Leininger: respected community leader, child rapist

The man at the center of a lawsuit against the Boy Scouts for failing to monitor him at a time when he was sexually abusing young girls in the 1970s was a respected member of the community in Kalispell from the time he arrived in 1956 until his arrest in 1975.

In fact, a few months after William H. Leininger Jr. arrived in Kalispell for the first time in 1956, he was hired to be the county probation officer. He later went on to fill a number of other positions of trust in the community, including as Red Cross disaster director.

That all came crashing down on July 8, 1975, when Leininger was arrested on six felony counts of sexual intercourse without consent involving six minor girls.

In coverage of Leininger’s arrest in the Daily Inter Lake at the time, county attorney Patrick Springer was quoted as saying that the six girls had “made statements that between December [1974] and July 1 [1975] they were forced to engage in sexual intercourse with Leininger.”

The girls ranged from 11 to 14 years old and some endured more than 100 instances of sexual abuse from Leininger.

Leininger was convicted and in 1976 was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with some time suspended, for the Kalispell rapes. In 1982, he pleaded guilty to raping two other girls in Anaconda and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Leininger died in state custody in 2002 at age 80.

The Inter Lake’s coverage of Leininger’s arrest and trial was relatively low-key considering the significant nature of the charges. Nothing was said about any of Leininger’s many associations in the community, including the fact that he had been sports editor at the Inter Lake from approximately 1968 to 1970 and wrote a column under the byline “Wild Bill.” (One notable column recounted Leininger’s experiences as a young high school basketball player in Indiana playing for first-time coach John Wooden, who later went on to a legendary college-coaching career at UCLA.)

Despite the downplayed press coverage (most of the stories appeared on inside pages and contained nothing of a sensational nature), the impact on the community of having such a well-known figure arrested for such a heinous crime must have been considerable.

According to a press release from the attorneys for the women who are suing, “The abuser tore apart the young lives of the many trusting girls he abused, as well as the community of Kalispell.”

According to the lawsuit filed Wednesday in Cascade County, the girls were members of the two co-ed Explorers Posts (100 and 131) that were run by Leininger.

Five of the victims contend that the Boy Scouts of America organization was negligent for failing to supervise Leininger and for not having safeguards in place to prevent child abuse.

Leininger had a long history with scouting in the Flathead Valley. He was the leader of Troops 20 and 76 in Kalispell as well as the two Explorer Posts. In addition, he had served as chairman of the Northwest Montana District for the Boy Scouts.

Although the lawsuit alleges that the Boy Scouts did not have safeguards in place to prevent child abuse, one story from Jan. 31, 1972, indicates that there was at least a rudimentary protection afforded to the girls. Leininger was quoted as announcing that Marla Manning had been appointed to the staff of Explorer Post 100 as an “assistant advisor and chaperone for the post.”

The post committee also included a number of community notables such as Sheriff Curt Snyder, Inter Lake Publisher Charles Pettit, Mrs. Sam Bibler, Dr. Bruce Allison and the Rev. Odin Baugh.

During the period when the rapes were occurring, the Inter Lake reported that Leininger stepped down as scoutmaster of Troops 20 and 76 on March 6, 1975.

In 1974, the Boy Scouts gave Leininger the Silver Beaver award, the highest adult award in scouting.

There was no indication in reporting at the time or in the court papers filed in Great Falls Wednesday whether Leininger was under suspicion for his crimes at the time.

In addition to his association with the Boy Scouts, Leininger was an authority figure in a number of other organizations where he would have had contact with teenage girls and other young children.

Pictures published in the Inter Lake during the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s show him often in contact with young people.

What is probably the first picture of Leininger in the Inter Lake after he moved to the Flathead depicts him in July 1956 when he was a lifeguard and swimming instructor at Bruckhauser Pool in Woodland Park. The July 11 photo shows Leininger tying a young woman’s hands and feet together at the edge of the pool as they prepare for a demonstration of “drownproofing.”

His involvement in water safety extended back to his earlier years in Michigan and continued until the time of his arrest. In May 1975, Leininger was given the National Water Safety Congress service award for his many contributions to water safety. He had been named water safety chairman by the local Red Cross board in 1967.

The Inter Lake story on the award noted that “Leininger has taught swimming, lifesaving or small craft operation to over 4,000 students, in addition to setting up programs for community pools, organization camps and beaches and giving water safety demonstrations at public gatherings.”

Also in May 1975, the Inter Lake ran a photo of Leininger with an announcement that he would be in charge of a new Red Cross Youth Group that would be “trained to handle emergency and disaster situations.”

To see a snapshot of Leininger’s stature in the community, you could study an advertisement that ran in November 1966 when Leininger was making an unsuccessful bid for state Senate as a Republican.

His biography noted some of his many accomplishments, calling Leininger “a man dedicated to the day-by-day problems of the people.” In addition to his role in scouting, he was cited as a World War II and Korean Marine veteran, a Kalispell insurance man, a former railroader at Whitefish, post director and district commander in the American Legion, chairman of the Flathead Veterans Council, member and former committeeman of the AFL-CIO, and “active in civic and youth activities.”

Various other positions held by Leininger in his 20 years in the Flathead included post commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, team captain for the Whitefish Civilian Defense rescue team that was prepared to respond to nuclear attack or natural catastrophe, and chairman of the Cornhusker Touchdown Club to celebrate Nebraska football.

He also was president of the Flathead Historical Society.

He also was the co-author of a historical musical comedy called “Boots and Saddles” about the comic exploits of Gen. Custer’s 7th Cavalry the year before they perished at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

But all the accomplishments of William H. Leininger Jr. pale beside the horrific crimes he committed.

Managing Editor Frank Miele may be reached at 758-4447 or by email at edit@dailyinterlake.com.