page_title: Prescott, Ontario
section_title: Project Jericho
hierarchical_section_title: Prescott, Ontario / History / Twentieth century / Project Jericho
caption_attribution_description: Prescott, Ontario, Canada
context_page_description: Prescott, Ontario is a small town on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River in the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, Canada. In 2016, the town had a population of 3965. The Ogdensburg–Prescott International Bridge, 5 kilometres east of Prescott at Johnstown, connects the town with Ogdensburg, New York. The town is about an hour from both Ottawa and Kingston.
  The town was founded in the early 19th century by Edward Jessup, a Loyalist soldier during the American Revolution, who named the village after a former Governor-in-Chief, Robert Prescott. Before 1834, the town was a part of Augusta township; however, in that year the town became a police village and severed its ties with Augusta. The land here was ideal for settlement during the 18th and 19th centuries as it was situated between Montreal and Kingston along the St. Lawrence River at the head of the rapids.
context_section_description: In the late 1980s, Prescott became infamous when one of the largest sexual abuse investigations in Canada was conducted, dubbed Project Jericho. The multiple-victim and multiple-offender case began in August 1989, after a young girl disclosed the details of the abuse to her foster parents. Five years later, close to 300 victims and over 100 perpetrators had been named in the investigations. This case was unique, as never before had a multi-victim, multi-offender case of this magnitude been confined to such a small, defined, geographical region without being enclosed within an institution. According to some sources, Project Jericho remains the largest sex abuse investigation in Canadian history. The investigation was a joint effort between many organizations; Project Jericho consisted of members of the Ontario Provincial Police and local police departments, a Special Crown Attorney and victim/witness assistance coordinator, Family and Children's Services of Leeds-Grenville, the town of Prescott council, the Ontario government's Ministry of Community and Social Services, as well as the Adult Mental Health services.
  The precise nature of the abuse varied from victim to victim, and is still disputed to this day. According to initial reports, the seven-year-old female who came forward in 1989 stated that on top of the sexual abuse, she and other children were submerged in water, confined beneath the floor, and forced to drink “yucky juice”, which some have speculated to be blood. Additionally, adults are said to have terrorized or threatened her and other children with guns, knives and other weapons. Many of these abuses were documented on videotape. In addition to the abuse, victims alleged an infant boy, known only as "Joshua", had been murdered by the accused abusers. Little information is known regarding the infant or the murder, and nobody was ever found. Project Jericho was named in honour of the alleged murder victim.
  By 1990, arrests were being made with charges against four individuals being laid while 37 individuals were confirmed or suspected victims; some children began to be removed from their homes. By 1994, the total number of child victims had skyrocketed to 162, with the number of perpetrators being 119. Of these offenders, 97 were male and 22 were female. The victims were primarily child victims, around 162 being children; while 113 were adults, who came forward to disclose abuse suffered as children. Of the 65 cases that went to trial, the investigation saw a conviction rate of 91%.
caption: King Street, Prescott
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