tikvah recounts Cohens spiritual journey. 2023 The Times of Israel , All Rights Reserved, Rabbi Stephen Weiss (Courtesy of Cleveland Jewish News, via JTA), Bnai Jeshurun Congregation, in the Greater Cleveland area of Ohio. Goldberg said the case is set for court in a week or two.. The Rabbinical Assembly began publicizing a list of suspended and expelled rabbis in 2021, amid a widespread reckoning over whether Jewish organizations had inappropriately obscured misconduct by rabbis and other leaders. Week-long residency features works by the Los Angeles theater company and educational seminars. Rabbi Stephen Weiss to be sentenced Feb. 27 in Ohio court; faces possible 30 months in prison. Weissresigned from his congregationThursday, shortly after being suspended, his lawyer, Michael Goldberg, told the CJN. Goldberg filed a motion July 5 to amend his bond to terminate the GPS monitoring detention. According to Fox 8, Rabbi Stephen Weiss was captured after allegedly trying to meet a 15-year-old youngster for cheating in Cuyahoga County on Monday. Get The AJT Newsletter by email and never miss our top stories In 2014, according to the Forward, he had supported a rabbi in Savannah, Georgia, who had given a lesson to a class of 9-year-olds about child sex trafficking filled with explicit language, alarming many parents. is director of the National Jewish Advocacy Center and Counsel for Hillels of Georgia. (JTA) Two groups associated with Conservative Judaism called the allegations against a Cleveland-area rabbi arrested for soliciting underaged sex horrible and disgusting, as the rabbi resigned from his synagogue. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD. Weiss, 60, was arrested April 18 by the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children task force. . Somewhere over the rainbow bluebirds fly There's a land that I heard of. Though little known now, Wise was one of the most prominent rabbis in the United States in the first half of the 20th century and had a profound influence on shaping the political liberalism practiced by American . "Stephen Wise Temple has a zero-tolerance policy regarding behavior as described here," the email, which was co-signed by Senior Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback, President Janine Kolodny and Executive . He faces a maximum of 3.5 years in prison. View a list of stores and vendors. He will now turn his attention to his legal situation. Knowing that their community would be there for them was the only thing that allowed him to sleep at night. Was Elvis, King of Rock and Roll, Jewish? Dave Schechter is a veteran journalist whose career includes writing and producing reports from Israel and elsewhere in the Middle East. According to the court docket, as a condition of his jail release, he is required to wear a GPS standard monitoring device and to have no contact with any victims. 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He had been arrested and charged after a sting operation last April and pleaded guilty to the two felony charges in January. It added that the Rabbinical Assembly had begun its own process of adjudicating Weiss case through its ethics committee, Vaad Hakavod. As a result of this matter, Mr. Weiss has resigned his position to concentrate . Strategic Planning Committee He was arrested Monday by the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force after traveling to a pre-arranged location to meet with someone he thought was the boy. Rachel Jacoby Rosenfield opened her Riverdale home to a family of Ukrainian refugees. The county prosecutors office will present Weisss case before a grand jury; he has been released after posting bond. Rabbi William Lebeau (right) provides a character witness testimony on behalf of Rabbi Stephen Weiss (left) at Weiss' sentencing hearing for crimes of soliciting underage sex, Cleveland, Ohio . The Temple & Breman Museum Host theatre dybbuk. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a17bf409ae9c263 Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. Subscribe today! Weiss attorney, Michael Goldberg of The Goldberg Law Firm in Cleveland, said he moved up the date to quicker obtain the discovery, or evidence the state shares with the defense. CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - The Cuyahoga County Grand Jury has indicted a 60-year-old rabbi accused of engaging in sexually explicit online conversations with an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a 15-year-old boy. Heres where to start, indicted by a Cuyahoga County grand jury on June 16, READ: Court records from State of Ohio vs. Stephen Weiss, completed its own investigation last month, Rabbi Weiss indicted; synagogue investigation finds no evidence of crimes with congregants, Rabbi Stephen Weiss suspended from Rabbinical Assembly, Rabbi Weiss resigns amid criminal charges, Prosecutors office will present Rabbi Weiss case to grand jury, Conservative Jewish groups respond to allegations against Rabbi Weiss, Rabbi Weiss suspended immediately following arrest, County prosecutor: Rabbi Weiss charged for attempted solicitation of minor, Rabbi Weiss bond amended, GPS monitoring removed, Plea agreement offered in Rabbi Weiss case, Deadline for Rabbi Weiss plea agreement extended, Rabbi Weiss pleads guilty to felony charges, Rabbi Weiss sentenced to 6 months in prison, Bnai Jeshurun offers counseling after Weiss sentencing, Lake Catholic wont field lacrosse team; no coach following swastika incident, Heritage Classical Academy purchases Beech Brook property, Ephraim Blau | Fuchs Mizrachi School | Basketball, Beachwood council OKs resolution condemning gun violence, Mandel JCC Triathlon, Biathlon returns after COVID-19 hiatus, Longtime local radio host Fink really loved his community, Friendship Circle celebrating 20 years of Friendship for Life, Shaker Heights grad's 'dream come true' dancing for Rihanna Super Bowl show. Prosecutors said that he had actually been in communication with an undercover investigator posing as a 15-year-old boy. These deeply disturbing accusations betray the sacred trust our communities put in their clergy and must be fully and immediately investigated and dealt with appropriately, the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and the Rabbinical Assembly said in a joint statement Wednesday,as reported by the Cleveland Jewish News. Regardless of the evidence or whether Rabbi Weiss is guilty of anything, his remaining in his position would cause further disruption and pain to his community, attorney Michael Goldberg said. The statement was issued two days after Rabbi Stephen Weiss was arrested and charged with attempting to solicit unlawful sexual contact with a minor online. High 43F. Services will be held Sunday, March 3 at 10 AM at the B'nai . 78.46.72.35 Stephen J. Stein has been the Executive Vice President of the Cantors Assembly since 1998. Stephen Weiss was previously rabbi at Ahavath Achim Synagogue in Atlanta and Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Michigan. We look forward to celebrating him and more of the CCAR's 50-year rabbis when we come together at CCAR . And his testimony did not seek to justify nor excuse the behavior for which Steven Weiss was convicted.. After Gerhart Riegner's message about the Nazi plan of mass murder reached the State Department, officials . Copyright 2022 WOIO. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. Rabbi Stephen Slater, born in 1983, grew up the son of Baptist missionaries in West Africa. For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members. The AJTs publisher shares his thoughts about the new year and ongoing tensions with Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. 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