Rhode Island

Former RI Boy Scout leader charged with sexually assaulting child in 1980s

Michael Chalk, a 61-year-old former leader a Central Falls Boy Scout troop, was arraigned on first-degree sexual assault charges for allegedly abusing a boy between 1982 and 1984, the Rhode Island Attorney General's Office said Friday

Boy Scouts of America uniforms
Christopher Millette/Erie Times-News via AP, File

The former leader of a Rhode Island Boy Scout troop has been charged with sexually assaulting a child 40 years ago.

The office of Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said Friday that 61-year-old Michael Chalk of Pawtucket had been charged with two counts of first-degree sexual assault.

A grand jury returned a secret indictment charging Chalk on Friday. The same day, he was arraigned in Providence County Superior Court, prosecutors said.

Between 1982 and 1984, when Chalk was a leader of a troop in Central Falls, he allegedly assaulted a male victim who was 13 or younger. The victim was a member of the troop.

Authorities say the abuse occurred at St. Matthew's Church, where the troop held its meetings.

Chalk was previously convicted in 1999 of first-degree child molestation and sexual assault against three minors, also members of the Boy Scouts. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Prosecutors say Chalk is due back in court Oct. 26 for a pre-trial conference. It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney.

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